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]

[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.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Oh, that's not something you have to worry about! As you transformed, you'd also lose your morality, so it wouldn't bother you all that much.

[But it's being changed into a DEMON! Zetta can't see how that's bad at all.]

[unlucky7]

Your sales pitch is really bad.

[Beat.]

How's this plan coming along anyway?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Funny thing is, I'm not really worried about that. Though if you're actually willing to serve, then we can talk.

Minions are a bit low-level still, so having some other aid would help the whole thing along.

[unlucky7]

[Ginia snorts and waves her hand dismissively. Sorry, she can't agree with overthrowing the current establishment for the sake of establishing a greater evil netherworld. Which isn't to say there's anything wrong with overthrowing the current order, just not like this.]

Sorry, I'm more inclined to oppose it.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Really? That sucks. I'm a little disappointed you aren't in favor of me getting my body back.

[Because to self-centered Zetta, it's all about him.]

[unlucky7]

[Careful, Ginia, eye-roll that hard again and your eyes might fall out.]

Don't twist it like that. I'm in favor of you getting your body back, but not your choice of plan.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

You, uh, do realize that there aren't exactly a lot of other plans. We're talking about power on the cosmic scale here. At least one Netherworld, the nexus of evil for a whole universe.

[unlucky7]

Have you considered asking anyone for help? The other gods? There's probably another plan that doesn't involve turning everything into a Netherworld.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

...Why is that everyone's go-to? [Really, Zetta can't even be angry any more -- just baffled in the extreme. She's at the LEAST fourth or fifth to offer that idea up as if it's spectacular and feasible.]

That's not how this works. The only people powerful enough to help me are those who would see me destroyed or humiliated out of petty vengeance or out of a desire to see themselves on top instead of me. Maybe Pram the Oracle would have given me a lead on a plan, but she's just as likely to laugh and step on me a lot. Beyond the top-tier Overlords, though -- who's got the power of a universe to spend just fixing this situation?

[unlucky7]

[It's how it could work. Not everyone is evil or even that self-serving, most people probably don't even care about trying usurp his position. But what does a shinki with five days of memories know? The conversation isn't going to go anywhere else.

Fine. He can carry out his plan, see where it takes him.

Ginia flags down a server to get a box and packs up the rest of her food, stewing in a moody unease.]

Thanks for the meal. It was good.

[Annoyed as she is, that gratitude is real.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Hey, it was a good date. [Despite her unease, Zetta is pleased with how it had all fallen out. She'd seemed a lot more spirited when she'd stopped angling for the date, which had still been a little strange...] Like I said, next time we hit Indian food or the like. Something with another good kick!

[unlucky7]

[Date. Huh. In no way does Ginia see it as one, but she lets the word slide off.]

Sure. I'm not up to much so whenever you're free.

[Free food is free food.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

Oh, we could get up to --

[Zetta pauses mid-lechery, his expression one of shock and dawning horror for just an instant before he slumps like a puppet with cut strings.]

...right. No body. Damn...

[unlucky7]

[Ginia snorts. Yeah, no. Sorry, Zetta. Get your body back and then she might reconsider. Maybe.

The server returns with a box for Ginia and places the check on the table. Ginia watches Zetta to see what he'll do.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[Yeah, he deserves that, but to be fair, he's spent much much more time with a body than without one. He can't blame her for not being in a hurry to jump a book.]

[Once their water leaves, Zetta shifts slightly -- and a minion crashes down out of the sky, never mind the fact that they're indoors. The sudden entrance looks like it ought to be both incredibly obvious and remarkably painful, but thank the veil of ignorance the Far Shore offers for making the first a nonissue, and the entirely weird physics or lack thereof by which Zetta operates for the second. The minion promptly pulls out a wad of stolen cash to drop some down on the table.]

[If she's curious? He's leaving a tip. Evil would in most cases require not doing so, but it's allowed when one is trying to keep a hot girl coming back for more. Demons have priorities!]

[unlucky7]

[Ginia looks up at the ceiling -- not a single scratch to be found -- and down at the minion. HUH. Her eyes glance back up just to make sure she didn't miss anything. One day things will make more sense. Today is not that day.

But he is paying so there's that. Good on the evil book for basic human decency through the veil of being self-serving. Ginia snags a few mints and another pack of wet wipes from the counter as they leave.]

Back to the Far Shore or was there anything else you wanted to show me?

[Beat]

And if you want to show me you're a pop-up book, I will punch you.

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[The minion scoops up Zetta, that being his only real form of motion after all, and they head for the door in turn.]

[In the middle of her beat, the book gets halfway to a wicked expression that her second sentiment anticipates and neatly cuts off. Zetta stares at her for a second -- then snorts hard, disintegrating into laughter. Honest and real laughter, quite a difference from his evil laughter.]

[unlucky7]

[The honesty of Zetta's laughter catches Ginia off-guard and for a second she tenses. But she softens shortly enough and cracks a smile of her own, chuffing softly as her shoulders shake in amusement.]

But seriously, do you want to do anything else or are we done here?

[badassfreakingoverlord]

I think that was about as good as anybody could hope for. [Let's be real, here.] Want a ride back to the Far Shore?

[unlucky7]

A ride back sounds good, thanks.

[She lightly sets her hand on his spine in anticipation of teleporting back to the Far Shore.]

[badassfreakingoverlord]

[A quick blip and they're there. No fuss, no shenanigans, no teleporting into Zetta's bedroom while smooth jazz plays. It's almost too easy...]

[unlucky7]

[It's really for the best none of that happens or there would probably be a few well-deserved bootprints on Zetta's back and cover.

As they're back on the Far Shore and there's no reason to stick around, Ginia smiles and waves goodbye before heading off.]