godsoffortune: (coin)
The Far Shore Mods ([personal profile] godsoffortune) wrote in [community profile] thenearshore2018-04-01 09:08 pm

27 - The Gods' Meeting

Who: Everyone!
What: The Meeting of the Gods is here at last.
When: October 30
Where: Heaven's Meeting Hall
Summary:







Pre-Meeting

    Guards at the front door are carefully checking each god who enters off on their list of attendees, and taking the names of each of their shinki attendants.

    Once the participants are past the doors, they are guided down the hallway to a huge meeting room by one of the guards, who will announce them by divine title, and each of their shinki by whatever name they gave. It's an open question as to who's actually listening, though, because the room is swiftly filling up with gods and shinki. As well as the newcomers, old gods are here, some in human form attended by their uniformed shinki, others in stranger shapes -- giant bears, round-bellied tanuki, turtles, dragons, and more. There's even one tricolored tabby cat in a small blue cap, seated majestically in the arms of a uniformed shinki and chatting with another god.

    Buffet tables bearing every kind of food and drink imaginable are set up at one end of the room, and a dais with a podium is at the other, draped in bright gold and white bunting and emblazoned with a chrysanthemum emblem.


Early Announcements

    Finally, the socialization comes to an end, and the meeting itself begins as Ookuninushi grabs the microphone and steps up to the podium. The year's most popular gods are named first: Hotei, one of the Seven Gods of Fortune, is in third place, Tenjin in second and Ebisu in first place. Each steps up to bow and accept their accolades in turn: Hotei is a big man with a wide smile, Tenjin a tall, ascetic man wearing old robes and concealing his smug expression behind a fan, and a tired-looking younger man in a business suit announces himself as representing Ebisu, who is watching over the Near Shore during the event.

    Next, the most popular new god is announced: Ookuninushi has to stop and wrinkle his nose at the name for several seconds before he pronounces it-- Nekhbet, a new arrival in the Heavens.

    He moves on to call for a moment of silence recognizing the difficulties of the last year. Many gods have faced reincarnation and returned wearing unfamiliar faces! The Heavens can't yet explain the cause of these changes, but Amaterasu herself urges them to welcome their friends' new incarnations as brothers and sisters in the Heavens.

    His final announcement is that, after the successful resolution of the trouble associated with some recent deaths, Orihime has been restored to her place among the eight million gods.


Fortune Weaving

    Announcements finished, the main activity of the evening begins. The white-robed shinki bring in huge baskets filled with wooden prayer plaques, setting them down all around the room, and the gods begin to form into circles around each basket. The older gods will gladly explain to any confused newcomers that they're weaving fortunate connections between mortal lives as they spread the plaques out and tie strings off together with great care. All the plaques have names written on them; some are filled out with prayers, some just with notes, and others adorned with pictures of flowers, animals or favorite characters.

    Gods and shinki are given blank plaques to inscribe with their own names, too, in order to give them the chance to make fortunate connections as well. (Not necessarily romantic, the other gods will assure them! There are many different kinds of fated connection.)

    Help out, take the opportunity to chat, and make some fortunate matches for yourself as well as these hard-working petitioners.


Midnight Disaster

    Just shy of midnight, while the gods are still matching up plaques, finishing the last of the banquet, and getting into drunken arguments over who to connect to whom, a shinki in a dark suit torn at the shoulder comes dashing into the Meeting Hall.

    "Calamity!" he cries-- and tells the assembled Heavens that a mysterious blight has fallen across a sleepy residential community in the Tokyo suburbs. The blight, a huge circle covering about two blocks, is sucking the life out of everything inside it: plants are wilting, and people and animals have fallen into deathly slumber. As if that weren't bad enough, it's also attracting big, dangerous ayakashi. Ebisu and his shinki are there now, but there aren't enough of them to fight the ayakashi and move the people trapped inside the blighted circle to a safer place before they die.

    Volunteers will need to fight ayakashi and rescue the mortals trapped in the blight -- once they're outside its edge, they'll begin to wake up and recover on their own.




In Summary:
  • Enjoy the banquet before the announcements
  • Hear about the most popular gods
  • Help make fortunate connections for the living
  • Respond to a disaster
  • Have fun~
lionhearrt: (This again)

[personal profile] lionhearrt 2018-04-02 05:32 pm (UTC)(link)
[ An annoyed expression at the first line, but he won't comment. Too much energy, and considering how bad it looked out there, he was going to need every drop of it. ]

As many as you can carry.
futhark: (102)

[personal profile] futhark 2018-04-02 05:39 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh, that could be a lot. [ Kind of boastful, but it is also stating a fact. ]

I'll direct others to you too. [ He says before running off again, and true to his word, next time he comes by, he's carrying a whole unconscious family on his back. Mother, father, and a kid. He puts them down on the ground. Then he disappears- and soon returns carrying the grandparents from the same house.

He wouldn't risk teleporting them with him- no idea how mortals can react to that, but he can use this skill to jump back to the building once he delivers the victims ]


How's it going here?
sing_for_me: (on the job!)

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 05:39 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh..That seems to happen often here, huh? But I'm glad you finally got to get some of sleep.

[ She did recall that he seemed to be avoiding it before. She looks down at the arm offered to her, giving him a small smile before taking it. ]

Thanks..I'll hopefully be less of a hazard like this.
futhark: made by <user name="swagu"> (58)

[personal profile] futhark 2018-04-02 05:45 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Fine, he moves back. A little. ]

I'd rather know to whom you're tying me to.

[ Maybe he wanted to ask someone to weave that somewhere close to them, for example. ]
letteropener: (all right after all)

[personal profile] letteropener 2018-04-02 05:50 pm (UTC)(link)
Pre-Meeting

Oh my goodness.

[To her utter shock, Celestia steps in to discover that far from being the only thoroughly nonhuman god of the Far Shore, she is in fact one among numbers. Numbers that she is only seeing now for the first time, and had never gotten a hint of before.]

[In a rarity, her calm outer demeanor breaks -- enough so that the keen-eyed can note the tremble in her legs, and the sadness beneath her shock.]

[Why is she only learning this now? Why are there no other ponies here, indeedbarely any other representatives of nonhuman races? The shock is real and painful, raising so many question that for a moment all she can do is stand there, blocking traffic, and ask whys in her head.]


Fortune Weaving

[In a fit of rebellion, Celestia has taken on a human shape and a suit to go with it. Of course, said rebellion makes it easier for her to fit in around one of the weaving circles, where she goes at the task with an amused and eager will. Let happy relationships of all sorts for! She'll gladly weave the threads of people's lives together.]

[And if she can find the plaques belonging to gods or shinki in here? She'll weave them together all the more avidly, wondering if there truly can be any power within them.]

[Her own plaques have been tucked away into different piles as well, so perhaps you find your own plaque tied to hers?]
sing_for_me: (work work work)

Midnight disaster

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 05:51 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Alex had just gotten back from bringing some other people out of the area when she noticed D2 trying to convince some people to leave. As much as she prefers to use her words, there just wasn't any time. Heading over to them, she cover's D2's nose and mouth with the sleeve of her kimono as she activates her god power. ]

I'm sorry, but it really would be best for you and your family to come with us.

[ As they take in the soft scent, they visibly start to relax, and also feel more compelled to listening to their instructions. They nod and start to walk out the door. She only lets out a small dose, and eventually takes her sleeve away from his face. ]

Sorry about that..I can't control who it affects.
sing_for_me: (on the job!)

B

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 05:53 pm (UTC)(link)
I take it you haven't done this before either.

[Alex smiles back as she also picks up her plaques.]

I'm not sure how I feel about it actually...but these drawings are adorable.
mithrarin: (smile)

Fortune Weaving

[personal profile] mithrarin 2018-04-02 05:54 pm (UTC)(link)
[Dust really isn't interested in the fortune weaving, so he's taking this as his opportunity for sure.]

You did it.

[This is her moment, but hopefully Dust can be forgiven for taking pride and joy in it.]
mithrarin: (whoa hold on)

Pre-meeting

[personal profile] mithrarin 2018-04-02 05:55 pm (UTC)(link)
[Dust offers a wave back -- then has to double-take. Wait, what exactly is he wearing?]

[The surprise is pretty obvious; no graceful subtlety here.]
sing_for_me: (Uhhhhh)

Pre-Meeting

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 05:56 pm (UTC)(link)
[ She jumps a little when someone plops down next to her, but recognizes the blonde after a moment. The last time they met was an event just like this one. ]

Tatara..right?
nibelungvalesti: If any of these icons need credit, tell me! (wings of a goddess)

Midnight Disaster

[personal profile] nibelungvalesti 2018-04-02 06:00 pm (UTC)(link)
[The Valkyrie slams down out of the sky next to her, pavement cracking where her boots impact it, the fringe of her skirt and her massive braid both whipping out from the force of her descent. Then she rises in one smooth motion, the force of her presence and the intensity of her glare giving the ayakashi a moment's pause.]

Take them from the blight. This atmosphere ill-suits human life.
sing_for_me: (did I say that)

A

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 06:01 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Alex immediately reaches out to steady the plate, catching a piece of bread with the other. ]

Would you um..like another plate?

[ It was strange to see Maria so out of it. Unless Alex was mistaken and she was just really hungry. ]
onehandsomeslickninja: (the cool ninja)

B -- I feel so sorry for being the third in a row

[personal profile] onehandsomeslickninja 2018-04-02 06:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Are you actually interested in this sort of thing?

[Edge flashes a smile at her as she lowers herself. It isn't visible because of his mask, of course, but his eyes communicate it nonetheless.]
futhark: made by <user name="swagu"> (58)

Fortune Weaving

[personal profile] futhark 2018-04-02 06:04 pm (UTC)(link)
That's the problem, isn't it? I suppose as gods it's left to us to decide which wish is more important but--

[ Caster trails off without ever finishing. He's not against the idea of destiny, he's just not necessarily okay with playing as that destiny-decision-maker. ]

Good job with those kids though. [ That was cute and sharp-eyed to notice ]
sing_for_me: (where's the music)

B

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 06:04 pm (UTC)(link)
.....You're right.

[ Which had Alex peering at the plaque in concern. How could they connect people they themselves didn't know? ]</small] It doesn't seem like a very comforting thought that someone else decided your relationships for you... [Although some of these prayers seemed innocent enough.]
mithrarin: (whoa hold on)

Fortune Weaving

[personal profile] mithrarin 2018-04-02 06:05 pm (UTC)(link)
Uh.

[Dust wants no part of this whole nonsense, and isn't about to go meddling in people's relationships with fortune plaques or whatever craziness this is all about. But Hibiki's colossal disaster of a web can't help but draw his attention.]

[He looks down on it for a moment, before pointing at one convoluted tangle in the center of the mess.]
This person's going to be... way too busy.
sing_for_me: (pen)

[personal profile] sing_for_me 2018-04-02 06:09 pm (UTC)(link)
But how do we decide who is more important..

[ That didn't seem fair, since gods had their biases too. She'll connect them as friends for now. That was a start, wasn't it> ]

Oh, thanks. [ She didn't think someone who have noticed that. ] How are the ones you've been getting?
onehandsomeslickninja: (a little uncertain)

C

[personal profile] onehandsomeslickninja 2018-04-02 06:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Whoa!

[Yep, that's a kid running for the exit. Edge bolts into a sprint for the half-dozen steps it takes to catch up with someone that much teenier than him.]

Maybe the middle of a giant blight isn't where you should be going!
letteropener: (fond smile)

Fort

[personal profile] letteropener 2018-04-02 06:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Here you go!

[Celestia, resplendent in her human form for the moment, sets down a few plaques for him -- then with some surprise realizes he's putting them into piles without seeming to do any work on the proper weaving!]

Are you having trouble?
nopixiedust: (sillica) (Forget about socially acceptable.)

ota

[personal profile] nopixiedust 2018-04-02 06:13 pm (UTC)(link)
A - Pre-Meeting

[You know who's looking cute today? Wendy is looking cute today in a cute dress that almost seems reminscent of a circus with its stripes, black and white as the may be. There's even a cute mask decoration on her waist.]

[While she came in with Hibiki, Wendy isn't going to stay by her side forever! (At least until the announcements happen.) Instead, she's bouncing around, trying to see all the different gods.]


Aaah, I guess all gods look weird, and not just some of the people we get with us! [She points.] Look at that cute cat!

B - Announcements

[There's no need for Wendy to be down at the latest announcements. At the news that Shun is actually popular in some way, she's cheering and clapping as loud as she can. (Sorry, Hibiki.) She's even louder when Orihime is allowed back into the ranks of the gods.]

[But when all is said and done... Whirling on the nearest person to her, Wendy puts a hand on her hip.]


Hey, did you see Hibiki anywhere nearby?

C - Fortune Weaving

[Oh, so they do tedious work like this, too. Well, Wendy guesses it can't all be glitz and glory. So here she is, kneeling down and tying things happily. Whenever she sees someone tying their own name to something, however, she gets a sly grin.]

Cheating, huh~?

D - Disaster

[As everyone is running to and fro, those who look upwards might see an interesting sight. It's that of what appears to be a pre-adolescent girl spinning and being tossed high up into the air. Wendy is still dressed in her outfit for the meeting, and it twirls around her in a flutter as she almost seems to hang, suspended, in the air.]

There! [She points.] Blue house! Ayakashi are gathering near there, I think there are people!

[Wendy is falling even as she's yelling all that out, but she's not worried. Instead, she shoots out what appears to be a shimmering wire, hooking it into something and uses her momentum to carry her to the next spot.]
onehandsomeslickninja: (ha ninja something!)

C

[personal profile] onehandsomeslickninja 2018-04-02 06:14 pm (UTC)(link)
[No sooner does the ayakashi slam into the pavement than a shuriken about half the height of a man whirs out of the darkness to pin its muzzle to the ground, rather gruesomely at that. In its wake drops Edge into a perfect three-point landing, cape flaring in a fit of furious drama as he puts himself between the ayakashi and Maria's crowd of innocents.]

[He rises, flinging one arm back to gesture her away with a motion that makes his cape snap.]
Get them out of here. I'll cover you.
heartshutter: (Gen)

[personal profile] heartshutter 2018-04-02 06:15 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Wow, for a moment there, Tatara thought she wasn't going to recognize him! ]

Mm! [ He nods cheerily. ]

It's good to see you again, Alex! How've you been?

[ He's making this small-talk, sure; but it's largely a show. Then again, so much of Tatara's day-to-day life falls into this category, also. ]
nibelungvalesti: (sword drawn)

D

[personal profile] nibelungvalesti 2018-04-02 06:16 pm (UTC)(link)
[With no subtlety whatsoever, the Valkyrie sweeps his sword a hair's breadth from his skin as she runs past, neatly severing the cloth.]

[Yes, she tends to the sort of Gordian knot solutions at a moment like this.]
letteropener: (fond smile)

B

[personal profile] letteropener 2018-04-02 06:17 pm (UTC)(link)
You say that like it's a bad thing. Why not write your own plaque and toss it in?

[Smiling, Celestia offers him one -- by actually handing it to him, since she is in her human shape for this weaving session.]
unlucky7: (STATUS :: Shocked)

Fortune Weaving

[personal profile] unlucky7 2018-04-02 06:20 pm (UTC)(link)
[Oh. My. Goddess.

It's not as if Ginia hasn't seen Celestia's human form before, and it's not as if Ginia doesn't find Celestia's human form absolutely stunning and gorgeous. But the suit is the kicker and when Ginia spots Celestia, all she can do is stare in open-mouthed awe.

She slips out of her surprise when someone bumps into her, pulling herself together enough to go over to say hi to Celestia. She's also wearing a suit with a dark purple dress shirt, her heels giving her just a few more inches to her already tall height. Ginia gives an embarrassed smile and a wave, quickly typing up a message to play.]


You look amazing!