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

[badassfreakingoverlord]

God Training

[Zetta makes a point of showing up to these stupid things just to make sure no one he knows has shown up -- because that would be seriously embarrassing, and definitely not reassuring in the slightest. There are SOME people he REALLY doesn't want to see! Ever! They had better not show up here!]

[He isn't in a hurry to interact with others, either. So approach him from the conventional 'front' and you're faced with a scowling tome of significant size, floating in midair and glaring around in a way very specifically designed to discourage people from approaching. He's an Overlord! You people are beneath him, and so forth!]

[From the other side, however -- well, some prankster has hung a sign on him that reads, "Tome of Far Shore Secrets". It's the literary equivalent of a Kick Me, and he is utterly oblivious to its presence.]

Physical Training

Hyaaaha ha ha ha! One side, losers! Witness the true might of an Overlord!

[A swarm of a dozen demonic minions descend on the training course, dive into the pond, and promptly begin splashing around like they're a bunch of kids at the waterpark.]

[Zetta stares for a moment, the face on the front of the Sacred Tome ticking from 'aghast' to 'outraged' by degrees.]

YOU IDIOTS! BACK IN FORMATION!

[The bellow doesn't exactly scare the minions, but they are, for the most part, only semi-autonomous; the Overlord's fury and accompanying force of well is enough of a check on their impulses to bring them back into order with barely so much as a change of expression on their part. Surging into the depths of the pond, the minions swarm around the bottom of the center pole. One of them grabs another, hauling her above his head so that she's practically standing on his upraise palms -- then another one grabs him in much the same fashion, and so on until a stack of minions five high towers next to that pole. The topmost one reaches out to snatch a ribbon.]

[The Overlord's irritation is instantly forgotten, as a laugh makes him jolt in midair.] Hyaaha ha ha ha ha! Victory! I am one badass freaking Overlord!

[letteropener]

God Training

[Well, somepony has to look out for you all. Celestia, on hearing of the new training and information session, puts her wellness checks on the Far Shore on hold for the moment -- or really, just moves their venue. Among the gods strolls the pony, a basket stuffed to overflowing with cookies trailing behind her thanks to her magic. She has a smile on her face, a serenity in her soul, and a cheerful grace.]

How are you doing? Would you like a cookie?

Physical Training

...Oh dear.

[Shaking her head solemnly, Celestia lifts herself up slight in midair from her hover above the central pillar, drifting back to land near the entrance to the dojo. Feeling it would be pointless, she didn't even bother to bring back a ribbon.]

I would love to train, but there just never seems to be an option I can pursue...

Rest and Refreshments

[Witness Princess Celestia, staring at the chocolate-dipped bananas with absolutely undisguised avarice.]

[She takes a quick look around that is actually much less thorough than she thinks if she really wants to make sure nopony sees her -- then, when the vendor is distracted, quickly swaps a banana with several coins, the better not to strain the Far Shore's aura of unnoticeability by overtly shopping as a pony. Then, licking her lips, she takes a couple of steps away...]

[And devours the banana so quickly it actually leaves flecks of chocolate on her muzzle. Oh, that was sooo tasty!]

[unlucky7]

Shinki Training

[Serve your god. Defend people from the ayakashi. Train yourself and be useful to your god and your fellows. These are the things Ginia internalizes as she finds a quiet space to wait for her god and practice her borderlines.

The first time her hand cuts through the air and a thin beam of light springs up, pride and relief settles in her. Good. Now to make it stronger.

Later, as she's traveling between areas, she begins keeping an eye out for the ayakashi cut-outs. Well, if they're hidden in and under things, why not hidden up things. Catch Ginia scaling the trees and other high spaces in the area with ease as she continues her search.]

Physical Training

[Even with a real gun and knife on her person, Ginia grabs a paintball gun and wood knife. She alternates between keeping her distance as she leaves colorful splats of paint on the head and torso, or going in for the kill, striking with brutal slashes to the neck and torso before dodging out.

As she switches back to her gun, movement catches her eye and she turns to fire off a shot. Oops, that's a person, not a training dummy! Catching herself, she lowers her gun and raises a hand in apology.

Later, find her at some stationary targets with a paintball rifle, practicing her aim. She takes her time with each shot, slowing her breathing down and holding it with each shot. The paint splatters are a nice tidy spot as she hits the same spot again and again.]

Rest and Refreshments

[Money tucked away in her coat pocket, Ginia wanders wide-eyed through the street festival. The sights, the smells, the choices are paralyzing. There's so much to choose from and money is limited. What if she makes a bad choice? Hands shoved deep into her pockets, she stands at a distance from each stand, watching hungrily as the vendors prepare and serve their food, never venturing closer to buy something. Help her out?]

[onehandsomeslickninja]

Shinki Training

Ha! [With that victorious laugh, Edge flings a shuriken through the air, the star just a metal whine in the ears till it bursts through a bush and thuds into the ground on the far side of it, an ayakashi cutout impaled on it.]

That's five! [He fans out the shuriken in his hand, then snaps them back into a stap, all flash and arrogance. So long as no one suspects he's putting on even more of a show than usual to cover his inner concern, a few looks disapproving of his arrogance and flair are a small price to pay.]

Physical Training

Oh crap!

[Against one enemy, Edge is fine. He'd been quite content to slash and swipe at a training dummy, engaging it on its own level as his swords parried its wild flurries from its own blade -- but then another one had wandered into the fray, and now Edge is pinned between them. His swords, held reverse-grip, are cocked so far back they practically lay parallel to his forearms, giving him the advantage he needs to swiftly parry each blow. But the mindless nature of the dummies and their untiring nature keeps him on the defensive.]

[And a third dummy is trundling his way, slowly but inexorably.]

[It isn't THAT bad a situation. They're just training dummies. But his pride is bruised, and his body is about to be.]

[priforprince]

[ Rest and Refreshments I ]

Outsourcing the festivities?

[ Hibiki hadn't really meant to get roped into going along on this trip. She had been taking her horse Maxie for a ride around the Central District and sort of gotten....swept up.

So now she and Maxie are going to go for their ride around this festival instead. ] What a depressing downturn.

[ It's a horse. In the middle of the street. With pedestrians all around it.

No big deal. ]

[ Rest and Refreshments II ]

"H-help me, s-someone..."

[ The prayer comes softly at first, but then more insistently: someone in this festival is desperately in need. ]

"My date stood me up....I was looking forward to today......p-please, if only someone could keep me company. E-everyone at school is going to ask how my date went....I was finally going to get to talk about romance like everybody else....I-it's all ruined if I don't have a date!"

[ The source of the prayers is a girl who is indeed looking quite fetching in her yukata, if it weren't for the tears she's trying to hide. She seems to be praying to every god she can think of.

If you're heading over to help her out, think fast. A horse is in danger of cutting you off. ]

[nolittlesecret]

[God Training]
[Not much training for this one. Nope. Nari is here just to scope out the newbies. See if there's anything interesting going on. Possibly hit up people he knows. This god is treating this more like a social session instead of a serious gathering like it should be. Anyone who comes across him will find him in the company of a husky at his feet who looks quite happy to be there with her owner.]

[Refreshments]
[Having given his shinki money to enjoy themselves, Nari will be mostly sticking to the vendors for the time being. Food was important and picking out something he and his dog could enjoy together was proving to be a little more difficult than anticipated. Nari honestly doesn't know that much about Japanese food despite being here a while and looks like he might need a little help.

Otherwise he'll mill about and be on people watching duty again. It's something to do.]

[Wildcard]
[Hit me with anything!]

refreshments

[raygunner]

[ Nevertheless, Akechi appears.

He smiles at him, gesturing toward one of the many stalls. ]

Would you mind finding something to eat with me, Nari?

Rest and Refreshments

[replicatedform]

[Yamanbagiri pause when he spotted Celestia. Who wouldn't? She somewhat stand out, and it's easy for him to remember a flying horned horse like her because of her distinct appearance. After a moment, he figure he could go over and say hello.]

He...y? [He pause and blinks, staring at the obvious chocolate flecks on her muzzle.] ... Excuse me, you have some chocolate on you.

[nolittlesecret]

Depends. Know something dog safe? Roxy wants to eat, too.

[The moment her name is said, Roxy's tail wags a mile a minute. Yay! She's being included!]

[raygunner]

[ Ah. The dog takes precedence over him... He sees how it is. ]

I'm afraid I don't know too much about canine diets.

[nolittlesecret]

Dogs are omnivores, just like people are, though they can't eat everything we can. Onion family is off limits, as is chocolate and caffeine, and a few other things. [Look, Roxy needs him a little more than Akechi does, okay?] But she likes meat, and I like meat, and I don't know what you like besides coffee and curry. So pick something you like, and I can see if she can eat it too. If anything, I'll find her a skewer.

[raygunner]

Hmmm. Fair enough.

[ He looks at all the stalls... then his eyes fall on one in particular. ]

Takoyaki?

[nolittlesecret]

.... I take it that it doesn't involve actual tacos?

[But he'll try it.]

[raygunner]

No, it doesn't seem so. Shall we?

[nolittlesecret]

I can make tacos later. [He nods and gives the pupper a soft whistle, and she's right on his heels.] So what is takoyaki?

[unlucky7]

[Ginia watches from the side of the pond, bewildered and entranced by the sight. Giant floating book, stack of minions, it's definitely... something. Entertaining? That seems right.

Pulling her phone out of her pocket, Ginia pulls up the camera and snaps a few photos of the scene.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[What the --]

HEY! Assemble for good PR!

[Like a wave -- maybe not even as an analogy, with the amount of water that surged out of the pond with them -- the minions crashed up into a formation next to Zetta, forming ranks like they were posing for a team photo. Which really, they were.]

I do give out autographs.

[unlucky7]

[Oh, that's-- huh. Okay. Ginia's head tilts just a little as they pose, but she snaps off a few more pictures.

And with that done, she waves and gives a small bob of her head before turning to leave. That was...cute.]

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Shinki Training
[Among the group of newcomers, there's one in particular who seems to be putting quite a bit of extra time into pouring over the informational pamphlet offered to the new shinki. He's thorough, that's for certain, though there's a certain sort of sluggishness to Shinji's movements that suggests he might also be having to take extra care to actually parse all the information properly.

It all just feels too... surreal.

He's not making much of an effort to mingle, either, instead opting to find an open area to sit and continue looking over the handout while he... waits for his god, he supposes? If what the pamphlets are saying is correct, anyway, that's what he should be doing. Even as borderline practice starts getting into swing, he's still sitting out, but glances up occasionally out of curiosity to see just what's going on.]


R&R
[Shinji's wall-flowering doesn't seem to stop once everyone's been guided to the festival - if anything, it's probably gotten worse. It's all very impressive, for sure, but it's just so much, and he can't help but notice how chilly the October air feels.

At least, given how insistent the white-robed shinki were in offering up the extra spending money, he settles on getting something to eat. He doesn't have much of an appetite, but not trying something out feels like it would be a missed opportunity.

He is, however, having a tough time getting service from the chocolate-banana stand.]

Ah, um, e-excuse me... [There goes another patron, cutting in front of him like he's not even there or something. Maybe this was a futile idea after all.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

What the -- hey! That's it?! No interview? No autographs?

..seriously, not even a question about why a book is talking? Because that would be a first.

[Of Zetta's many weaknesses, his pride might be the greatest of all. An ego his size makes for one massive target.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[A: Physical Training]

[Considering the kind of ridiculous acrobatics Shun tends to get up to at any given training meet, it may not be much of a surprise that he takes an interest in those balancing poles pretty quickly. Ignoring the teasing between fellows going on at ground level, he quickly scales one of the posts and starts making his way across.

He hasn't done a lot of this particular balance practice, but he's at least experienced it once or twice before, so after a few more cautious leaps, he becomes much more confident with his motions. Knowing the give of the posts and how much they bend at a leap is extremely helpful to the process, and before long, he's just bypassed the ribbon deal and is crossing to the other side of the posts.

If there's anyone watching down below, he'll give them a look when he gets to the final post.]

Are you coming up here or not?

--

[B: Rest and Refreshments]

[Shun doesn't usually spend much time at the refreshments stand anyway, but he's a little suspect about where the white-robed shinki keep leading people off to when he looks over there. So eventually, after going at it for even longer than he usually does before breaks so he can excuse a longer one to himself, he heads over to see what exactly the fuss is about.

It's not like street festivals are uncommon, but it...wasn't quite what he was expecting at the other end of the shrine. His continuing unease with these kinds of crowds shows in the way he moves through the festival, avoiding contact with people as much as he can to the point he's practically ghosting between some of them.

Catching sight of a few of the more crowded food stalls, Shun lets out a sigh of annoyance.]

So they're just distracting everyone from their work this time.

--

[C: Wildcard]

[[As usual, Shun will be around the dojo area most of the day and generally not averse to sparring or training anyone who's interested. He's extremely good at acrobatics and hand-to-hand, pretty good at dagger/throwing knives, can hold his own with a sword, and is still learning tessen and polearms.]]

[yousaytron]

Shinki Training
[Well, someone's decided to show up to training days after an extended absence. Mostly, he just seems to be glad to get some borderline practice in after so long without it, and while he's not really going out of his way to teach, Keith can easily be singled out for any questions. He does look like he knows what he's doing with those lines, after all...!]


Physical Training
[Those animated training dummies are practically screaming for use, or at least that's how Keith feels, finding himself being drawn to them in particular. His weapon of choice is one of the practice swords, and he seems to be doing a stellar job of landing blows on the target consistently and avoiding its counterattacks. It's such a natural feeling, fighting like this, it's easy to get caught up in the battle...

Maybe too caught up, as eventually, one of his strikes rips clean through the dummy rather unexpectedly.]

Ah-! [He holds his position steady, as the dummy doesn't really stop its efforts, but the wooden sword sure does keep it from advancing and further.] How do you... turn these things off?

[Because, you know, beating the thing up and causing even more need for repairs seems kind of unnecessary. Heaven should just get better sparring targets, that's all there is to it.]

[unlucky7]

[Ginia stops and looks over her shoulder as the book yells at her. She begins to type on her phone as she walks back, holding a message up for him to read.]

Are you not a shinki in vessel form?

Refreshments

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ He was mostly here to try out the dessert festival foods that were obviously mainly fruit. Like the chocolate bananas and such. However he recognizes Nari from the autumn reception, and while no one had actually talked about it properly, there was nothing wrong with meeting people.

Similar to back then, he's wearing modern clothes that match a fashion that Izumo would think looked good and right for someone like Judar. As in, something that's easy to put on despite all that hair, which doesn't look like a disaster. ]

Hey. You're the guy that Izumo's been making out with, yeah? Is it still just at that, or...?

R&R

[unlucky7]

[Ginia watches from the side, her own indecision preventing her from getting in line, but she's noticed Shinji there too. When another person cuts in front of the teen, she steps into the line and waves at Shinji to join her. Harder for people to breeze past if there are two of them, right?]