26 - The Gods' Month

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Helping the Heavens prepare for the yearly Meeting of the Gods
When: October 20 - 21
Where: Around the Heavens (and maybe some mortal shopping trips, too!)
Summary: Amaterasu has been told that the newly arrived residents of the Heavens want to take a bigger part in security and administration, so she's convinced her shinki to let them help with preparations for the big yearly gala. It's also time for shinki to rate their gods and gods to find out what their shinki really think of them....







Security Precautions

The white-robed shinki guards are working hard to secure the Meeting Hall for the arrival of all the gods of Japan. Hard-working shinki are scurrying everywhere! Despite Amaterasu's orders, they're still a little unsure of and standoffish towards the strangers who they're supposed to work with, but there's a lot of work to do, so they're happy to hand out jobs to small groups of newcomers before returning to their own duties.


• Help clear out any small spirits who might have sneaked back into the Meeting Hall after the spring cleaning, from sootsprites to nekomata, animal spirits from the park or well-camouflaged plant spirits.


• Check the magical writing worked into art or inlaid in wood all over the building to protect the Meeting Hall from attack, and make sure none of it is scuffed or damaged.


• Join in on the patrols around the building or spend some time guarding one of the gates. It's boring, but the shinki appreciate the help.


• Test the integrity and extent of the magical protections with glass balls that turn purple outside the protections on the Meeting Hall and clear inside them. But don't drop your glass ball! They're fragile.

Event Preparation

It's not just security that the shinki are asking newcomers to help with. They also have plenty of work to do getting ready for the festivities! The Meeting Hall floors need to be swept and scrubbed, the gardens need to be trimmed and tidied, artwork needs to be dusted, flower arrangements arranged, damaged furniture repaired and rafters cleared of cobwebs. Anyone with particularly good handwriting can help write out invitations and name cards, too.

Besides cleaning and calligraphy, there's lots of food and beverages to purchase! Grab a shopping list, a wad of cash, and head to the Near Shore to pick up the necessities. (Don't forget to keep the receipts.)

Rate Your God

Shinki have the opportunity to submit surveys on their life with their new gods before the big event, and even request a transfer if they want one. Early in the morning, every new shinki will be visited by a small white dove carrying a scroll that, when unrolled, reveals the following questionnaire:


What is your name?

What is your god's name?

How do you see your duties as a shinki?

What is your favorite part of life with your god?

What is your least favorite part of life with your god?

What advice would you like to give your god?

Do you wish to be assigned to a different god? []Y []N


Fill it out, discuss it with your fellow shinki, forget about it until you find it under a pile of junk mail in two months: the choice is yours! Gods will receive a copy of the answer that their shinki submit to "What advice would you like to give your god?" -- there's no name attached, but they might be able to guess.

Heavenly Record Keeping

Gods don't get to skip the paperwork entirely! Although the Heavens aren't asking them to rate their shinki, new gods don't have all of their vital statistics on file quite yet, so they get a questionnaire too. The same white doves will drop their scrolls by in the morning, with the following set of questions:


What is your name?

How many shinki do you currently have?

What are your areas of divine responsibility?

How do you see your duties as a god?

What traits do you most want in a shinki?

Do you wish new shinki to be assigned to you? []Y []N


Unlike the doves attending on the shinki, the doves who drop off the gods' scrolls will remain close by and chirp loudly until they finish and submit their questionnaires. If a god is particularly lazy about it, they might even start pecking.

In Summary:

• Help protect the Meeting Hall
• Lend a hand cleaning and shopping
• Rate your gods
• Help Heaven keep its records up to date
• Have fun~

Comments

[unlucky7]

[Even in life Ginia was a heavy eater; you don't have a rocking body and full set of nanotechnology and not keep it fueled. In death, the present sense of hunger always gnawing at the edges remains a mild annoyance.

It's a good thing Zetta stole a lot of money because Ginia's going to get her money's worth of food.]

Sure. Sounds good.

[The reply comes quick, almost automatic but it's sincere. Free food is free food and she's not going to say no if he keeps offering. She gets to try new things, he gets her company, it's win-win, right?]

Do you go to the Near Shore often to eat?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Eh, eating's kind of on an 'as-desired' basis for me these days. [The Overlord's scowl is less for that specific facet of the situation and more for the fact that he's a damn book to begin with.] Hell, I don't remember the last time I did before now. It was a bit ago. So having a reason is all the nicer.

[unlucky7]

[Well, Ginia is glad could be helpful in that regard. And with a lot of uncertainties brewing in her life at the moment, it's nice to know someone doesn't mind having her around.

Even if she's just there for eyecandy.

Even if he's an evil, talking book.]

So back to the whole Overlord thing. What does it take to be the most badass freaking Overlord? What kind of powers are we talking about? Get any new ones here?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[Zetta seems totally delighted to have her around! Poor Ginia and her life choices.]

[Her question immediately snaps him out of his sulk, though.]

Nothing more than the strongest mana power ever seen in creation. I've got more power to my credit than Dragon Overlord Babylon in his prime, and he ruled the cosmos for ages!

...Didn't seem to come up with anything here, though. [In actuality, he's simply never had cause to find out what his divine power is.]

[unlucky7]

What is mana power? You keep throwing that around, but it doesn't mean anything to me. And that's strange if you didn't get any new powers.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

I keep forgetting humans don't understand the concept. [Though he shouldn't, he knows. Demons are born not only with greater mana power than most creatures, but a more instinctive understanding and knack with it.] Basically, mana power is the fundamental ability to inflict your will on the cosmos at large. It's why in a Netherworld, you can bring a sword to a gunfight. And, you know, survive a gunfight after getting shot a dozen times.

[unlucky7]

[The ability to inflict your will on the cosmos at large... doesn't seem to do much good if you're stuck as a book.]

Gotcha. And then being evil comes with the whole Overlord, Netherworld territory? Do you have to be evil?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

I'm a demon. That's the territory it comes with. Being an Overlord just means you also have to be an exemplar of demonic vices!

[He sounds so proud, too, having not yet gone through the practically mandatory Disgaea demon character development.]

[unlucky7]

Just because someone else tells you that, you don't just go believing it.

[Remember those words, Zetta? Ginia gives him a skeptical look as her second basket of food arrives. Sure, he's a demon in the tens of thousands and knows his life better than anyone else, but honestly?

His brand of evil seems a bit more petty than evil-evil.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Uh. [Zetta pauses in his cheerful arrogance to look at her with one eyebrow arched.] No, really, that's -- that's how it is. I mean, you wouldn't tell an angel to go ahead and be lazy and selfish and wrathful, right?

[unlucky7]

Why not?

[She doesn't mean to be contrary, but the greater details of angels and demons aren't a thing that fall in her field of knowledge. Even if it did (and then she would point out the very wrathful nature of angels), it's not like anything with any sense of free will is only allowed to act one way.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

I mean, demons exist pretty much for the purpose of BEING evil. We're creatures of darkness and hellfire, the counterpart to the goodness and light of the angels of each universe's angels. We cause fear and terror in mortals the same way the angels inspire grace and awe. Cosmic balance, you know?

[Some demons also believe their PR a lot more than others.]

[unlucky7]

Shinki are the tools of their god, we're here to help our gods with what they want to accomplish and to follow their will. We exist for the purpose of serving.

[She shrugs lightly. All things were created in some form for some purpose and exist in a balance. Sure, that she can buy. But sitting across from him, eating hot wings and fries...

Sure not a lot of fear and terror going on right now.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[Zetta heaves a sigh.]

I don't get it. You say something like that, but if I were in your position I wouldn't take that crap.

[unlucky7]

Says the Overlord who insists he's evil because someone once said demons have to be evil.

[But you know what? Her next basket of food is here there's no arguing the topic. They'll probably end up going around in circles anyway. But before Ginia gets her fingers covered in sauce again, she sends another message.]

You don't seem that evil to me.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Uh, it's not 'someone'. Demons are evil by nature and breeding both. Saying demons are evil is like saying humans have heads. [The book scowls, his dignity affronted.] Call me crazy, though, but I got the impression you were the kind of girl who didn't think doing evil deeds was in and of itself a fun date activity.

[unlucky7]

[Ginia's already begun digging into her basket, but she glances at Zetta at his last comment.

"You don't know a thing about me."

Not like she knows anything about him. Not like she knows anything about herself. But there's a trickle of annoyance and after chowing down on a few more spicy wings, she wipes off a hand so she can write back a response.]

There's no substance in evil. It's easy.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[And now Zetta is confused. Had he guessed wrong? Should he have taken her out to the puppy-skeet range? Because glares or not, he's pretty sure she wouldn't like that!]

Uh... Well, it's easy for me. I'm a demon. But as an Overlord, I have to put extra work into it. And it wasn't always easy to do things like conquer worlds or humiliate heroes, I just got better over time.

....and none of that stuff's easy for me right now. [The irritation and dismay Zetta lets slip at his situation is almost humanizing.]

[unlucky7]

Sorry.

[Ginia sighs. She's not here for a debate over evil or not and the complexities of morals, not when her moral compass is so skewed and uncertain. But she can be sympathetic to his state; she wouldn't be any happier if she had to be in her vessel form all the time, unable to move around without assistance.]

Do you have any ideas on how to get your body back?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Oh yeah, that's easy. [Zetta instantly forgets any moodiness he might be feeling in the face of the question. She might be getting the impression that he doesn't hold on to much of anything for too long...] I'll transform these worlds into Netherworlds. That will provide a steady flow of mana that I should be able to use to fix myself up.

[unlucky7]

Important question. What happens to everyone that's here if you make everything part of the Netherworlds?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Eh.

[Super reassuring answer, right?]

I figure sending anyone who helps me home is a good carrot to dangle. The people who stay will slowly turn into demons.

[unlucky7]

[Ginia's lips press into a narrow line and her brow furrows slightly.]

And what about the people that don't want to leave, but also don't want to turn into demons?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

...Wait, what's wrong with being a demon? It's way sweeter than being a human. [No lie, it's awesome! Zetta would highly recommend it!]

[unlucky7]

Demons are evil. I'm not interested in being evil.

[Also being forcibly changed into something else over time sounds like a raw deal even if there are perks to being a demon.]