32 - Blow Your Top

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: A volcano eruption threatens the Western District
When: Jan 14 - 16
Where: The Western District of the Heavens
Summary: The Western District volcano is erupting again, endangering nearby temples and sending ash sprinkling down across the Heavens. Is it natural, or another attack? Those who dare climb the volcano can find out.






Earthquake Warning

On the morning of the 14th, an earthquake rattles windows throughout the Heavens. It's not strong enough to knock down buildings -- unless they're about to fall down anyway, like some of the older abandoned temples -- but it's strong enough to knock things off shelves and startle any late sleepers out of bed.

After the earthquake, strange sights abound around the Heavens. The poetic koi are swimming in organized schools in all of the canals, heading upstream towards the east. Springs of pure water burst out in some areas, and in others, normal springs or fountains have gone temporarily dry. Blue and green lights bob and weave across the landscape.

Falling Rock

The volcano begins erupting with a roar and a bright scarlet glow on the horizon. Ash and bits of rock fall across the Western district, and may even reach into the Southwest, Northwest and southern Central districts. Volcanic glass fibers that look like golden hair collect on trees, fences and buildings.

Trails and fountains of lava are also erupting from freshly opened fissures and wending down the sides of the volcano. Gods and shinki who live in the Western District are going to need some help clearing ash and glass from their roofs, trying to re-route lava flows (the good news is, if you cool one side down enough, you can turn them! the bad news is, that takes a lot of work) or just offering them a spare room to stay until things calm down.

Swamp Gas

It's not just lava and springwater erupting from mysterious new crevasses -- and it's not just mundane volcanic gases, either. Divine volcanic vents are blowing mind-altering fumes all over the Heavens. Anywhere across the Far Shore, but especially as characters get closer to the volcano, they may experience one or more of the following effects:

• Confusion
• Intense emotions
• Anger and irritability
• Impulsive behavior, loss of emotional control
• Hallucinations
• Unusually clear insight into other people and situations
• Coughing, eye and throat irritation, difficulty breathing
• Irresistible impulses to speak in poetry

Most symptoms will clear up after a few hours in fresh air, and all of them will be gone within 48 hours of the last volcano gas exposure.

Mountain Climbing

Natural disasters don't just happen like this in the Heavens... do they? Amaterasu's white-robed shinki are convinced that something is wrong, and they're organizing into search parties to go up the mountain and seek out the cause of this eruption. New and old gods and shinki are welcome to join them, or form their own groups. All of the hazards -- tremors, lava, ash, and volcanic gas -- will get worse as characters ascend the volcano. Strange little spirit flames, in shades of red and blue, dance on the rocks, dazzling, confusing and threatening to singe interlopers.

And there's someone up here, too. A mysterious figure with glowing red eyes is keeping watch on the intruders and vanishing behind boulders whenever someone turns his way. He won't let anyone traveling with one of the white-robed shinki get too close, but solitary gods or shinki might manage to lure him into conversation, if they try....

OOC: Please comment to the 'NPC REQUEST' thread below in order to talk to the mysterious figure on the volcano.

Those climbing the volcano will have a chance to battle the mysterious figure should their characters choose to do so. If you're interested in a fight, please comment to the 'NPC FIGHT' thread below before the top-level is posted. A top-level for the fight will go up on IC Jan 16/OOC Sept 4.

In Summary:

• Don't get rattled
• Help out the Western District with their volcano problem
• Watch out for volcanic gases
• Find out who's behind the eruption
• Have fun~

Comments

accepted

[artificialrose]

[....She is super going to die, he can't even believe it.]

[Rubbing at this temples, Garry crouches down by one of the goats. Tentatively, he reaches over to give it a pat.]

Watch out for her, alright? I think she'll clearly need it.

[priforprince]

[ Whether the goat understands or not, the rest of them roll over to line up, single file, for pats. It appears to be pats time.

Hibiki sighs. The dig at her apparently wasn't heard, as she was too focused on the goats' behavior. Goodness. ] With help like this.....

[ Still, this put-upon pose needs to be held for the proper amount of time, and that means all the goats will get their pat (if further pats are on offer). She's an actor, not a sadist. ]

[artificialrose]

[Okay, he guesses this is just.... What he's doing now. Petting robot goats. Garry's expression gets more and more incredulous with every goat he pats. Why does she have so many...]

How much attention do you normally give these...?

[priforprince]

Hmph.

[ At least he's coming up on the end of the line...? Really, Hibiki is just as baffled as Garry. Neediness wasn't part of their programming.....and yet. ]

This puniverse's system remains abysmally inscrutable.

[artificialrose]

Puniverse?

[With one last pat, he raises an eyebrow over at her.]

Is... Was that a pun?

[priforprince]

[ OH NOT AGAIN ]

Does no one's primension pronounce things properly but mine?

[artificialrose]

....I think you're just going to have to accept that the 'proper' way of your dimension is puns.

[Just give in, Hibiki.]

[priforprince]

[ PRIMEN----

Hibiki sags. ]

Let's forget that. Explanations are futile.

Escape the volcano while you can.

[ And let her escape this headache. ]

[artificialrose]

I should be saying that to you... You shouldn't be so close to the lava, dressed like that.

[You know, in the way that Hibiki often dresses, which is outrageous.]

[priforprince]

Focus your concerns upon yourself.

[ Giant gold bows on heeled sneakers and a jacket that says BRILLIANT on the back over a golden crown are appropriate attire for all occasions. A staple of the true Celebrity Wardrobe.

A rumbling comes from above, though, and the goats begin milling about. Perhaps everyone here had...better go. ]

[artificialrose]

[On one hand, he'd love nothing but to.]

[On the other hand, he's too damn nice... even if that means rolling his eyes and trying to grab for her.]

Let's both of us go, then, or else you'll be putting the goats in danger, too.

[They.. might be sentient? He's not sure.]

[priforprince]

Do you even have any notion of where you're headed?!

[ Hibiki refuses to be forced to follow an ignorant guide!

The goats, however, are fine with that. Anywhere that's "away" is all right by them. ]

[artificialrose]

Yes.

[He's headed home. And... taking this very noisy and kind of dumb person with him, along with her many robotic goats.]

[Yeah he's texting Komaeda about this.]

[priforprince]

Hmph. Of all the...

[ He has Hibiki for as long as Hibiki doesn't see somewhere she would rather be. Which, given the way she's glancing about, might not be for very long.

This is not how she intended today to go, and that is insufferable. ]

[artificialrose]

[Yes, yes, Hibiki. You have standards. Garry, as it turns out, also has standards, and it involves not dying by lava.]

[Fortunately, his temple is also in the West District, so she doesn't have long before it and its ridiculously arched bridge come into view.]

[....Mostly, Garry wants to see if the goats will continue to follow him or her, regardless of what happens.]

[priforprince]

[ Yep, she's gone. Following where others have tread is not her Style. Shikyoin Hibiki forges her own path through the thorns of adversity. Merely drifting in someone else's wake is unbefitting of a captain!

The goats split about fifty-fifty. The half that noticed Hibiki left follow her, loyal in spite of everything. The half that were rolling about Garry with the most adulation in their camera eyes, however...

Well, that half completely spaced on Hibiki leaving to begin with. Enjoy your new flock, Garry. They're smitten. ]