001 | The Welcoming Feast

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: A little bit of explanation, thank goodness.
When: Early morning. (February 15, 2016)
Where: The Heavens. Specifically in the Meeting Hall.
Warnings: Exposition is coming your way, sit back and enjoy the show!



The Heavens have summoned you. And there is no way to turn down a summons from the Heavens. Of course, some of you know where you are and what you are probably doing here, but most of you might be completely confused as to what is going on. All gods have been ushered into the meeting hall, where every person suddenly becomes anonymous and obscured, while every shinki has been gathered up outside in the hallway, both sets to listen to the same message sent by Amaterasu herself. And while you cannot see her properly or really figure out what her voice sounds like, you definitely know that it's her speaking:

'Welcome, one and all, to Takamagahara. There are many new gods and shinki here today, and I hope you all find your stay pleasant. I wish that I could explain to you exactly why you find yourselves here now, but I am unsure of the details myself. Please make use of the shinki dedicated to our services in order to make yourself more acquainted with your new position. You can find them by looking for my golden insignia.

As compensation for the trouble you are all being put through, I have had a wonderful feast prepared. I only hope that it is to your liking. Feel free to eat and drink as much as you would like, though please do not leave before the clock chimes midnight, for that is when your homes will be prepared.

I ask that all pre-existing gods please help those new to our ways. Let them know what is and is not acceptable and what duties will be expected of them. I am counting on your all to support the Heavens in this confusing time as we attempt to sort things out.

Thank you all for your time. And I am truly sorry that you have found yourselves in this situation.

With that, the figure that is Amaterasu bows deeply and disappears from their sights. The gods are released from their chamber and the shinki are allowed to roam. All exits are manned by a white-clad shinki, bearing a golden, embroidered Chrysanthemum on their chests. So, technically, there is no way out. You can't even seem to teleport out by any means.

All that's really left to do is enjoy the food and hope that you'll actually be able to leave after the clock chimes midnight. Though the clock doesn't seem to work on a minute-by-minute basis either...



Banquet Hall

There is food from literally every culture and walk of life here. Everything is prepared gorgeously and deliciously, no expenses spared. There are shinki bearing the Chrysanthemum carrying out new platters of everything as it's eaten up and nothing seems to go hot or cold as time passes - it always at the perfect temperature for eating and it never tastes anything but delicious. Maybe there's a little magic making it taste so good...

On top of the delectable dinner, there are plenty of desserts and every kind of alcohol available and constantly being refilled. The liquor is being offered to gods and shinki alike, no matter how old they are/look. Let's hope that you can hold your alcohol.

Counselling

In the main hallway, there is an innocuous door with a small, nicely written sign that reads "Gentle Counselling". Inside the door is a small room with a few sweetly smiling shinki inside who are willing to listen to your problems and answer any questions you might have. They are also here to help out any gods that are having a hard time dealing with knowing about how their shinki died and also any shinki that is having trouble coming to terms with the fact that they are dead.

Did Someone Say Games?

A large room connected to the back of the banquet hall has a wide variety of games set up for everyone to enjoy. There are old-fashioned board games (like chess and Othello) as well as newer ones (like Candy Land and Sorry!). On top of that, there is every kind of console available with every video game ever made - and plenty of handheld devices for everyone to be able to play. The devices don't seem to work outside of this room, though, so you'll have to stay there if you want to keep playing. Gaming is, after all, a great way to get to know new people!

After Midnight

Finally, the clock starts to chime. It seems like it's been days and yet only minutes at the same time. Time seems to work so strangely here in Takamagahara and it's hard to keep up with what's going on. But now that the shinki guarding the doors have left their posts, you are more than welcome to leave. In fact, the Heavens seem to want you to leave because all of the food has disappeared, none of the games work anymore (including the board games, which keep flipping over when you try to play...), and the friendly shinki are smiling as they usher you out the doors.

You are welcome to start wandering around Takamagahara, but it's an ambiguous sort of place and might just take you straight home anyway. Feel free to go home and start bonding with your partner. Or sneak home with someone else because your partner is a meanie-pants. It's up to you!



In Summary:

• Amaterasu says you're stuck here and she doesn't know why. Sorry!
• There's lots of food to eat, though! Eat your fill.
• Oh, and there's booze too. Try not to get TOO drunk.
• Guidance/Grief counselling is available, if you need it.
• Use gaming to get close to others!
• Try to start bonding with your god/shinki. Or just form new friendships. Whatever you feel best doing!
• Have fun!

Comments

[faetedneutrality]

The shinki left a sour taste in Bo's mouth. From what she knew of their roles here, the shinki were like the weapons of the gods. And that hit way too close to home for her. By the definition of shinki here, Bo herself had been the shinki to her father, Hades. And now her half-sister, Dagny, would be having that role whenever Hades decided to make his move again.

"Fire and brimstone? Can't say those are my areas, though I've left my share of bodies in my wake. I'm a nice mix of a lover and a fighter, I like to think." She said with a bit of a smirk, giving Shepard a look over. While Bo wasn't hungry for chi, she found her present company quite attractive. The fire and brimstone comment suggested that she had edges to her.

"They must know what they're doing because they pegged me well enough as well. Missed out on my sense of justice, but they hit the sex and death parts well enough." She paused a moment. "Though I'm feeling concerned that they know so much about us to put us in these roles without asking us anything."

[roeh]

"Sounds like my kind of girl." Well looks didn't always say much for ability but if her words rang true, Shepard always had an appreciation for anyone that could hold their own. And from the way things were going, they'd need a lot of that.

"The way I see it, there's two possibilities. They are what they say and omniscience is the domain of the gods." She paused for effect. The longer this night wore on the less inclined she was to disbelieve that particular rhetoric. It would explain a lot. And the stuff of legends did have a way of coming to life around her. With another sip, her glass settled against the bar with a tone of finality.

She had decided.

"Or we're dealing with the worst case of big brother of the modern era. Or hell the Illuminati? Scientologists? Maybe a secret super group of the lot of them." Now that did sound like a joke. Even those with the worst intentions in her era remained too fragmented to wield that kind of power.

[faetedneutrality]

"So you like women who are lovers while simultaneously being fighters? Good to know." Bo said with a smirk. It was a not-so-subtle way of finding out this woman's sexuality for future reference. "Do you like a bit of danger mixed in with that as well?" Because Bo could be dangerous, given the succubus thing.

Bo had to laugh after both sides of the argument were brought forth. "People in power are never that truthful. More often than not, they use everyone else as pawns in their games. Thus the pawns need to rebel." And Bo was not afraid to go against the grain. She'd gone against the grain her entire life. She wasn't about to change her tune now that she was suddenly a god.

"Oh fuck the Scientologists. That's the last thing we need is a bunch of crazy people in charge of things." She finished off her drink, immediately getting a refill. "I think I can speak for all of us when I say this shit's crazy. And that's coming from someone who's used to crazy shit happening."

[roeh]

"Well I don't like boring. Dangerous is a description that could be applied to most of my life and I like to think I give as good as I get." Shepard spoke in lines that were anything but straight but all she was really trying to do was trace the path Bo had drawn. It certainly sounded like trouble; though the sort remained to be see. If she wanted to find out, she knew the direct approach tended to lead to many walls or dead ends.

She had to smile at such open criticism of their hosts though. It was frank and honest and backed by more insight than she'd witnessed most of the night. The fact that theirs was a bit of a rarity among the crowd came as a bit of a shock but she had weathered shit odds before. Rather that merely disliking boring, Shepard felt like a magnet to the opposite. "Even so, I'm with you. Not even the best training and the craziest fairy tales prepares you for something like this. It's a bit much even for me."

Complaining about it didn't do any good though, she mused to herself. The only thing that mattered was action.

[faetedneutrality]

"Well, I think we'll get along. I tend to run head first into danger, and sometimes danger just follows in my wake. And other times, I am danger." Bo said with a smirk. The latter statement was reference to her succubus state of being. Her succubus nature just attracted problems and danger.

Criticism was something Bo could be counted on for. She never silenced her opinions. Though she may need to be careful where she voiced them here, but she would need to discover where those boundaries were, exactly. "Oh I hear you there. I've been through learning about fairy tales, even the crazy ones, being real. This is a little out of my league, but it's also not that far out of the realm of possibilities that I'm used to. Kind of dealt with god-types before."

Bo was also the daughter of one of said god-types. And she was a walking, living, breathing fairy tale creature. Or monster, depending on one's interpretation.

[roeh]

Shepard has to laugh freely for the first time tonight, though it’s not completely devoid of cynicism and spite. She certainly liked to think she was a danger to certain groups as well; and there was the experience to back it up. At least she was in good company. “Now it’s my turn,” she muses, clinking glasses together with Bo in another toast. The neon colored concoction sloshes about haphazardly as she tips another one back.

And she nods. It was good to find someone that didn’t seem to be rolling over with their circumstance. So she ruminates over her glass and the spreading warm that’s quickly spreading through her as the drink follows its course. “Look. I know a first date is a little early to be asking the hard questions, but do you have any plans yet?

[faetedneutrality]

"I wish you all the luck in it, really." Bo said with a grin, clinking her glass and drinking to that. This was not going to be a cake walk, Bo knew that. There would be a learning curve, but she felt like life among the Fae had prepared her well for dealing with this. Whenever Bo came up to the proverbial red tape that she wasn't supposed to tear down and move through, she'd do just that; tear it down and move through. She didn't do well with being told to stay out of places or not do something. It only made her want to do them even more.

"I am always open for the hard questions," Bo retorted with a bit of a playful smirk. While she was a natural flirt, sometimes alcohol just enhanced it. "But no, I don't have any plans beyond trying to get my bearings here and meeting people. Tomorrow, I'll probably start thinking about that, but right now? I'm just going to enjoy your company. How about you?"

[roeh]

For Shepard it wasn't so much about breaking barriers as it was, not letting anything get in her way. And she had an excellent record when it came to that. But both could be useful under the right circumstances and this was one that definitely qualified.

She simply nods along with Bo, until the woman says something a little curious, a single word that sets the tone and sets Shepard's eyes wandering.

"What? Just me? When we're among such fascinating company?" She laughs and lets the question hang there. As Bo said, the real plans could wait for now.

[faetedneutrality]

Bo was good at not letting things get in her way, but she had been more than happy to tear down the walls of the establishment where the Fae were concerned. Remaining unaligned, save for that one brief stint where she'd pledged herself to the Dark Fae, though it had been on purpose to make herself investigate what had happened as she'd lost her memory of a certain place and would need to remember it later.

A playful smirk crossed her face. "Well, personally speaking, I'm a bit more fascinated by current company." The natural flirt in her came out. So okay, natural flirt was Bo's default setting, but who could blame her? She was a succubus, being a god didn't change that. The flirting and sex appeal went with that.

[roeh]

"Ah." Yep. Real smooth. One can almost see the moment when Shepard's mind connects the dots and crashes head first into the finish line. Suddenly, they're no longer playing the game she had prepared for. So, she does the first thing that comes to mind, the most logical, instinctive -- she takes a drink.

It clears her head and gives her the chance for a second look, this time in a rather different light. And she certainly can't fault what she sees. To her, Bo has a sort of natural charm, the sort she would expect to attract all kinds of people. But more important than that, she wears it with confidence. Shepard might have been similar if she weren't so prone to shoving her foot in her mouth as previously evidenced.

But she can't complain. No, she can't complain one bit. If Bo was looking, Shepard wasn't about to stop her.

"Well. You've certainly got my attention."

[faetedneutrality]

Bo could almost see the wheels turning in Shepard's head and pinpointed the moment things seemed to click for her. It wasn't the first time someone hadn't realized they were being seriously flirted with at first. So she was patient and let her have a little time to process the situation. Of course, as Shepard looked at her closer, Bo couldn't help but to feel a swell of pride within her. She was confident in herself, and wore her body with pride. She knew she was beautiful and reveled in it.

And, of course, she couldn't help but to give Shepard another look over. She was definitely attractive. Bo wasn't exactly picky when it came to someone's looks, but Shepard definitely had a look about her that Bo liked. And she was curious to see what would be cultivated between them.

"Well that's definitely a good sign. Though perhaps we should also start with the basics because clearly I've forgotten my manners. I'm Bo, now also known as Freyja." Because names were important to know for future reference.

[roeh]

Indeed they were and Sherpard is glad to have it going forward. For a lot of different reasons it would seem. Though she waves off Bo's not quite apology with a grin. Up until now it's like they had been pieces on a chess board, moving around, feeling each other out. That's what the point of the mingle was, wasn't it? But they've been circling each other for long enough and Shepard has already decided that she likes Bo for now. Whether the esteem persist remains to be seen of course, but she has a feeling she will enjoy figuring that out.

"That makes two of us. Mórrígan if we're going by our new names. But I think I'd prefer Shepard."

In light of the current circumstances, would it be better to divulge her given name? Nah. No one ever called her that.

[faetedneutrality]

Sometimes one just needed to feel someone else out in such a manner. It was nice once they found equal and confident footing with the other, then they could just carry on without trying to carefully feel the other out. Bo didn't do well when she had to constantly feel people out. She preferred being more direct and getting past the awkward stage of introductions as quickly as possible.

"Shepard, I like it. I'll be sure to use that name unless we have to use the god names." Like for those meetings they'd had upon arrival here. Bo wasn't going to like being summoned to those things. People didn't summon her, and she liked to ignore such things when they were given to her. "I prefer Bo myself. Freyja might just make me giggle for a while when I hear it."

Actually, hadn't she met Freyja when she'd gone to Valhalla with Tamsin that one time? Before she'd been dragged to Tartarus, that is.

[roeh]

"I think I like it better too." And interesting name to pair with an interesting girl. That certainly made them quite the matched set.

The god thing, that would take more getting used to. Especially because these were names that hadn't meant much to her and her own for a long time. Little more than fairy tales and folklore to populate the imaginations of children and authors alike. "Well, they can call us whatever they like but that doesn't make it stick." And it didn't mean she was beholden to it either.