25 - Troubled Waters

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Alleviating the troubles caused by conflict in Heaven
When: October 10
Where: Orihime's meadows in the Far Shore, as well as various places in Japan, China and Ireland
Summary: Orihime has been tasked by the Heavens with resolving the conflict caused in the mortal world by the new gods' struggles against one another. Several gods have been killed recently, and their violent deaths have led to dangerous corruption being released in the mortal world. Help Orihime expunge the corruption and return the human world to a peaceful existence.







Orihime's Meadows

Before traveling to the Far Shore, gods and shinki can meet and make plans near Orihime's modest home at the edge of the Southeastern District. Her dwelling is too small to accommodate even one team of gods and shinki arranging something as serious as this, let alone several. It is obvious she thought about this fact, and has crafted four cloth tents out in the meadows surrounding her home. The sounds of the milky way river are now joined by rustling fabric in the wind, for each tent has a flag mounted atop it and standing in front of it:

• The blue tent belongs to the team for Ksitigarbha. It has a sigil in black on the flag.
  
• The green tent belongs to the team for Li Tieguai. On its flag, a mortar and pestle in white, but the visible part of the pestle resembles a staff crook.
  
• The red tent belongs to the team for Cu Chulainn, with an impressive reproduction of a two-headed dog celtic knot in shining silver.
  
• The brown tent belongs to the team for Loki. Its flag bears a two-headed snake in gold.
All four tents are spread out in cardinal directions. Near each tent, she has a few stacks of wooden prayer tablets related to each of the problems, as well as maps and supplies for those who might need them.

In the center of all four tents is a simple chair and table where Orihime herself is generally sitting, talking to others nearby, or writing notes based on those conversations. She does a lot of listening when people ask her for new supplies she hadn't thought of previously, but has only been supplied with four shinki runners to get those supplies, one per group. Additionally, she cannot teleport down to the Near Shore herself, nor can anyone use her home to teleport down to where each of the troubles are; that is a problem for each group to solve on their own, with Orihime only able to mediate and provide suggestions.

Child's Play

Kshitigarbha, protector of children and of hell beings, is one of the recent casualties. Without his protection, it seems that babies' fears are giving rise to new and awful ayakashi throughout the city of Xi'an. Shadows on the wall above the crib, oversized stuffed animals, monsters hiding in the closet or rattling the windows at night -- all the fears of earliest childhood are taking real, malicious form. Babies are panicking, parents are exhausted, and all this stress is pulling in even more ayakashi! Someone needs to lure out these nursery nightmares and defeat them before the situation gets worse.

As gods and shinki work to rend the ayakashi tormenting children, they may notice a strange shadow passing by in the street outside, or scratching noises at the nursery window. Something more seems to be waiting outside....

Flu Season

With sky-high living costs and limited space, Tokyo has a large homeless population. Li Tieguai, protector of the poor and patron of medicine, was another recent death: now, winter's coming, and without his protection it seems like everyone's getting sick at once. They're suffering from everything ranging from plain old head colds and 'flu to more serious things like pneumonia or infections. Help pass out tea, soup and blankets, make sure they get the right medications, and get the sickest people to the hospital.

Carrion crows crowd close around the sick and croak, watching the gods and shinki helping them.

Wild Hounds

As if honoring the fall of the Hound of Chulainn, stray dogs have begun to form into large, dangerous packs in rural and suburban areas of Ireland, and even well-trained housepets have started breaking their leashes and joining them. They're starting to chase and bite humans, and it's only a matter of time before someone gets killed. Gods need to defeat the ayakashi possessing the "leaders of the pack," and get the pets back to their worried owners.

The groves of trees where the dogs are lairing seem unusually dark and shadowy, and footsteps seem to echo those of the gods and shinki tracking them down.

Prank War

Teenage pranks are turning unusually cruel and dangerous lately: with Loki gone, a few groups of bored kids have coalesced into more serious gangs in Chiba, and they've been seen setting fires, tormenting animals, vandalizing businesses and intimidating or robbing people walking alone at night. Someone needs to stop them from causing trouble, put them on a better path, or turn them in to the police before someone gets badly hurt.

Even as they're working to stop the teenagers' mischief, something seems to whisper to them and encourage them to join in and cause a little trouble. After all, it's just some fun....

Boss Battles

Those who helped to resolve the problems caused by the gods' deaths have one final enemy to face. Four dangerous ayakashi are behind these conflicts. Each character can participate in one boss battle, but it's fine for characters to form multiple different groups (i.e. multiple threads under one boss's comment.) To ensure that the NPC knows when to respond to your characters, please indicate which characters will be in a thread in your first comment.

Kshitigarbha - Child's Play

Li Tieguai - Flu Season

Cu Chulainn - Wild Hounds

Loki - Prank War

In Summary:

• Check in with Orihime and your new teams
• Save scared children
• Help the sick
• Tame stray dogs
• Stop pranks from going too far
• Watch out~

Comments

[replicatedform]

I just want to hear what they say. If they even feel guilty at all or not.

[Which might affect how he would treat them. Probably. He'd still scold them anyway. His eyes watches them choosing a spot. The wall on the front, it looks like.]

Looks like they decided.

[He starts to walk towards them, as they get their brushes ready.]

[redmare]

[Huh, a fair guy. Chinatsu decides to watch and see how this would go, wondering if he was going to try and talk them out of it first.]

[replicatedform]

[Yamanbagiri stops right behind them. For a moment, his hand was resting on his sword, before it slides off and rest on his hip instead. And with his other hand, he reaches out and tap the nearest teenager on the shoulder.]

Hey, what are you guys doing here?

[Startled, they quickly turns around and looks surprised to see Yamanbagiri. With a yelp, they back away, getting their friends' attention, who also just notice him.

"Wh-Where did you come from?"]

I was walking by. [His eyes went from them towards the paints and the brushes in their hands. And he frowns.] But what are you doing with these?

["What's it to you?" They're gripping their items, staring at him with suspicions. But they're not retaliating... yet.]

[redmare]

[ooc: I wasn't sure i could use its actual name >>;;]

[He looked like a cop with his hand on the handle of his sword, but Chinatsu refrained from laughing. Ah, but would it be more like a caped crusader?]

Answer the question before he uses the lasso of honesty on you. [She speaks up, suddenly appearing next to Yamanbagiri with her elbow resting on his shoulder.]

[replicatedform]

[OOC: Whatever works!]

Lasso...? [He mutters for a moment, giving her a raised brow. But he turns his attention back to them.] Answer my question if you have nothing to hide.

[Wow. They look noticeably tense. "Hiding what! We just... we're just carrying them!"]

For what? Delivery, or... making trouble?

[They're leading questions. Maybe he should try asking in another way...]

[redmare]

How kind of you. I'm sure you were helping some old lady carry them across the street.

[Was he seriously still going to ask questions.]

Pretty obvious what is it, don't you think?

[replicatedform]

[Hey, let him give them a chance.

"So what! You're not the cops, are you?"

Either they break down, or it's frustrated with authority figures at work.]

I'm not, but I can drag you over to them.

[Okay, that's a small bluff. Since he estimate a few of them would probably escape if he try to capture any of them.]

[redmare]

[The teens look at each other for a moment, then suddenly grab into their bags to pull out a can of paint to spray at their direction.

"We'd like to see you try, suckers!"]

Oi--watch it!!

[Chinatsu immediately brings her arms up to shield her eyes, definitely stunned by the action.]

[replicatedform]

[He reacts without thinking. Yamanbagiri immediately step in front of Chinatsu and hold his cloak up, blocking the paint sprays.]

Oi! [Once he lowers it, he can see the paint stains on his cloak. And the boys starting to laugh at them.] You stupid brats...!

["Hahaha! Whatcha gonna do?!"]

[redmare]

[Chinatsu peers from behind her arm, surprised when she didn't feel anything on her.]

Wha---

Oi

[That was Yamabanbagiri's voice. He..blocked it?]

Wactha gonna do?"

[Her eyes narrow as she pushes past the blond. It was probably a good thing Yaman was behind her now. Whatever expression was on her face at that moment, it was enough to make them flinch.]

He did help her after all. There was no way she'd take that sitting down.]

Why don't I fucking show you.