018 | Season Spirits

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Season spirits and spooky things
When: IC August 1-15
Where: The Near Shore and Far Shore
Summary: It's the time for spirits to get a bit more 'lively'.



August is a spiritual season in Japan with many people preparing for the Obon festival but many others get into the spirit in another way. All across Japan, people have begun to share their favorite summer ghost stories. Movie theaters advertise the hottest horror flick of the season, teenagers challenge each other to do trials of courage, haunted houses begin to pop up, and it feels like you can't change the channel without switching to some ghost hunting urban legend special. All of this talk about spirits comes at a cost, though.

July comes and passes easily enough but it's almost as if as soon as August begins, so do the incidents. There's an increase in spiritual activity and shenanigans on both shores. Some of them are harmless spooks but others are much more sinister. Arm yourselves with all of the ofuda and omamori you can find and get out there and restore peace!



Possessed Possessions

Inhabitants of the Far Shore may awaken to find their sheets trying to strangle them and shoes stomping on the floor around them. Others may go about their day and find out their teapots suddenly only serve lukewarm tea or their weapons are trying to take swings at them. They're just playful spirits that will abandon their hosts if you shove any ofuda/omamori at them or yell loudly enough. They aren't malicious spirits... they were only just trying to have some fun.

Spirited Festivals

There's a festival every weekend and some of them have set up haunted houses for patrons to visit. You have your standard haunted house thrills... costume make up, jump scares, special effects smoke, the usual! But it looks like some real ghosts have made themselves at home here. Visitors are going in and emerging hours later absolutely traumatized. It looks like once you enter, the real spirits walk you around in circles and give you real scares. There are some spirits here just to have fun thrills and these are spirits that can be chased away with regular ofuda. But it looks like the more violent ones are actually ayakashi out for vengeance. Be careful in there!

Cursed Charms

There sure are some weird trends out there, huh? The latest one is buying cursed trinkets off the internet and passing them off as gifts to unsuspecting victims whether it be to prank a friend or get revenge on an enemy. Cursed mirrors, dolls, fake ofuda, VHS tapes, and so on are being passed around the Near Shore and spreading all sorts of curses.

• Bad luck. As long as you're in possession of the cursed item, you'll be followed by bad luck to varying degrees depending on the quality of the charm.
• Fear. Holding onto this charm results in intense, crippling fear. The fear can manifest as an intense paranoia at all times or being frozen with fear in the face of danger. Some say you can even die of fright...
• Sickness. This charm is pretty straightforward. Having this charm just makes you feel incredibly under the weather and your health will worsen the longer you have the charm.
• Evil. Holding onto this charm results in you being followed attracting evil instead of warding it. Suddenly, you feel as though you are always being followed, as if something is stalking you and clearly out to get you. You begin to run into smaller ayakashi at first but they keep growing in strength and number until you can't fight anymore.
• Bad romance. Someone's meddled with a romance charm so it ends relationships instead of making them! People stuck with this charm are suddenly hyper aware of the faults of others. Everything gets on your nerves and you can't stand being around that person because they're just that annoying. It doesn't just work on couples! It also works on friends and relatives too.
• Bears? An oddly specific curse. It looks like someone has taken a protection from bears charm and made it so now you attract bears where ever you go. Some of them are nice but others...

You can try to destroy the charms but you will find that unless you have purification powers or rend it, the effects last. It looks like most people have been able to shake off the effects by simply disposing of them at temples and buying another charm to counter the effects.

Haunting Hour

There are reports of violent attacks at night-- people being pulled into alleys and attacked, school children being chased by slashers while walking home from school, homes being broken into-- and all of it is done without a single clue left behind to explain who did it. People are warned to be careful at night and as the sun begins to set, something happens. The hour between sunset and dark is supposed to be the scariest hour them all. At this time, the shadows are suspiciously bigger and darker and you constantly see things just out of the corner of your eye. Suddenly, the wind blows cold and there's a rotten smell in the air like blood. It's Oumagatoki, the hour evil spirits meet. Small time ayakashi and spirits on the verge of becoming ayakashi spill into the streets and begin to terrorize others. Protect the people of the Near Shore and watch your own backs.*

* These are just generic ayakashi! Nothing special, nothing specific. Feel free to make up and NPC your own two-bit ayakashi.

THEN WHO WAS PHONE?

In the evening, everyone will receive a set of coordinates and a message from an Anonymous sender,

I want to talk about the
mysterious things that have been happening
lately.
OF course, i
NEED
EVERYONE to come. so don't be
late! see
yoU.
:)

Everyone receives it and there is no way to track where the message came from. If you follow the directions, you'll arrive at a small temple on the outskirts of a city. A sacred fire is lit on the grounds for people to dispose of any cursed or old charms they may have collected. Hang around a bit and it'll become obvious that no one knows who has gathered all of you here tonight. The only ones around are gods and shinki. It doesn't look like any evil spirits are around so other than being invited to the middle of no where at night... there's nothing to worry about. If you wait around, nothing will happen. So while you're here, you might as well discuss the strange happenings! Or tell ghost stories around the fire.

Wildcard

Choose your own adventure! Feel free to make up your own prompts. Ronald Knox's player (diehardreaper) has offered up their temple as a test of courage in the Far Shore for those who want to try their luck. Check out their description under the Baron's manor.

In Summary:

• Beat the heat by feeling a scary chill
• Deal with cursed and spirit-imbued items
• Keep the Near Shore people safe
• Chat about your scary encounters
• Have fun~

Comments

[talkbirdytome]

Why not? It's not like we're shoplifting. I'm gonna pay for all their snacks.

[One of the bears takes that opportunity to drop a bag of dried squid into her basket.]

Haha you sure like that stuff a lot Growly.

[She pokes him in the stomach playfully. He growls a little grumpily, but accepts it.]

[dragonflood]

...That's true. I assume you're talking about something more dangerous than this, though. [Since gods and shinki weren't among the casualties for this occasion, as far as she knows.]

[The description he gives doesn't sound much like the things she's used to; she's glad she clarified that before one could surprise her.] Do they ever copy human forms?

Re: Cursed Charms

[drops_acid]

[She cringes further back, shrinking into the corner as much as she can.]

No, I- I don't know. Just please.... don't come any closer.

[Cardia isn't even sure what she's scared of at this point. She's quite forgotten the hairpin that she's still clutching in her gloved hands.]

Re: Fear

[drops_acid]

Lavi...?

[Upon hearing his voice she relaxes. Just slightly. She can still feel the fear and paranoia clawing at her mind but... this is Lavi. He wouldn't hurt her. She believes that. So for the first time the fear starts to feel unnatural. Like it belongs to someone else.

Even so, she still can't make herself leave the tiny corner she's wedged herself into. Instead, she calls out. For him though, the message is different than the one she's been giving everyone else.]

Please don't go...

Re: charms

[drops_acid]

Oh!

[Cardia lets out a small surprised gasp at the sudden appearance of the familiar figure. Oddly the trappings of a phantom thief are somewhat comforting to Cardia. But not quite enough to override the curse of the hairpin she's clutching tightly.]

I... I'm sorry but..

[She swallows and her eyes dart to the end of the alley nervously.]

You should go. It- it isn't safe here.

[Whether it's not safe because of her or because of some unknown threat is unclear. Even to Cardia.]

[nopixiedust]

[Listen, after a bunch of meetings, shared food, and absolutely not business relationship, why use his last name? And anyway, it's a lot more amusing to hear a bunch of children call him "Shun-san".]

[Wendy nods at the reasoning.]

Good point... It's so hot that it's a little tricky to really hide anything worthwhile since I don't want to wear a whole bunch.

And it's not like there's really anything that would really be sized with a kid like me in mind...

[junkyarddog]

[If Ken were in a channel at the moment, and had a tail to wag, he'd do it. But it's still perfectly obvious he's pleased by the patting. He all but leans into it, and his huff of "I'm not a dog, byon" seems more afterthought than anything.

He looks down at the shoes as Oona speaks. Then, experimentally, he releases one, as if to see if it will move - and his hand promptly lashes out and pins it again when it tries to make a break for it.]

Can you control 'em if you're wearing 'em? [He holds up the reclaimed shoe to her, clearly feeling that the quickest way to find out is through experimenting.]

[junkyarddog]

[Ken sniffs at the air and considers. The atmosphere feels normal to him, but he has to concede that for a girl like Sakura, it doesn't seem to be a suitable place. Soft and pretty and nice shouldn't be combined with blood and menacing, probably. Which just goes to show how little Ken knows about women.]

Okay. Don't worry, byon. I'm scarier than anything out here. [He says this with genuine pride.]

[junkyarddog]

[Luckily, Ken's fairly recognizable. His hairstyle's barely changed over the years - he's added some clips in his hair, but that's about the only difference - and the broad stripe of the scar over the bridge of his nose was there even while he was younger.

The name he might have given back then, though, is distinctly different from back then.]

I called myself Quattordici back then, but I'm Ken now. [He grins.] You pushed me around, byon!

[put_a_ring_on_it]

There must be something drawing them here...

[She's already glancing around, as if that will produce the revelation she's hoping for.]

[very_goodman]

All right. Just help keep the bears off me, okay?

[They're here for Davesprite, so hopefully that won't be hard.]

[very_goodman]

Couldn't hurt to give the whole place a once over.

[lostinshadows]

[He carefully comes closer, not wanting to spook her out.

It's not exactly a big area to walk in, but he doesn't keep his eye off of her. There's something almost unnatural about the way she's acting, almost like a reminder of how afraid she was when they first met and she hesitated on talking to him about her acid.

However, he gives her a smile, crouching down in front of her.]

I'm not going anywhere, Cardia.

[clothes_make_the_man]

[This is probably not the sort of cuddling with a cute boy Oona envisioned when she first met Forrest, but here we are anyway. And as long as she's holding him there, he keeps his face half-buried into her shoulder and arms looped around her neck.]

I don't know! I didn't think it would be this bad! It was supposed to be entertaining and fun!

[clothes_make_the_man]

I just thought I would go for a little walk in the night air. I didn't expect the atmosphere to be like this.

[artificialrose]

[Holy- Garry doesn't dare look behind him at the sound of wings beating, but jeez is it a relief when he sees that neon orange swoop past him. Only one person he's met so far has been that kind of eye-searing color.]

[Running his ass off as he is, he can't really answer because his lungs are being used for other more important things, but he gives a hasty sort of hand-flap thumbs-up combination that looks an absolute mess.]

[HE'LL BE.... FINE.... JUST LET HIM REACH HIS GOD'S SHRINE, HE'LL BE GOOD]

[artificialrose]

Even then...

[The fear factor is still there, prickling the back of is mind. Still, best he can, he pushes himself up and does his best to try and not look.]

Thank you very much. I didn't mean to trouble a stranger.

[nopixiedust]

[Oh. Well that was easier than expected. Wendy lowers the bat, nodding.]

We even have a rough idea of where to go... It's just a lot of stops and a lot of kids.

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun just raises his eyebrow right back. He's not even going to deign to answer that, because if Fubuki still thinks he'd waste his time on something like that when he's been his shinki for this long, he has another thing coming.

For the moment, the pillow wave retreats to regroup (after it starts giggling slightly less). In turn, Shun allows himself to put a bit more of his focus on the subject at hand - not that he looks particularly concerned even so.]

No. [Not entirely true, but those are details Fubuki doesn't need to know, especially since he doubts telling a shinki about another shinki's death would be any better of an idea than telling them about their own.] And of course I saw it - I caused it, partially. It appeared when Munakata took his vessel form. [He'll let that sink in for the moment.]

[nopixiedust]

[Bugger. Wendy jolts at the sound of Hibiki's voice, no matter how far in the distance, and frowns.]

[That's it. Time to take drastic measures.]

[Wrapping a wire around the handle, Wendy glowers at the teapot.]

No more playing nice. We're done here.

[And with that, she lets go- and it only lasts a meter before whistling desperately. But that's why she has the wire, quickly dropping down to put her weight on the other end of it while the wire itself digs into the branches. A quick climb, teapot retrieval, and she's hastily making her way down the tree.]

Hibiki! Is that you!?

[mostsuitable]

[The other shinki's remark was a little strange, though Reisi thinks that he may be missing some context. He glances again at Enomoto to study his expression before deciding he might revisit that comment later.

What Munakata gets out of this answer is that the other shinki didn't always have the sword with him, and that he's been here for longer than three months.]

How did you you remove it from the rock?

[nopixiedust]

I didn't do nothin'!

[Wendy huffs, although it doesn't do much good when she's clinging like she is.]

I was just minding my own business and then these bears wouldn't stop following me!

[mostsuitable]

[Look him over again, and anyone could tell Reisi is fo real. Always.

Anyway, Reisi examines their surroundings before replying.]

Other than a wafting foulness in the air, nothing in this area. It's possible there's something in the direction that smell is coming from, or that whatever it is will soon come this way.

[artificialrose]

[WELL THAT HAPPENED]

[Garry nearly has a heart attack at the sudden appearance of the Valkyrie, although that's half because he's nearly there to start with. Once he realizes what's happened, however, he slows to a stop, clutching at his chest.]

I.... heard... [Okay, wait, no, let him catch his breath first.] I heard that ayakashi could only be destroyed by Rending them... so I didn't want to keep near them...

But whenever I tried to draw a borderline, a few would always end up past it before it was done, or they'd break through it.

[It's still something he's working on improving, he knows.]

[artificialrose]

[Honestly? For a second he almost forgets about how borderlines work, but his momentum means he can't stop- which is good in this case. As he hears ayakashi crashing into the borderline behind him, Garry slows down, doubling over with his hands on his knees as he pants.]

[The commentary earns a tense smile.]

Not all of us came out of amnesia with battle skills, I'm afraid to say.