February Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: October 15th
Where: Meeting Hall, the Far Shore
Summary: Training and informational sessions for newly arrived gods and shinki



Gods and shinki arriving at heaven's meeting hall are, should they allow it, guided to the Meeting Hall, where a reception area and a traditionally styled dojo and training ground have been made available for the day. The gods and shinki are free to take their time during this day to learn about the details of their new life from Amaterasu's shinki or from the many veteran new god and shinki volunteers.




God Training

Newly arrived gods are escorted into a traditional reception room within the Meeting Hall for an informational meeting covering the basics of proper god behavior. A minor deity is giving the speech, and none of the white-robed shinki enter. They are encouraged to discuss the information with each other and ask questions of more experienced gods, as well as instructed to guide their new shinki appropriately.

Shinki Training

Various shinki in the white-and-gold of Amaterasu's hosuehold are stationed around the dojo, passing out helpful informational pamphlets. They will be happy to instruct the newcomers in the use of the borderline as well as offering an explanation of what is expected of a shinki and the importance of teamwork with other shinki and with gods. Shinki are encouraged to work together to practice what they've learned and discuss their perspectives.

A training game has been set up through a section of the Meeting Hall gardens, with little cut-outs of ayakashi hidden in the landscaping, tucked into bushes or taped under bridges. Prize ribbons are being offered for every ten "ayakashi" a shinki (or team) discovers.

Physical Training

The dojo is stocked with a wide variety of practice weapons, traditional and modern, to offer some practice opportunity to gods who, for example, find themselves with a sword shinki but are at risk of cutting off their own toes. It's also useful for veteran new gods wishing to train with their current partner shinki. Several magically animated straw-stuffed training dummies, many of which have been carefully mended and patched with neat black stitching, are set up on the lawn with a white-robed shinki hovering nearby to watch over them. They make good training partners, although anyone who comes too close risks being targeted for a sparring match whether they wanted one or not.

The pond behind the dojo has had dozens wooden poles sunk in it, spaced a few feet apart, with a bunch of brightly colored ribbons tied around the pole in the very center. Some of the white-robed shinki are practicing scaling the poles and leaping from one to the next, until they get close enough that they can snatch a ribbon from the center pole, and several have fallen in and are being teased by their fellows.

Rest and Refreshments

Instead of snacks being served at the training session, this week, white-robed shinki with little flags are conducting groups of newcomers and volunteers down to the Tokyo Daijingu shrine and into a street festival currently being held in Tokyo. Traditional dance troupes are performing on street corners, and vendors have every kind of fall street foods, from barbecue to takoyaki, chocolate-dipped bananas and red-bean pancakes. New arrivals will get a white-and-gold envelope with spending money for the fair, although gods and shinki who have had some time to settle in will have to handle their own lunch expenses.

In Summary:

• Get all the information you can handle
• Veteran new gods and shinki are welcome to volunteer showing the ropes
• Get in some training
• Go to a festival
• Spectate if you want
• Have fun~

Comments

[alchemists]

I'm very sorry for the distraction and inconvenience but can everyone, please clear out for now!

[ Elfnein's trying her best to make sure her voice is loud and she's not looking like she'll fall over any second from nerves. ]

[priforprince]

[ "Is that YOUR horsey?"

"Can we ride it?!"

"I WANNA PET THE HORSEY!"

"THE HORSEY IS TOO BIG AND CLOSE, I'M SCAAAAARED..."

One of the kids begins to bawl.

Hibiki twitches, hands fisting around the reins. Maxie just stays in place, waiting. If he's told to move, he'll move. If not, it's probably not the first time Hibiki has crumbled to pieces on his back. ]

[alchemists]

You can look at the horse at a later time, please stop crowding. If you stress the horse and the rider out bad things will happen to you.

[ Elfnein crudely draws a horse kicking someone in the face in midair to show the dangers to the kids. ]

[priforprince]

[ And just like that, the problem is solved

by the kids all getting distracted by the fact that THIS OTHER KID JUST DREW IN THE AIR and crowding around Elfnein instead.

Hey, hey! Can you draw anything? Draw a robot next. No, draw a dinosaur! No, draw a Blue-Star Cat!! That's the best character!

This last suggestion goes over well and everybody starts chanting CAT, CAT, CAT, CAT, CAT.

Hibiki sighs and begins steering Maxie around the cluster. ]

[alchemists]

I can draw almost anything if I have a reference for it.

[ Elfnein is trying her best to keep these kids entertained for a few mins. There's a bunch of different cats being draw, some playing with yarn, others sitting and a few with different patterns such as stars and hearts on their fur. ]

[priforprince]

[ More and more kids are coming since now there is a light show (and some of these kids are texting their friends - the wonders of modern technology). Elfnein is in danger of being swallowed up by a cluster of children.

And Shikyoin Hibiki, Elfnein's magnificent and dashing colleague,

steers her horse around the crowd and attempts to just leave. ]

[alchemists]

You're not going to stay and help me ?

[ The children keep asking for more and more animals and Elfnein is about to be swarmed by all the requests. ]

[priforprince]

You seem to have them well in hand.

[ This is a vote of confidence in you!

Even when Hibiki is being nice, she manages to remain an asshole. ]

[alchemists]

[ Hibiki you just don't want to deal with kids. ]

I don't really feel the same way, I'm afraid they'll get bored soon.

[priforprince]

All the more reason to remove Maxie, then.

[ YOU'VE GOT THIS, RIGHT

BELIEVE IN THE HIBIKI WHO BELIEVES IN YOU

EVERYONE ELSE'S OPINION IS INESSENTIAL, ANYWAY ]

[alchemists]

You'll come back after right?

[ That isn't helping at all, local news is going to report small alchemist dead in middle of festival tonight. ]

[priforprince]

[ Don't worry. Hibiki will pay the news station to hush up the case. Not for her colleague, the sensationalist media!

She doesn't reply to Elfnein before attempting to ride away again.

"HEY HEY BIG SISTER, CAN THE PICTURES MOVE?" ]

[alchemists]

I can't make them move, but the person on the horse might know how.

[ Hibiki can figure something out. ]

[priforprince]

Wh---

[ AND JUST LIKE THAT, THE CHILDREN ARE BACK

Hibiki stares over the throng at Elfnein, a look more of shock than anger. Betrayal?! From such an unsuspected source!? ]

[alchemists]

[ It's not a betrayal more like the fact Hibiki wasn't going to help and the amount of demands from the kids was only increasing made Elfnein question the situation. ]

If you all line up and ask one by one I'm sure we can get things moving.

[priforprince]

No one is asking anyone anything!!!

[ Yes it is time for her to be elsewhere. ]

Maxie, forward! Hyah!

[ Maxie, however, shuffle-steps but cannot, in fact, do a thing about the fact that there are many small humans cutting off all routes of escape. He's smart enough to know leaping over kids at close range won't work. ]

Maxie!!!!

[ EVEN HER STEED DESERTS HER ]

[alchemists]

[ You're trapped now Hibiki ]

Entertaining people is our job.

[priforprince]

This is...entertainment.....?

[ .....drat. She supposes it is. Isn't. It.

Hibiki is faced with the inevitability that she is going to have to cave to this, and yet, she does not want to. She dearly doesn't want to.

She swallows. And looks down at the children. ]

You all demand moving pictures....?

[ Yes, please, mister! say the more polite ones. Hurry it up! say the others. ]

Hrghh.

[alchemists]

I can draw the pictures and you can animate them? It's spiting the work evenly that way.

[priforprince]

That isn't expedient.

[ And she wants this over with. And yet.

If she's going to do this, she's going to do it astoundingly. Hibiki brings Maxie around so she, and he, are facing the children, and raises a hand. She snaps her fingers.

Neon drawings of flowers, stars, hearts, and streamers spill down from a flash of light high above the gathering. Everyone's eyes get really really wide.

Most of them are in awe. One kid got startled by the flash and starts crying.... ]

[alchemists]

[ Elfnein is really impressed with Hibiki's light show, the basis might be the same with her powers but the lack of movement is the big difference. ]

Amazing.

[priforprince]

[ This? This much is nothing, but Hibiki will accept the compliment with silent grace anyway. Relaxing into her role, she raises both arms around her head. ]

Now, feast your eyes upon this magnificent show!

[ Fireworks explode into the shapes of roses and various animals, since they'd been requesting a lot of animals from Elfnein. Give the people what they want.

How much of this before they're satisfied? She has....okay, she has nowhere to be, but this is such a paltry stage. ]

[alchemists]

[ Elfnein ended up joining the kids in watching Hibiki's performance, even clapping at the fire works and other light show effects. ]

It's wonderful.

[priforprince]

[ Hibiki shrugs. ] This level of delight is simple.

[ And it is. She barely even gets a headache for such illusions now. No, for that she needs to be sustaining a full temple's worth of delights.

Or trying to make things invisible. Invisibility always is a literal pain. ]

[alchemists]

I have a lot to learn, I wonder if I could get my drawings to move if I practice enough.

[ Though that would be more of a flip book considering the level of Elfnein's power. ]