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

[toremainbehind]

[He shakes his head.]

No.

[He made a promise that he wouldn't, didn't he? Izumo's not close to Ichiru; he barely knows him, but even he's aware is how dangerous this kind of revelation could be.

Of course, Izumo will only tell if Zero gives him permission.]

I figure this isn't the sort of thing you'd want me to tell him.

[moonlitknight]

[ The tension in his shoulders slowly uncoils. ]

What happened to me... turning into an ayakashi. I don't want that to happen to him.

[ He didn't know the exact reason he'd turned, but from all he'd gathered since his return, he knew his past had played a role. He'd never been someone to let go of the past, he doubted that would have changed even without his memories. Whatever had happened to him, Zero was determined to protect Ichiru from it. He'd lead him to the answers he needed, it was his right to know, but he couldn't tell him directly. He wouldn't risk his life just so he could have his brother back. ]

[toremainbehind]

That's understandable.

[The need to protect your family, the need to keep them away from harm.

Izumo can relate, if not faintly. He's not sure what it is, but Izumo knows he'd do the same if it was his family.]

Then I'll keep this away from him.

[moonlitknight]

[ And after another few moments of silence: ]

You can go if you want. I'm going to stay another while.

[ More than a while. ]

[toremainbehind]

Are you sure?

[moonlitknight]

You've done enough.

[ He crouches down, settling down at the end of the grave. ]

There's nothing left to do.

[ But mourn and they weren't anything to him. ]

[toremainbehind]

[For a moment, Izumo doesn't say anything; he studies Zero before he gives a nod.]

Alright, very well.

[And so, he'll leave and allow Zero his peace.]