37 - A Call To Arms

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Help the Heavens go after the cultists' compound
When: April 1
Where: A converted farm on the rural edge of the Tokyo metro area
Summary: Between Amaterasu's shinki observing the known cultists, and the work that the new gods and shinki have done, a rural property that might be the cultists' compound has been identified!






After months of investigation, Amaterasu's shinki still haven't found the rebel gods she's searching for -- but, with the help of the new gods and shinki, following the cult has revealed their rural meeting place! It was once a farm, but has recently been rebuilt into a compound with a big central building, heavy concrete walls and plenty of outdoor spaces for ritual magic. The new gods, and some of the old, have been asked to descend to the Near Shore and find out everything they can about this mystery compound.

High Walls

It's not just concrete that protects the compound. The walls are engraved with magical symbols, and any god or shinki who gets too close to them finds themselves feeling increasingly sick, weak and repelled from the structure. Even flying over won't work. There's only one exception: when the front gates are opened to allow cultists, or scheduled deliveries, a careful few gods or shinki can sneak through without being blocked by the spell. How will they get in? Shadow a cultist? Pretend to be a pizza delivery driver? Or will they risk alerting the cultists by trying to break down some other part of the wall?

Booby Traps

The problems don't end when they get inside the compound. Dozens of cultists seem to live here -- or maybe they're just visiting for the weekend? Either way, there's a lot of people inside, and while most of them overlook the presence of Far Shore beings, that doesn't mean there's no danger. Magical booby-traps and seals are dotted around the grounds and throughout the big, sprawling, two-story manor at the end of the driveway. Some of them blight any god or shinki who triggers them. Others glue their feet to the ground, or make them instantly noticeable to any passing cultist, or weaken them by draining their energy away.

The traps have clearly been made by several different people, and some of them have weird senses of humor! Almost any effect might be inflicted on the unwary characters who stumble across a booby-trap, although most of them won't cause serious injury or death, and the effects wear off within a few minutes to a few hours after either they get away from the trap, or someone else helps them by destroying it.

The First Fight

Not every human cultist in the compound is blind to the presence of gods and shinki -- and with all the traps being triggered, it's just a matter of time before they're caught. The first warning that the cultists know they're being invaded is the piercing sound of a bell. The second is the appearance of lashing ayakashi tentacles that rise up from the ground all throughout the manor house. As the humans flee, the tentacles will wrap around any gods or shinki they can catch, trying to drag them further into the house and down. Although they can be cut and destroyed, the main body of the creature is out of reach: it lurks far below, in the building's basement, gnashing a massive, serrated octopus beak that's ready to rip apart and devour any souls who can't struggle free of its grip in time. Follow the spectral tentacles down to the beast's lair, and slay it before it can kill all the invaders!

Please comment to the First Fight thread below if your characters are trying to rend the ayakashi. Each character can only be in ONE First Fight thread. RNG will be used to determine which fighters manage to strike the final blow, but RNG will only select a single thread; players are free to negotiate how the final blow happens within that thread.

The Second Fight

As the octopus ayakashi dissolves, finally free from the magical bondage that forced it to guard the cultists' compound, a mysterious door is revealed set into the far wall of the manor basement. A strange glow emanates from within. Enter... if you dare!

To participate in the second fight, please comment to the Second Fight thread below with the character(s) who will be participating in your thread. A top-level with further details will go up on February 7.

In Summary:

• Investigate a cult compound
• Watch out for traps
• Battle a giant octopus
• Uncover a mystery
• Have fun~

Questions? Leave us a question on the OOC Plotting Post and we'll do our best to answer ASAP.

Comments

[hypomeneo]

[Rule #7: The Caster may add or modify all rules.]

Set!

[And he's stepping just outside the Boundary Lines to protect himself as the sigils began picking up light as the new Bounded Field rises. He's... not interested in being caught in anything if things go wrong.]

Information about her magic or her knowledge or experience in other things?

[Careful child... doing that with Gods could be dangerous. But it's necessary information.

... so yes, let's get to work.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Almost like taking the memories and knowledge of hundreds of experienced mages of varying ages? Judar isn't so much a careful person as he is the type to find a way to deal with something as it comes up. At least when it comes to severe consequences to himself. ]

Sure. Maybe we'll even find out who's been behind all of this and teaching people how to put those dark masks onto ayakashi to control them.

[ The way that old woman acted, and how the teen would look to her... They didn't seem to be behind everything. Just two more pieces in all of this. Fanatics at a higher scale than humans, and if they're behind all the things going on, that'd mean there was probably a reason they were fighting the far shore instead of trying to get in the normal way. ]

[hypomeneo]

She may still be aware in there in some manner. Just be ready to subdue her if she tries something with you.

[... foreign memories should be okay. Waver concentrates to feel if anything is triggering an oh shit reaction. There's none... but that might just be because he's not the one taking her in or the sense is spotty and psychosomatic.

Judar is still going to go try this regardless, but Waver better be ready to pull his ass from the fire if it goes south. He has experience with how damn stubborn he is, so hopefully he's putting him in a slightly more aware state of mind.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Stubborn? It's as if you saw him almost die or something, or heard about the ablution. Relax, Waver. This is why you have a huge wrinkle down your forehead. ]