013 | Down To Business

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Training
When: Morning June 16
Where: Bishamon's temple
Summary: Training sessions for everyone to learn more about their abilities and jobs!



Many people have been wanting to know more about their abilities and what they are required to do here in the Far Shore. So, in conjunction with Bishamonten, the Heavens have seen fit to offer an open training session for everyone to participate in. Here you will be able to learn anything and everything about what you should be able to do and what is expected of you in your new positions.

Bishamon's temple is sweeping and gorgeous, having previously been home to hundreds of shinki. She has graciously offered to hold this training session and will be available to help anyone who needs it.



Equipment

Various kinds of mannequins and dummies have been provided for practice, as well as targets that are either stationary or move, depending on your will. Punching bags, jumping blocks, and a large pool area have also been provided for your use, so that you can find a tool for pretty much anything that you might need to practice. Plenty of practice weapons of various weights, sizes, and shapes are also available upon request from any of the many white-clad shinki that are also attending today.

God Training

Bishamon herself will be the foremost source of information regarding being a god and what is expected of you. It is also encouraged that gods group up together to practice what they've learned and discuss their ideologies. Random groupings can be provided by the mods or you may come up with your own groupings together.

Shinki Training

Various shinki are available to help with shinki training, including Kazuma and all of Bishamon's shinki. Additionally, the white-clad shinki will be more than happy to train you on using the borderline and some of the basics of what is expected of a shinki. It is also encouraged that shinki group up together to practice what they've learned and discuss their ideologies. Random groupings can be provided by the mods or you may come up with your own groupings together.

Refreshments

There is a refreshments table provided. It is covered with light snacks and various kinds of hydrating drinks. There is a little sitting area set up for people to relax in after they have finished their training or if they're even just taking a quick break to cool down. The Heavens want you to stay in good condition!

In Summary:

• Use the state of the art equipment
• Learn about your job
• Form groups to practice
• Don't get dehydrated
• Spectate if you want
• Have fun~

Comments

[nibelungvalesti]

[It is 100% single-minded. All Lenneth knows is duty -- in some respects, she is worse that a shinki, who knows nothing and thus is more of a blank slate. Though a goddess, she has never been prayed to.]

So you would fight better with a more suitable weapon? What would you require?

[declamando]

[After a moment of consideration with the lance again, Maria puts it to one side to observe the rest of the weapons rack.]

A sword or bladed whip would be my best option of what's here. I've had trouble finding swords as short as the one I'm used to using, though.

[Apparently, the size between dagger and sword is less popular than she would have imagined.]

[nibelungvalesti]

[Lenneth draws her own sword, holding it out between the two of them sideways and parallel to the ground.]

Compare it to mine. I may be able to aid you.

[declamando]

[Looking the sword up and down for a moment, Maria holds her hand sideways and rests it about halfway down the weapon's full length.]

It's around that size, maybe a little longer. I can use a full sword, but I'm much more used to the shorter style.

[nibelungvalesti]

[Lenneth assesses her request for a moment, then sheathes her sword once more, her eyes very distant indeed.]

[A moment later, two great white wings unfurl from her back, and as they do, motes of pure white light descend from them, drifting towards the Valkyrie's open hand. A shape coalesces, and as Lenneth closes her hand around it, it resolves into a sword of about the length Maria described, not terribly fancy but of fine workmanship and possessing the ether coating that would keep it from breaking even in the fiercest of circumstances.]

[The wings vanish as if they had never been, and Lenneth focuses her gaze on Maria once more as she rotates the sword to offer her the hilt.]

[declamando]

[Though there's a note of obvious awe on Maria's face when the wings spread out and the lights begin to come together at Lenneth's hand, it's not nearly of the openness some mortals might be inclined towards. It's not as if Maria herself hasn't manifested wings before, or summoned weapons from light, but it's still rather impressive to see someone else do it with nothing but their own power.

When the blade is offered to her, Maria reaches a hand out to take it, weighing the blade in her hand and switching to a reverse grip and back with a deft familiarity.]

That's quite impressive. One of your powers?

[nibelungvalesti]

I would be a poor Valkyrie indeed if I could not provide for Einherjar.

[But even as she says that, her head tilts slightly, the strongest sort of curiosity she can muster at the moment.]

My... limits on summoning appear to be somewhat relaxed, however. Ordinarily I should have limits on the number of items I can create, and yet...

[declamando]

[That's a good point - even if Maria doesn't know the details of this woman's role herself, it seems obvious enough that someone in that position would need the ability to provide for weapons.

Hearing that she normally has a limit that appears to not be in place brings a curious look to Maria's face, though, and she lowers the sword to her side in a controlled, professional manner.]

Has that limit changed since you got here, then? [Glancing down at the sword, Maria inclines her head politely.] Thank you, by the way. It's the closest thing to what I'm used to I've handled so far today.

[nibelungvalesti]

It is doubtless because I have been assigned a new mantle of divinity. [Nothing else has changed, so what else COULD be responsible/ That's simple logic.] Ordinarily I would be granted strength from Valhalla, which I could then spend to materialize what I wished. Here, however, I seem to possess a substantial quantity of that strength without having ever been granted it.

[declamando]

[That is about the only thing that makes sense to Maria as well, even though she doesn't know much about Valhalla or valkyries, not least how they might work in this woman's world.] So your power has expanded what you already had, then. If that's the ability they've given you as a god in this place, perhaps it's what they thought the most appropriate for someone who's only taking up a new divine role.

[nibelungvalesti]

Perhaps, but I am as yet unwilling to state that this power has only that effect. It feels... more, somehow. [She brings a hand up to her chest, fingers pressed against her breastplate as she contemplates.]

[declamando]

That's probably safe to assume. I think a lot of the powers here have more to them than they appear, and you did only just arrive. [Maria's been here for about a month now, and she still doesn't quite know the full extent of what her power actually does.]

[nibelungvalesti]

[The Valkyrie lifted two fingers to her chin, the better to concentrate on the power within her.]

Perhaps it would be more useful if I had other outlets for the energy. Were another god to be able to materialize items, I might be able to give them some of that strength.

[declamando]

[Maria seems to consider for a moment before nodding slightly, even though the look on her face doesn't seem promising.]

I'm afraid I haven't met anyone like that yet - the closest I've seen was summoning illusions. My own power seems to be something to do with healing, but I admit I haven't had much of a chance to figure it out yet.

[nibelungvalesti]

Healing, but no other magic? How strange. [In Midgard, of course, mages cast spells of healing just as they cast any other spells, and so the Valkyrie bundles them all together by association.] Perhaps you have the ability to learn other spells?

[declamando]

I've heard others mention having gained healing powers coming in, though the first one I heard it from had theirs come from song. [Maria sounds much less perturbed by the concept, but that might just be because she was introduced to it almost immediately on coming here.] In any case, I think working out what I already have before trying to learn something new would be the wiser course.

[nibelungvalesti]

Versatility brings gain. [Lenneth's opinion on the matter, and all she'll say in response. A wizard with a dozen spells is far stronger than one with two.] What of the strengths and abilities you possessed before coming here?

[declamando]

That's true, but knowing yourself well does too. [Maria may not agree on that particular matter, but it's clearly something they have rather different views on, so she moves past it. Lenneth's question leads Maria to touch slightly at her throat - there's the string of a necklace visible there, but the pendant disappears under her shirt.]

I didn't have any inherent magical abilities before I came here, but my relic still damages me when I use it too long. And my normal strength and fighting skills were intact, obviously, but about the same as I remember them being.

[nibelungvalesti]

[Even describing herself as possessing normal strength and fighting skills is more than many here can do, which is somewhat of a relief for Lenneth. But one particular phrase catches her attention.]

Forgive me -- your 'relic'?

[declamando]

[Maria doesn't seem surprised at the question, though she hesitates somewhat habitually when it comes to actually showing what she means. However, after a moment, she does so, hooking the rest of her necklace out of her shirt and into view with her thumb. Attached to the string is something that looks almost like a long red crystal, shining oddly in the sun.]

I used this to fight back home, but I needed special injections to resonate with it properly. Without those, the discord between myself and the relic damages my body.

[nibelungvalesti]

[That -- opens up so many questions, Lenneth doesn't know where to begin.]

Special injections? That seems like a very dangerous and inefficient means by which to fight.

[declamando]

[Well, Lenneth isn't exactly wrong there, and Maria's expression becomes a little more serious.]

It's dangerous, yes, but someone has to do it. It's incredibly rare for someone to inherently resonate enough with a relic to use it without damage, and even then they can suffer life-threatening injuries if they use enough power from it. In my case...I know well that if I use too much of its power, I'll die.

[There's a certain weight to her words there, one of someone who more than knows the consequences, they've seen them.]

[nibelungvalesti]

And yet, why use such relics in the first place? Do they offer such a powerful advantage over ordinary swords and spells? [Is she like unto a Dragonian, capable of transforming herself with the use of this relic?]

[declamando]

[That's a much more simple question to answer, and Maria nods firmly. With such a hefty cost to their use, there had to be a significant strategic advantage to using a relic.] In my world, there are creatures that can't be defeated with conventional weapons - swords, guns, or whatever else. Those are what relics are used to fight against. As well as acting as a weapon, they shield the wearer.

[nibelungvalesti]

And the gods of your world provide no aid? [Unsurprising, but irritating. It is one thing to speak of such creatures as the enemies of Asgard; it is quite another to, having so proclaimed them, do nothing about them. At the very least, their gods ought to send their own Valkyrie.]