July Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: December 22nd
Where: Outside the 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 rear of the Meeting Hall, where 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 more experienced god and shinki volunteers.




Meeting Hall

God Training

Newly arrived gods are escorted into a small meeting room, with tatami floors and a stage at the front of the room where the speaker stands. A minor deity is giving the speech, and none of the white-robed shinki enter. Paper and pens are provided to all the attendees as an unsubtle suggestion to take notes on the information they're given.

The speaker delivers his welcome speech in a rather bored tone, occasionally stumbling and checking his own notecards. He particularly dwells, towards the end of the speech, on the fact that an unauthorized god has recently tried to access the Heavens, and any contact from other gods asking to access the Heavens through their temples should be immediately reported. Newly arrived gods 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. They are allowed to remain in the room as long as they wish, should they want to discuss questions with each other or with more experienced gods who are here to help out.

Shinki Training

Various shinki in the white-and-gold of Amaterasu's hosuehold are stationed around the dojo, passing out informational pamphlets that have been freshly printed. They will be happy to answer any questions or instruct the newcomers in the use of the borderline. They also accompany their answers, or lessons, with 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 variety of weapons are available in the dojo for shinki and their gods to practice with, and a row of straw targets are set up along one wall. Outside, in an area carefully roped off with red ribbons, are six animated training dummies, also made of straw and dressed in plain cotton jackets and trousers. They will immediately engage anyone who enters the area marked with the ribbon, but will not pursue opponents outside it. A white-robed shinki nearby keeps a sharp eye on the animated dummies, and will intervene if anyone tries to destroy one.

Physical Training

A race track has been laid out, winding through the gardens to a towering pole, 9 meters in height, planted in the center of a pond with a cluster of pretty ribbons tied at the top. White-robed shinki are standing by with stopwatches: anyone who wants can race their friends along the path, with the first one to return to the starting point with a ribbon winning the challenge, or solitary racers can recruit a shinki to time them and try to beat their own speed. But be careful not to fall off the pole! The pond isn't dangerously deep, but the bottom is very muddy, and in late December, it's also very, very cold.

On the lawn near the dojo, a wide circle has been marked out in white paint, and big baskets set around the circle are filled with sachets full of chalk dust in a rainbow of colors. Pick your color, grab a handful of sachets, and join the fray! Anyone inside the circle is a fair target to have one of the sachets thrown at them, and on impact, they splash out enough brightly colored dust to mark the spot they strike. Head or torso hits are an automatic out, leg hits mean the target isn't allowed to move from their position, and arm hits mean they can't use that arm. Borderlines -- and any other magic -- are allowed, and the game can get intense.

Rest and Refreshments

The weather outside, although not freezing, is quite chilly, and in the middle of the afternoon, the shinki will invite everyone into a prepared banquet hall for food and to warm back up. Charcoal braziers set in the center of square tables radiate warmth, and are covered by grates; other shinki bring trays of fresh ingredients, both meat and vegetable, that can be grilled over the hot coals.

After the meal is finished, one of the white-robed shinki, a middle-aged woman with her hair cut in a fashionable modern bob, enters the room with an expression of great, if restrained, delight, pushing a cart with a portable karaoke machine and speaker on it. She sets up the karaoke machine at one end of the room, and begins encouraging others -- both her fellow shinki and the newcomer guests -- to join in with a song. Whenever there's a break, she puts in music selections of her own; she has a trained, jazzy voice and a great fondness for midcentury enka.

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
• Relax, sing and barbecue
• Have fun~

Comments

[chibisu]

A - God Training

Someone who is most definitely not a minor deity is the apparently young child sitting in the audience with his legs swinging, definitely not old or big enough for the chair he's in. Ebisu might be a God of Fortune, so none of this needs to be told to him... but hey! The small-time deity up front said for new gods to ask older ones for help, after all!

...And it looks good if he attends things like these and makes himself look reliable. Speaking of-

"I guess it was only a matter of time until they started to advise people about things like that..." It's quiet, if out-loud, bit of musing at that last bit with the unauthorized god warning. Well, it was going to happen after an incident like that.

B - Physical Training

Out of the god meeting, Ebisu is closely accompanied by two of his shinki, Unmi and Takami. There's no way he'll be able to participate in some of the more... rigorous activities, but he can still be involved a little bit. That's how, after some carefully vetting from Takami (who seems extremely on edge about being here at all, especially near any of Amaterasu's shinki), the young god finds himself at the lawn circle. He seems pretty excited to be here as he picks up one of the light blue satchets he's gotten, winding back his arm for a throw-!

...And definitely doesn't hit the target.

In fact, he might have hit himself.

Or another person in the circle.

Or one of his shinki that are, in fact, behind him.

Whups.

C - Refreshments

Karaoke really shouldn't be such a tense moment, and yet Ebisu is very calmly seated on Takami's lap, the latter who's only seemed to gotten more worried since they've been invited indoors. This hasn't stopped Ebisu from quietly putting meat onto his shinki's plate, or Unmi continuously nudging water over at him.

As if oblivious to his shinki's tenseness, Ebisu smiles over at anyone nearby. "Are you going to go sing?"

B

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Whyyyyyyyyyyy?!"

The agonized cry comes up from, yes, behind, where that satchet slowly slides off the cover of a book floating in midair, leaving the face beneath it coated in bright blue chalk. The blank white eyes water and blink desperately against the grit now coating them, while it coughs violently. Zetta might not have any lungs, but the taste is nothing to be pleased at!

"Treachery! I've been attacked without obvious cause! Have the gods of the Far Shore declared war on me by sneak attack?!"

[chibisu]

That sure is some sort of reaction, and both Ebisu and Takami give a bit of a jump. It's the god in the group who immediately approaches, however, both apologetically but utterly fascinated by a talking book.

"It's part of the training," he says simply, standing on the tips of his shoes to get a better look. "I wasn't aiming for you. Would you like a tissue?"

[badassfreakingoverlord]

"Oh, attacking me is part of your training, huh?!" the book said, glaring down without any acknowledgement of the offer that would slightly compromise his indignation and egocentrism. "Training for the day when I finally conquer the Far Shore! That's more canny than I'd expected from this place!

"Hyaaaha ha ha ha ha! At last you realize the threat I'll eventually pose! You should be grateful to your luck, since I've been forced to maintain peace for now!"

[chibisu]

The good news, if there's anything good about this whole mess, is that Takami is not longer startled, but so confused that no other emotion can break through. Unmi just pats his shoulder with an amused huff.

The Far Shore is full of complete and utter weirdos.

...Which Ebisu now gets to deal with, blinking blankly throughout this whole thing. "No..." He points, helpfully, towards the circle. "I was helping the people train in there."

No comment on the 'rule the Far Shore' thing.

C

[pirateofdragons]

"Only if you join me."

Jae-ha grins at the young god.

He's not going to put himself out there and sing, but if he can bring someone along with him, then that'd be even more fun.

[chibisu]

"Nope." Well, that was an immediate shoot-down, although Ebisu just smiles as he says it. "I was only wondering. It seems really fun, and I think a lot of shinki might participate in it, if they want to get good at song spells."

Although... He tilts his head to the side. "Are you new? I'm afraid I haven't gotten a chance to meet everyone, after all."

[pirateofdragons]

"What a way to shoot someone down like that. You wound my heart." He pauses a bit, looking interested. "Song spells?"

He hasn't heard of anything like that. There are some shinki spells he's heard mentioned, but nothing like a song spell.

Oh, but then: "Fairly new, but I haven't arrived with today's batch. My name is Jae-Ha, shinki to Yona, or otherwise known as the goddess Áine.

[chibisu]

Since it's clearly just a joke (he thinks), Ebisu doesn't address the first part and just gives a small laugh at it. Hopefully that's the right response. It wouldn't do to say that he's staying close to his shinki so that one of them doesn't get too anxious for reasons he'd rather not go into...

Good thing the conversation has plenty of other things for him to talk about. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Jae-Ha-san. I haven't mean Áine-sama yet, but I'm certain it will be a pleasure to meet her." After all, Ebisu hasn't had a problem yet with any of the new gods. "Have you never heard of song spells, then?"

B

[replicatedform]

"Wha-!"

Well, Ebisu did hit someone on the side. Yamanbagiri turns around to look at who's responsible, and maybe throws a satchet back in retaliation. There's a very noticeable light blue stain on his cloak, somewhat standing out against the dirty white cloth.

"Who threw that?"

[chibisu]

WHUPS....

Takami almost immediately draws a borderline in front of his god, stopping him from powedery doom, and Ebisu kind of waves awkwardly behind it. "I apologize. I was trying to aim somewhere else."

And failed. Clearly. He's trying his best.

[replicatedform]

Recognising Ebisu, Yamanbagiri blinks before he sighs and look a little annoyed. He's hit on the side, so he's probably still in the game? Well, he can ask for clarifications later.

"Aiming at where?

Where does it fall between 'a little off' and 'completely off the track'...

[chibisu]

Innocently, while Takami takes down his borderline so as not to be rude over a simple misunderstanding, Ebisu points towards the middle of the circle where the latest person is making their go. So.... a bit off track... Maybe a little more than that...

C

[ittenbari]

"Huh?!" Sakon startles, then leans down a bit so he can see the little guy better. "Me? You mean me?"

He points at himself, like this is something his brain is just refusing to process. Because that's kind of what's happening here.

[chibisu]

"Yes, I do." Ebisu answers the question easily enough with a disarming smile, not seeing the problem at all. Just casual conversation, right?

"Everyone else looks like they're having a lot of fun with it."

[ittenbari]

"Yeah, but I'm really bad at remembering the words..." Sakon grins sheepishly and shrugs. "You'd probably have an easier time of it, right? A little guy like you probably learns a lot of songs in school and stuff."

[chibisu]

"I've never gone to school at all." He just smiles, as if this isn't a worrying response in any way, shape, or form.

At least the two adult shinki with him have their heads on straight, and the older of the pair leans in with a slight smile. "What the young master means to say is that he is a god of the Far Shore, and has thus never had to attend a mortal school."

B

[redotiertwo]

[Have a slow, dramatic clap coming from the general direction of...somewhere above. Davesprite was thankfully not near close enough to get taken out by an errant shot from Ebisu, but it looks like the shinki standing behind him weren't quite so lucky.]

Well, taking out a target behind you when you were aiming forwards takes some kind of skill, I guess.

[Mostly if "complete lack of skill" counts as a kind of skill, but still.]

[chibisu]

[At least Unmi is a good sport about it at all as he reaches down to being the long and tedious process of dusting himself free of all the colored powder. Considering that, like all of Ebisu's shinki, he's wearing a black suit, well... It might take a while. Or until he can get back to a dry cleaner. Or never.]

[Ebisu looks up, blinking wide eyed at the floating bird-ghost high above.]

Do you think that means I have potential, then?

[OPT..I...MISM???]

[redotiertwo]

[Rest in peace, that black suit. Davesprite's halfway tempted to give it some kind of funeral salute as he watches Unmi try to dust it off. Then again, it is chalk dust, so it might lift easily enough. Maybe. Chalk washes off in water, right?

On that thought, Ebisu's extremely optimistic question gets a vague finger-gun motion from Davesprite.]

Sure, let's go with that. Why are you suddenly feeling the mad urge to learn how to throw shit straight, anyway.

[chibisu]

I want to be helpful in assisting people with their training! [A pause as he inspects another satchet.] Also, Unmi and Kimi have told me that I need to work on my hand-eye coordination better.

[For perhaps obvious reasons.]

B

[yasei]

Obi saw something great.

Poor shinki getting hit like that. Obi whacks him in the back and he bounces a satchet he just picked up in his hand, laughing a lot.

"You're real colorful now, Mister. It looks great on you! And wow, Little Mister, I've never seen anyone make a throw like that in a while! You have some skill!"

[chibisu]

Takami is in the process of cleaning himself up, with the resigned sort of air of someone who's figured that worse could happen, when he nearly pitches forward at the slap to his back. At least his companion is there to straighten him up again, leaving Ebisu to smile up at the newcomer.

"Thank you!" he says, making the active decision to take that as a compliment. "If I can get it just right, I think I'll be very good!"

[yasei]

Maybe Obi should have not hit as hard but it's too late for regrets now. He can be invasive, and he should probably be sorry for that, but he's not. Don't fall over, Takami. Keep the color.

It's...possibly a compliment, but also just fun. "Oh yes, with this natural talent you could become a lethal weapon if you get the right twist on your wrist."

[chibisu]

"Twist...?" This is news to Ebisu, and he stares down at his own hand to turn it this wa and that. He only has a very vague idea of throwing, which is thus: take something in your hand, move your arm, let go.

"Could you demonstrate what you mean?"