April Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: May 8th 2017
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 her welcome speech in the monotone of someone who's practiced it far too often.

Once the speech is over, new gods are joined with the rest of the gods in a larger room, although it still has a raised stage and tatami mats. There are worried whispers that they might be given another questionnaire to fill out as was the case a month and a half ago, while others are wondering if this is an impromptu conclave to follow up on Suijin's findings on behalf of Amaterasu.

Well, after a few minutes, Fuujin arrives - with Kaede close behind him. "I hear you all plan on sticking around, so listen up." He crosses his arms and walks towards the front of the stage. "You want to prove we can trust you so much, you can pull your own weight. This whole time, we've been training you and your shinki. Time to show us what you've learned and just how much effort you're willing to put in off the battlefield. Kaede, explain." Fuujin steps back, and Kaede steps forward.

"What my Lord Fuujin means is that we will begin accepting volunteers for temples of the New Gods to host these training sessions. Training should continue to cater to the needs of God and Shinki alike. Prospective Hosts should contact me, Lord Fuujin, or one of the other Counselors Lady Suijin and Lord Raijin, if they are interested in opening up their temple, so that we might make recommendations based on your planned activities." Kaede bows to the crowd. "Lady Suijin and Our Lady Amaterasu also send their regards in this matter."

Although Fuujin harrumphs a little at that final remark, Kaede steps back. "Alright, that's it! Go on if you've got other business."

Shinki Training

There are stacks of informational pamphlets sitting out on tables around the dojo. There aren't very many of the white-robed shinki around, but the few who are present will willingly answer any questions or instruct newcomers in the use of the borderline. They accompany their answers, or their 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, but they are damaged in a way that doesn't make them terribly useful as targets. A couple of shinki are trying to repair them on the fly without success, all by hand.

Physical Training

Amaterasu's shinki took the time to reassemble Bishamon's obstacle course on these grounds! Climb walls, crawl through mud, jump across randomly spaced stumps, find your way through a maze and collect one of each of five different-colored ribbons being handed out by shinki attendants for completing each section within the allotted time. Every so often, Amaterasu's shinki high-five each other for setting a good example for future training sessions and sound excited about being allowed to participate in trainings instead of managing them all the time.

There's another segment inside the hall though, away from the noisiness outside. There is a place set up to do low-strain stretching exercises called Rajio Taisou. Afterwards, this includes a duration exercise for practicing seiza sitting position. Those who succeed for at least 15 minutes are treated to an immaculately prepared hot drink of traditional green tea, or a similar sort of beverage upon request, then another at 30 minutes, and so forth. Don't worry, the drink cups are the traditional size - slightly smaller than a modern mug.

Rest and Refreshments

While the usual refreshments and snacks are available, for those who are still up for it, Amaterasu's shinki have one more session that everyone can participate in. They'd originally planned for it to be shinki songs only, but say they decided to make it more general singing practice. They'll sing a handful of kindergarten-age songs twice-through each as warm up, and then move on to some popular enka tunes as well. They have light koto accompaniment, a small piano, and a drum.

In Summary:

• Get all the information you can handle
  
• Discuss with your temple-mates if you'd like to volunteer to host training
  
• Choose your style of physical training: high- or low-impact
  
• Enjoy singing together
• Have fun~

Comments

[nopixiedust]

It's fine, I can use Hibiki's money!

[That's the advantage of having Hibiki as a god. Even before she became an actual God of Fortune to everyone's surprise and dismay, Hibiki always seemed well off. Honestly, Wendy is pretty sure that some of it was cheating with illusions or sheer force of personality... but whatever.]

[Grinning, she swings her wire out again- but this time not aimed directly at Shun. Rather, she aims it so that it catches the curve of one stump, and goes back around to try and get his feet.]

Besides, weren't you the one making threats first?

[revolutionfalcon]

Well, in that case... [Shun flips back again as she tries to go for his feet, and once Wendy's at an angle where she's not in danger of getting in the way, he flicks out a small throwing knife from under his coat and sends it flying at the taut wire. It's well-sharpened and a pinpoint throw, so it seems like he might've just decided to forego his powers in favour of breaking the wire the mundane way.]

You're capable enough that you didn't need to be camping on that stump, of course I was going to say something about it.

[nopixiedust]

[Yeah, she figured you'd do that, Shun, you absolute jackass. Wendy immediately relaxes her grip, loosening the wire so that it's not so easy to break through... or hit, in general, really.]

It's not like I'm in a race! [She jerks her hand to bring her wire back, even if it does hit some resistance as it grinds along the stump.] And it's not like you are, either. The world won't end if I take my time.

[revolutionfalcon]

The point of this sort of thing is meant to be challenging yourself. [Shun flips over the wire and pulls his knife out of the stump it thudded into after he threw it.] If you're not even trying to do that, what's the point of being up here in the first place? You can climb things anywhere in the Heavens.

[It's not like there's any shortage of trees around the place if just being high up and able to jump between said high up places is the draw.]

[nopixiedust]

I'm checking it out first. What, can't I do that?

[She grins at him... even before she snaps her free hand out for a borderline.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun doesn't even move at that, but before the borderline gets within a few feet of him, it collides with a rounded shield that appears from nowhere. It reflects rainbow colours something like an oil puddle or a soap bubble.]

You're already partway across. If you wanted to check it, you could have done that when you started. It's not something where another angle is going to change how you see it completely.

[nopixiedust]

But it can change it enough in my opinion. If I can experience it, then I will~. Besides, you're the only person who's had a problem so far!

[And because she can, another borderline right at him.]

What is that, anyway? It's not your usual powers!

[revolutionfalcon]

[The shield holds up against the second borderline, though it flashes white at the impact this time around. It seems like it probably has some kind of hit limit before it shatters.]

It is one of my usual powers. I'm just using it differently than I normally do.

[He does use Readiness' effect on occasion, just a lot less often than he uses the actual monsters from his deck.]

[nopixiedust]

Oh, so it's good to see that you're being creative! As expected of a workaholic who isn't satisfied.

[Is that a compliment...? If it is or isn't, she figures Shun won't care either way. Instead, she flings another borderline at him even as she begins to leap skillfully from stump to stump again in obvious progress. How many times will it take to break that thing? It'll be fun to see.]

[Besides, this can help give Shun something else to work through while he's going through the obstacle course. If he's complaining about improving his skills and all anyway...]

[revolutionfalcon]

I've used it like this before, so it's hardly new. [Once she starts progressing again, Shun does so as well - the borderline hits the shield, which this time darkens a few shades and stays that way, as if to indicate it's weakening. Since they're no longer at essentially immediate range, though, Shun lets it drop on the logic he'll have an easier time dodging while they're moving.]

But I don't feel like there's any point to not getting the most out of what I'm capable of here.

[nopixiedust]

[Oh, there it goes... Unfortunate. She'll have to up her game a little, then.]

Maybe you should offer some suggestions then, huh? After a point, if you keep doing the same thing over and over again, it's just repetition that isn't doing anything for you~.

[Trying to leap up a little higher, she gives a twirl as she does so in hopes that the movement will make it a little harder to predict where her next offensive borderline is going for- Shun's arm.]

[revolutionfalcon]

You're the one who keeps repeating borderlines. [It doesn't really make much difference where specifically she's aiming, since once she aims at Shun again, he does a spectacularly extra flip that carries him clear over the next stump and onto a more distant one, leaving the borderline to likely chip into one of the stumps near where he'd been.]

Adding a little flourish to it hardly makes a difference. [Shun glances back over his shoulder, a slight curl reaching his mouth. The actual circumstances are a little irritating, but he doesn't mind a good challenge.]

[nopixiedust]

Mm, is that supposed to be an insult? A borderline is the weapon every shinki has, so it's not a bad thing to use it over and over again as practice!

[Laughing, she pushes herself in an attempt to catch up. This might all be for fun, but she also doesn't really want to lose. At the very least, she doesn't want to give him an easy victory.]

Besides, I don't want to hear you badmouthing flourishes when you pull off moves like that!

[She snaps out for another borderline, to force him to jump... and as he does that, she swipes her hand out again for another... but this time in its barrier form, hoping to interrupt him while he's in mid-leap.]

[revolutionfalcon]

So basically, you're being a hypocrite about it. [There's not any bite to the remark, it's more of a casual (for Shun) observation about it. If she's going to tell him he needs more variety with his own powers, he's going to tell her the same about hers.

That said, it's pretty obvious from where she aims that borderline that she wants him to jump, so he jumps - and then teleports around the barrier when it comes before him. As far as he's concerned, combative applications of teleporting are just as useful a skill to train as anything else.

He reappears two stumps in front, glancing back over his shoulder with a raised brow. Weirdly enough, the impression that he's enjoying himself, even if he's still being somewhat stunted about it, is getting stronger.]

Was that straightforward enough for you, then?

[nopixiedust]

Unapologetically so!

[Because it's all just her teasing him anyway, right? There's no need to be too serious about it. Even so, she can't help but laugh when he pulls that kind of stunt and lets her line down. It's useless anyway, at least right now.]

Aaaah, teleporting is such a trick! Gods are really lucky they get to have something like that!

[But fine, fine... If that's how he's going to be, she'll just have to get a lot closer. Wendy continues to shoot out borderlines, trying to at least hinder his progress while she progresses herself... At least until she can snap out her wire to try and get it around one of his limbs.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Shun leaps forward ahead of her first borderline, making it a lot harder to get the angles to impede his progress - he does have to jump a few of them a bit more creatively, but that seems to be the extent of his impediment.

Once he notices the wire coming back in, though, he glances back over his shoulder as he jumps another line, barely touching the next stump before he's gone again.] You know what's going to happen to that thing as soon as it touches me, don't you?

[Hell, it might not even need to touch him, but touching him would definitely make it a lot easier for him to break.]

[nopixiedust]

Then don't break it!

[She knows he will whatever anyone else says, even if this isn't a life or death battle, but still. She's not worried. With Hibiki's money, she can find a place to get anything he breaks fixed all up easily enough.]

[Although those jumps really are annoying... So, doing her best to predict where his weird jump goes next, she aims one for his face to get his attention at the same time she draws another wall up.]

[revolutionfalcon]

If you're not pulling your punches, why would I pull mine? [Any more than one generally pulls one's punches when they're trying not to kill the other person, at least. Shun considers things like making a weapon unusable fair game in this situation.

They're getting close to the end of the stumps by this point anyway, and Shun figures he might as well not just repeat the teleport when she tries to split his attention. He's used to covering multiple bases, and when the cutting line comes at him, he leaps--

--and before the wall arrives, one of his smaller robotic birds appears underneath him to collect him and navigate him around the borderline instead.]

[nopixiedust]

[She could give that question a lot of answers, but she's pretty sure Shun would scoff or roll his eyes at quite a few of them. His sense of humor is truly warped, along with a few other things she could name.]

[Like right now, and she pulls her wire back so that she can speed up chasing after him.]

Booo! Cheater!

[revolutionfalcon]

I could've just teleported again, since you apparently didn't think that was cheating. [There's definitely a bit of a dry humour to that remark - and not a lot of space to catch up, either. There's a dividing platform between the stumps and the next part of the course, and Shun drops onto the last stump before it and then steps out onto it in the next moment.]

I suppose that was a better workout than these things usually give me, though.

[nopixiedust]

Every bit of you is cheating, Shun.

[But she's grinning as she finally catches up, hopping down cheerfully down from the stumps herself with a much more childish finish than her rapid chase had been.]

Glad to help. Maybe more challenging ones like this should be made sometime, for weirdos like you who still aren't satisfied. We could even make competitions!

[revolutionfalcon]

I don't feel like that's much of an insult in this situation. [He takes it in as good humour as he ever takes anything, though there might be a slight upwards turn to his mouth. He does enjoy doing this sort of thing more than most, and it's one of the easier ways to get some sign of enjoyment out of him at the end.]

It wouldn't be a bad idea. Especially since it's not like it's just a challenge for the people getting targeted, and for gods I'm not sure everyone treats teleporting like a potential combat skill that they can train.

[nopixiedust]

A cheat would feel that way.

[Wendy laughs a little bit. So the way to Shun's heart is to make him do a bunch of obstacle courses with someone. She learns something new every day.]

Teleporting seems like a handy skill for a lot of situations, honestly. I'm surprised more people don't use it. Still, maybe a little nudge is all they need to start getting creative. Maybe that's something I'll convince Hibiki to do, if we ever end up hosting one of these days. [Her grin turns a little sly.] It'll be so fun that you'll have to swallow your distaste at having to enter past those huge gaudy statues.

[revolutionfalcon]

You'd know, wouldn't you? [Shun doesn't hesitate to make that little point, still seeming more amused than anything. When it comes to actual combat, he tends to throw concepts of honour to the wind, and he's pretty sure she's that type as well.]

Who says I'm going to enter through the front door in that case? I'm sure I can figure something else out. [Like breaking a window, which is absolutely something he's done before back home. Doors are for chumps.] It wouldn't be a bad idea to get people to focus on it, either way. If Nanako hosts, it might be worth looking into, since she asked me to help with the combat side if she did.

[nopixiedust]

I'm an innocent girl who doesn't know what you're talking about.

[Which would be a more believable sentence if she wasn't grinning widely while she said it.]

Besides, you can break in wherever you want, but you'll still have to pass by a gaudy statue or painting one way or the other. That'll be my win! Good luck getting past all our goats, too.

Hey, that would be good training for you too, huh?