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

[reformedsinner]

Why, thank you! I'm afraid I didn't quite make it to your age, but....

[Well, guessing by the faint worry-lines around Hijikata's eyes, at least: Hakkai would be surprised if he's beyond mid-thirties, but that's still a good five years older than the outside guess Hakkai'd make on his own age.

Hakkai peers into the fog. He still can't quite make out movement to go with those sounds, but, he thinks, they're getting a little louder.]

... Shall we take care of one more while we're at it?

[koukai_kirai]

[Hijikata smiles, watching and waiting as the sound comes nearer.]

Why not? I could go another round.

[reformedsinner]

And there's no shortage of targets.

[Hakkai casually brushes a hand through his bangs, snapping the singed strands and shaking them free. A few stick to the smears of blood from the corpses he'd ripped apart, and he has to wipe his hand on his already-ruined yukata, wrinkling his nose.]

What a shame, I shouldn't have dressed for the festival...

[Ah! There. His sentence breaks off as he spots a swirl in the fog, coalescing into the edge of a float and a drum mounted on its platform. The float's moving towards them, slow and lumbering as its wheels bump over the body parts littering the asphalt.]

[koukai_kirai]

Better overdressed than underdressed.

[Of course, his own yukata isn't looking too pretty right now... oh, well.]

[Hijikata dashes forward as the new float approaches, running behind another food stall. No convenient fuel in this one, but he unhooks the ropes supporting the makeshift structure and shoves the frame of it over in front of the float. It won't stop it, but the jumble of metal and cloth will certainly be enough of a pain to drive over that it'll be slowed down while they come up with a way to take this one down.]

[reformedsinner]

It's just a terrible fashion choice for dismemberment!

[He darts forward, on Hijikata's heels, watching as the frame of the stall tumbles down to tangle with the float's wheels. The rope supporting its awning wraps around the axle as the float pushes forward, and it slows, metal and wood creaking loudly with the force of the movement.

Hakkai cuts left, waving one arm to send his wide sleeve flapping out like a flag. He still doesn't know how the floats see, but this one is starting to turn towards him as he moves, even though it's slowed by the wreckage snarled in its front wheels.]

Grab another rope while you're over there, please!

[Its wheels are partly snared and it's turning sideways. If they can topple it to the street, it'll be helpless, but for that, they'll have to pull at the top of the float. There's no way they'll have enough leverage otherwise, even with youkai strength on their side.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Rope, huh? Hijikata works as quickly as he can to untie enough knots to pull the rope completely free of the structure, but it's not exactly the quickest of tasks...]

Buy me a few seconds!

[Hakkai didn't have any trouble doing that before, at least, and he'll have a hard time getting the rope free if he's being crushed.]

[reformedsinner]

Yes!

[Hakkai keeps waving his arms, luring the float's attention. It jerks back and forth against its tangled wheel again (is it getting better movement this time? He's afraid it might be) and he darts to its side, aiming a side-kick with his full weight behind it at the edge of one of its wheels. Wood cracks, but doesn't break through. The whirring of the float's engine sounds angry.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Who put this many knots in the rope, anyway? Clearly someone who didn't expect someone to need it at a moment's notice. Still, after a brief period of untying them as fast as he can (which is perhaps not as fast as he'd be able to without adrenaline making small, careful movements more difficult for him), he tugs the rope free and teleports over to Hakkai's side.]

Here.

[reformedsinner]

[Hakkai grabs the rope, judging its length with a quick glance -- enough for one loop around, he thinks, and hands the free end back to Hijikata.]

Here. I'm going to tie this end at the top so we can pull it down. Ready?

[He doesn't wait, instead making a leap for the side of the float. His claws sink into the wood, scoring deep white lines through the bright red-and-gold enamel, and he scrambles up. Another ten feet. Five. There, and the gilded finial at the float's top is conveniently supported by pillars. He winds the rope in a quick figure-eight around two of them, struggling to keep his balance against the float's thrashing movements as he sways dizzyingly back and forth in the sky. Just a little more.

He frees his other hand from its death grip on the wood, and knots the rope, fast, before the float's next lurch shakes him free.

Midair, he arches backwards, tucks, and rolls as he hits the ground, coming up twenty feet away breathing hard.]

Pull!

[He dashes back towards Hijikata, ready to add his own strength to the effort. The float is off-balance and rocking already, but it's big, and it might need the strength of two.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Hijikata does precisely as he's told -- he holds onto the rope, with enough space at the end that he won't lose it completely if he slips a little, digs his heels in, and waits.]

[The moment Hakkai starts moving towards him, he's pulling, rope wound around his hands to keep it steady. He's a big, solid man, and his muscles clearly aren't just for show, but even with the float already off balance, it's not easy -- he's giving it all the strength he's got, but with the float trying to right itself, he's mostly just able to keep it off balance, not topple it over completely. There's some progress, but it's slow, and it's anyone's guess how long he can keep straining himself like this.]

[reformedsinner]

[Hijikata's making progress, but it is too much for just one person. He's close to the end of the rope, and so Hakkai grabs for the tense rope just in front of his hands, his own wiry muscles standing out along his shoulders and arms as he puts his inhuman strength into it, too.

With just Hijikata pulling, the float had been tilting slowly. With two, the tilt accelerates, bit by bit, until that dizzy moment when it wobbles on two wheels and gravity takes control.

The vast structure begins to fall towards them.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Even when the float is past that tipping point, Hijikata waits a moment longer. He pulls as hard as he can in that moment -- and then, as the float crashes towards them, he sets a hand on Hakkai's arm and goes to teleport the both of them out of the way.]

[reformedsinner]

[Hakkai had been about to leap free when Hijikata's hand settles on his arm, and he hesitates, waiting to see what the other man is doing. The street fades around him with the abrupt speed of teleportation.]

[koukai_kirai]

[He reappears them in the street, well clear of where the float landed. Once they're safely on the ground, he lets go of the shinki's arm immediately.]

That should take care of that one.

[reformedsinner]

I should say so!

[The float struck with a juddering crash, splinters and bigger pieces of wood flying from the impact. It's not even trying to move anymore.

Hakkai brushes a bit of splintered wood away from his sleeve, and smiles cheerfully.]

Thank you for your help. -- I should see if I can find my god, though.

[With a slight frown, he adds:] He was supposed to be near the beer stand, but in all of this, well.

[koukai_kirai]

[Hijikata nods, perhaps a little calmer than he ought to be when they're both as surrounded by wreckage and smashed bodies as they are.]

Don't let me keep you.

[He smiles another of his sharp little smiles.]

It's been a pleasure.

[reformedsinner]

It has indeed!

[Hakkai's smile back is wider, but equally sharp. He inclines his head politely, and turns to go.]