August Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: January 6th, 2017
Where: Outside the Meeting Hall, the Far Shore / the Ryukyu Islands
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 her welcome speech in the monotone of someone who's practiced it far too often. Hopefully no one's feeling sleepy! She adds that gods should be cautious of anyone on the Near Shore who might ask to use their shrines to visit the Heavens, and should instruct their shinki to be cautious as well. There is an unrecognized god who the Heavens believe to be attacking them. 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. Each of the shinki is wearing a brightly-colored sticky name tag reading HELLO, MY NAME IS ________, and all of their names appear to end with the syllable "mei."

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. The white-robed shinki appears to be a particular expert in magic, and will occasionally offer to help out anyone who's practicing a spell more challenging than the Borderline, especially if they look quite lost. His nametag reads HELLO, MY NAME IS SABIMEI. (To interact with Sabimei, please comment on the "NPC REQUEST" thread below! If you prefer, you may also handwave his assistance or advice with your character learning spells.)

Physical Training

Two of the white-robed shinki, whose nametags mark them as Toumei and Kimei, are standing off to one side of the training area near a pair of large, curtained tents. They each have an enormous wicker basket full of clean, folded beach towels, and a rack of what appear to be wetsuits and swimsuits in a variety of styles and sizes. Once suited and toweled, new and veteran residents of the Heavens alike will be handed a pretty white-and-gold cockade that can be pinned to their suit or tied around their wrist by its ribbons, and either Toumei or Kimei will escort them to a beautiful, but rocky, Near Shore beach. Tropical plants, palm trees and high grasses surround the area, and although the sounds of cars are audible from a road not too far away, the only sign of human presence on this beach is an ancient, rotting fishing boat pulled up well past the high tide mark.

It's quite chilly, with a brisk sea breeze, but there's room to run up and down the beach, a net set up for beach volleyball, younger shinki building sand castles, and showers for the brave souls who venture into the water. The surf is impressive today, so swimmers will get the chance for some serious exercise. There's also the chance to climb through the wreck of the old fishing boat; inside, piles of old seaweed and drifting sand host curious crabs, and a curious explorer could even find treasure... although nothing more valuable than large seashells, old one-yen or five-yen coins, and bits of weathered sea glass.

Rest and Refreshments

When sunset comes -- early, at this time of year -- the shinki bring giant picnic-sized bento boxes with five or seven layers of carefully packed foods, and pile wood for bonfires that leap with flames edged blue-green from the salt. The bento boxes contain a wide variety of traditional foods, many in the style of traditional New Year's dishes: sweet potato and chestnut, slivered carrot and burdock, whole fish, toasted mochi, sliced lotus root and more. A fireworks display starts over the ocean once full night falls, fountains and bursts in every color imaginable, some so ornate that it's hard to believe they're not helped along by a touch of magic. The display lasts half an hour.

After the last fireworks, the shinki will guide everyone back to the Meeting Hall to return to their homes. The wind is getting chillier, and gods or shinki who stay too much past the firework display will notice the tiny, creeping forms of glowing ayakashi no larger than a fist, looking like little jellyfish on land. They don't seem hostile; instead, they're fixated on the boat, and will climb on it and settle onto the rigging and wood of the boat, chirping quietly to themselves and snuggling in so that the whole boat seems to glow with an unearthly blue-white light. They can be fought and defeated, but if attacked, will fight back: and be careful! Those jellyfish tentacles spread blight instead of stinging, and they're longer than they look.

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 at a beach (isn't it winter?!)
• Relax and watch the fireworks
• Have fun~

Comments

[kokuyoyo]

...So I just have to keep repeating until I figure out what the exact issue is...

[At least then, he'll be able to prepare himself for it.]

I hate that the brain is so... troublesome.

[revolutionfalcon]

The alternative to it being troublesome is being useless. Setting your emotions aside doesn't lead to anything good in the end.

[Or operating based on a single emotion, for that matter. Shun's basically done both at various points of his life, and neither of them ended terribly well.]

Then again, you've got plenty of company in this place when it comes to troublesome brains.

[kokuyoyo]

...I mean, it's worked well enough up until now...

[No emotions- or, at least, limited ones- means he doesn't have to get so worked up or distracted. He can think a little more clearly than his partner can, sometimes. He can do what he needs to, or even wants to, and not feel any negative emotions over it. It was worrying when he had no memory, but it was more because he didn't belong.]

[But he's fine just how he is. Right?]

[Gingerly, he pushes himself up and, before he evens feels at his face, touches his glasses.]

...They're not broken...

[He'd been wondering.]

[revolutionfalcon]

Your opinion on how well it's worked isn't going to be accurate. [Shun points that out incredibly bluntly. Chikusa is functional, but as far as Shun's observed, he's completely maladjusted, has no sense of social...anything, and has about the minimum level of morals he'd be willing to tolerate out of someone and still be civil with them.

He gives a faint snort at the remark on the glasses, though.] Wouldn't be much point in me risking a hand full of glass for just a spar, so I was trying to avoid those.

[kokuyoyo]

...I guess.

[But it's still better than he would have ever expected. He begins to feel along his face.]

Think it'll bruise..? [He can't tell, lacking the ability to feel pain and all.]

[revolutionfalcon]

Probably. [At least he's honest about it - Shun once gave someone the impression he'd broken their nose with a punch like that, so it seems likely.] I'd be surprised if Nanako let it stay that way, though.

[Especially now that Chikusa's her shinki, but she's already insisted on healing Shun a few times before.]

[kokuyoyo]

Ken would be worried too...

[He'd gotten worked up when Chikusa had gotten sliced that one time in one of his other sparring sessions with Shun. Speaking of...]

[He leans forward, pressing his palms against the ground... and tries to twist himself around, one leg sweeping out towards Shun's.]

[revolutionfalcon]

Unless he has healing powers, that's not really as relevant.

[Shun's just about gotten done saying that when Chikusa puts his palms against the ground like that...and that's decidedly not a position anyone would take unless they wanted to support themselves on their hands. As such, his reaction to the attempt at a sweep is to flip backwards out of the way, a faint hiss of annoyance escaping his mouth.]

You're not going to hit anything with an attack that signposted. [He is, however, prepared for a follow-up of some description.]

[kokuyoyo]

[Ken does in fact have healing powers, as Hakkai's vessel, but that's not really important right now... and, frankly, Chikusa doesn't want to tell anymore people then he can get away with. For now, he focuses on getting up to his feet, since Shun has avoided that attack.]

I was trying to hide it with getting up... I think you're the kind of person that's more paranoid and aware.

[It's not really a negative trait, in Chikusa's opinion, even if it is a pain in the ass, personally, for him.]

[revolutionfalcon]

It pays off more often than it doesn't. I suppose a lot of people wouldn't have noticed that you were putting too much weight on your hands.

[To Shun, that sort of thing is a natural observation, but he knows not everyone else picks it out so easily. It does get annoying if he's trying to explain details to someone that they just won't pick up otherwise, but he's fairly used to it by now.]

[kokuyoyo]

You're experienced...

[Which can mean all the difference in a fight. Still, now he's wondering something different from their initial goal...]

How would you have done it differently? [Shun's a blunt asshole, but even he can recognize the tactical value in the element of surprise, right?]

[revolutionfalcon]

Depends on the person. Less suspicious people might've fallen for you wanting a hand up, since you were injured. People like me you'd have a hard time surprising anyway, so you'd want to do it as quickly as possible, not something like that which needed you to adjust your weight in a way someone else could pick up on.

[And pick up on it being not quite right for wanting to stand up rather than put all his weight on his hands.]

[kokuyoyo]

[So really, in the end, for someone like Shun, he'd be better off with an assassination style attack anyway... Fighting up front like this really doesn't suit him. A shame that it doesn't seem like he might always get a choice in that.]

I see... Then I'll keep that in mind.

[And then he's making another charge almost before he's finished talking, going for another side kick. Hey, if he has long legs, he might as well try to use them to his advantage.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun lets out a faint hiss of annoyance through his teeth, moving to meet the kick - with his hands. Shun is extremely physically strong for someone of his build, and unless Chikusa finds some way to worm out of it, he's not going to hesitate to grab that leg and use it to bodily throw Chikusa across the part of the training area they're currently in. Extremely hard.]

[kokuyoyo]

[WELL]

[THERE HE GO]

[Getting in a trophy for "skipping stone mimicry", Chikusa bounces across the training room ground with a good couple of rolls for good measure. He manages to make himself stop before he hits a wall, thankfully, but his glasses are lopsided as he glances up.]

...Pain in the ass.

[But he'll get up and keep trying, wanting to get at least a hit in... and figure out what part made him freeze up like before.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[It takes a good while - hand-to-hand combat is Shun's specialty, and it's common for him to be taking on multiple opponents at once, which is considerably harder to dodge than one-on-one - but eventually, Chikusa will get a good hit in. Shun rolls with it well enough, since he's been training for most of his time here to alleviate his previous issues with being somewhat of a glass cannon, and the pain doesn't seem to bother him too much, judging by the way he dusts down the impact area somewhat carelessly. It's not an issue with the strength of the hit, but just that Shun has been in some pretty severe physical agony in his time and one hit, however strong, doesn't stack up that much.]

Seems like you've progressed a little.

[kokuyoyo]

[Finally. While Chikusa might not be able to feel the many bruises which are no doubt going to be littering his body by tomorrow morning, the sweat that's been worked up as a result of this little session is a lot more noticeable. He tugs at his shirt collar with a small grimace.]

But it took that long... [Definitely would have to assassinate Shun instead of getting into a fight... This has only proven it all the more.] ...I think I get it, 'tho...

[revolutionfalcon]

I'm not the kind of person you want to be dealing with one-on-one. [While he's not quite in line with Chikusa's train of thought there, the only times people have been able to trouble him successfully in physical combat has usually been by group ambush, and even then only by finding a way to stop him being able to wipe the floor with them immediately anyway.] But if you figured your problem out, then that was the whole point of this anyway.

[kokuyoyo]

[So drugs-]

[Still, Chikusa gives a slow nod, watching Shun with a kind of underlying wariness. Giving away his weaknesses is something he's extremely tentative to do. While he can't remember everything, he can remember enough to know that it can keep him alive or not. At the same time, well... It's not as if Shun isn't already more than aware.]

...Headfront attacks. Or something like that, maybe.