011 | Black Parade

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Parade of the dead
When: All day May 26
Where: Shinjuku
Summary: The Near Shore needs a little protecting from the dead



The last few days have been filled with festival food, high energy, and lots and lots of parades. Near Shore residents really know how to enjoy their holidays, stopping up traffic for hours on end as floats and palanquins go by and filling the streets and courtyards in the area with food stands and festival treats. Many Far Shore residents may have found themselves drawn to this particular festival, as it is being held in honor of a shrine.

When an unexpected parade starts up, the people gather round to watch the impromptu spectacle. It's a little strange, yes, but nothing too terribly off-putting. That is until the parade reaches the shrine itself, at which point all hell breaks loose as the members of the parade start attacking anything and anyone in their way.

The Heavens will then call upon all the gods and shinki who are available to help, because these attackers are not normal at all - they are, in fact, the undead.



Let the Festivities Continue

The festival is a large, booming one. There are dozens upon dozens of food stalls set up all over the place with so many different kinds of foods that it could make your eyes go buggy, most of them fried in some way. On top of that, there is live entertainment walking around, stalls with souvenirs, and lots of excellent company nearby. Surely you'll be able to enjoy the festival to its fullest.

The Walking Dead

It is not immediately evident that the parade is being manned by corpses, but keen observers would be able to pick out the noticeable rotting elements of the dead. Anyone with a soul-sensing ability might even realize that they're not soulless, just lifeless. When the parade reaches the shrine, every god and shinki will be needed in order to protect the Near Shore from this menace. Corpses must either be exorcised or completely mutilated to the point where they can no longer move in order to release the soul.

Not Rootbeer Floats

On top of the mass of dead bodies being possessed by stray souls, some of the floats on wheels in the parade seem to have been taken over as well. They are moving slowly and with purpose towards anyone that crosses their path. At first, it may seem like the float is just veering a little off course, but it will soon become evident that it's headed towards you. They may be slow, but they're very large as well, meaning there's a lot more than needs to be destroyed to release the soul.

Souls, Souls, and More Souls

As souls are released from the objects they've taken control of, the air will become thick with a hazy fog of souls rushing away, into the air, and out of sight. This may make the continued fighting a little more difficult, but it means that the job is getting done.

Through some innate sixth sense, some of the dead people may seem familiar to certain gods (or shinki with specific memories). They can recognize some of the souls as friends or compatriots from their home world that had died. And these souls will recognize them as well.

Any characters not currently in the game that have actually died in their canon are free to be used for this part of the event and played out as NPCs by you and whatever partner you are playing with. All of these individuals will react in a similar way, though - they will beg to be released because it hurts them so horribly to be here right now and, of course, they can only be released in the same way that all the other souls are being released: exorcism or total destruction.

In Summary:

• Enjoy the festival
• Help save Near Shore residents
• Take down the dead bodies
• Try not to cry
• Cry lots
• Have fun~

Comments

The Walking Dead

[toremainbehind]

[The festivities were not a surprising sight - at least, not one Izumo believed to be unexpected.

However, there was a strange feeling that came over him as he walks around the festival, taking in the sights and whatever else they had to offer. Games, food, even the occasional vendor hoping to sell something.

Yet, it did nothing to ease the tension slowly building inside of Izumo, so when he hears someone speak out - to him or to another - he glances over, eyebrows furrowing.]

So you got the same feeling, too?

[sharkmaid]

[Rin spares the passing crowd another glance before nodding once and trying again, this time honing in on one individual in particular as they walk a little closer. He's searching for something inside them, something lively and active... but nothing of the sort catches his attention.

It's unsettling, to say the least.]

They don't feel right to me.

What are you sensing?

[toremainbehind]

[Izumo's eyebrows furrow.

Unfortunately, he doesn't have the ability to sense souls; though, it's more of an instinctual feeling than anything. Nothing seemed right. It felt more like a chill that won't go away, especially with the way Izumo's own powers had been making him feel a bit warmer than usual.

He looks at the crowd again, taking note of what exactly made him feel off, but then he shakes his head.]

Can't say for certain, but something just doesn't seem right about this.

[sharkmaid]

[So it's not yet confirmed if there's something wrong here, but that doesn't mean he wants to let his guard down if he can help it. Crossing his arms, he heaves a soft sigh, then watches as the same person he was focusing on starts to make their way down the street, farther and farther away to where he can no longer sense their energy.]

I'm not entirely sure either, but...

[A beat. This might sound weird.]

I can't get a read on their hearts.

[toremainbehind]

[He follows Rin's gaze, but then his eyebrows furrow when he hears that last bit.]

You can read hearts?

[Wait. That's not the important part; it's the fact he can't get a read on it that mostly catches Izumo's attention.

He frowns as something enters his mind.]

Do you think that they might even have hearts?

[sharkmaid]

Something like that.

[Romantically speaking, sure, he can get a basic feel for a person's "heart." But realistically speaking it's more like... mind reading, maybe.

That question though-- He hums quietly in thought.]

It's... hard to say. To be honest, they don't exactly feel alive. Can you tell anything by looking at them?

[toremainbehind]

[That. Was an interesting ability if Izumo's ever heard, and he's seen quite a few interesting abilities during his stay here.

Though, Izumo does look at the crowd again.]

They look...as if they're going along with everything mechanically - like they're not completely there. [It's the best he can come up with, anyway.]

Being near them makes me uneasy.

[sharkmaid]

[He nods and takes note of the same pattern. Slow, mechanical, like a tired, lifeless machine. There's something not quite human about it and it leaves his skin crawling.]

Usually, it's easy for me to know what someone holds dear to them. But with them... it's like you said. They're not there enough for me to sense much of anything.

[No names, no objects, no nothing. It really is almost like they're--]

Ah. It looks like they're stopping up ahead though. There, see?

[Rin points towards the shrine where the front of the parade seems to be slowing down to a stop. What do they have planned?]

[toremainbehind]

It doesn't seem like they're even human.

[Then again, neither are they, technically speaking.

He looks at where the other man was pointing, though, and a frown tugs at his lips.

This. Wasn't good.

The bad feeling only seemed to increase.]

That kind of crowd isn't a good sign.

[sharkmaid]

[He nods towards that first comment. No, they don't seem very human at all. But how can they be sure? And with that crowd gathering farther away, it seems even harder to pinpoint any issues right off the bat.

Still, the other's last words have Rin furrowing his brow, unsettled.]

Think they're gonna try something?

[toremainbehind]

[Izumo doesn't want to confirm anything, but the uneasiness continues to grow.

He has no supernatural abilities that can help him discern whether or not something goes wrong - it's all a gut feeling for him.

Yet, as Izumo watches the crowd, he frowns deeply.]

They might.

[sharkmaid]

[Typically, he'd prefer not to have to think on his feet. A little planning can always lead to a better execution. But in this case, there's not much time on their side, so he has no other choice.

Something's wrong and he doesn't want to see it become worse.

But before Rin has the chance to respond, there appears to be a slight disturbance in the crowd, causing an abrupt chain reaction of parade goers to scatter and rush towards the onlookers with arms waving and mouths agape. Shit, they had less time than he thought!]

They're on the move!

[toremainbehind]

[The waving arms and gaping mouths reminds Izumo briefly of a horror movie, but when they tackle some onlookers and proceed to bite into them, he figures that might be the case.]

Got any ideas?

[Because now, some of them were heading in their direction as the others around them began to scream and run away or fight back and kill these things.]

[sharkmaid]

[As soon as Rin sees them beginning to attack, he's on the move, reaching out to grab for this guy beside him whether he likes it or not so they can start running in the opposite direction. They need to put some space between them and the riot before they can make any moves.]

Come on, this way!

[And while he's at it,]

What are you powers?

[toremainbehind]

[Izumo is quick to keep pace with the other man.

There's a brief thought as to how he gets himself into these kinds of situations before he's back to the matter at hand.]

I can use fire.

[His shinki powers, on the other hand...

Izumo doubts he'd be able to actually use it with Kensei currently elsewhere.]

[sharkmaid]

Fire?

[He looks over his shoulder at the impending crowd.]

Can you use it now?

[toremainbehind]

I can.

[Though his control is still left for debate.]

I don't have full control over it yet, so take caution.

[A red Aura appears briefly around Izumo before it forms into fireballs that aims directly at the growing crowd.]

[sharkmaid]

It's better than nothing.

[He hopes. And once the attack makes contact, it seems to stave off the front lines and buy them enough time to get a move on.]

Come on, we have to get out of here. Where's your god at?

[toremainbehind]

[As fortunate as it is to have such fire power, Izumo clicks his tongue.]

Probably at his temple.

[Or wandering somewhere. Izumo doesn't keep tabs on his god, really.]

What about you?

[sharkmaid]

You should find him. This doesn't look like a situation you'd want to be alone in.

[Speaking of which, Rin's shinki isn't around either, and in all this chaos he worries he won't be able to find him quickly enough.]

I came here with my shinki, but he's probably caught up in the crowd by now.

[toremainbehind]

Might be a good idea to split up then to find them.

[Even though Izumo's not sure if the crowd will die down a bit.]

You should find your shinki quickly, though.

[sharkmaid]

[He nods back, even if he's not all too sure about this situation himself. Still, they can't stand around doing nothing for long. They need to get a move on.]

I will. But... if you need help--

[He doesn't want this guy getting into any trouble because they went their separate ways.]

--my name's Rin. I'll be around.

[toremainbehind]

Izumo.

[He gives a nod.]

I'll call if I need your help.