annexedlogs | Relief Log #2

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Relief Log #2

I. In The Aftermath

After the mission is complete, the new recruits are invited back to Central Command for a patch-up and celebration to let loose and socialize a little bit.

The first order of business is the patching up. Anyone who was injured is welcome to go to the Hospital, if the injuries are more serious. Everyone else, those with smaller injuries like scrapes and bruises, minor cuts or burns or abrasions, are welcome to come to the Infirmary in Central Command. There will also be attendants that tell returning new recruits that if they'd like to learn a little first aid and tend to their comrades, they can also head to the Infirmary.

In the Infirmary, anyone who's not injured but shows up will be instructed in basic first aid so they can tend to their teammates and friends. Nurses will be rotating around to check in on people and make sure nothing is more serious than it looks, but generally, the new recruits will be encouraged to tend to their teammates in order to encourage group bonding.

II. A Fine Meal

On an evening a few days after the mission is complete, all the extra-universal new arrivals will be summoned to one of the large meeting rooms in the Central Command for a feast. When they arrive in the room, it is decorated with orange and brown streamers and fall iconography - bundles of twigs and dried flowers, bundles of fragrant herbs, dried pumpkins with faces and fall scenes carved into them, and other decorations. In the center of the room there is a large table laden with delicious-looking fall foods - poultry birds so large they had to have been roasted on a spit, huge roasted portobello-style mushrooms, mashed tubers, gravy, stuffing, bean casserole, candied yams, mooncakes, boiled spicy crayfish, roast herring, various types of stews ranging from traditional stew to fish stew to mushroom stew, and tons of desserts like tarte tatin, ice cream, apple crumble, pumpkin pie, and almost any other fall food you can think of.

Characters will be invited to sit around the table and feast together, while quiet music plays in the background, facilitating conversation. Some of the rebels have volunteered to keep restocking the table as people wander in and out to sit at the table and eat in rough shifts, and these volunteers will encourage characters to share things they're thankful for, things that make their lives better. All of those things that make life worth living, that make the fight worth fighting.

On a table near the door to the room, there is a stack of beautifully cloth-wrapped bento-style boxes that characters are invited to take with them. They are told by volunteers that these boxes aren't just leftovers for later, but a necessary component of the night's test of courage. They encourage characters to take one and participate, as it's a particularly bright feather in the cap of anyone who undertakes it.

III. The Skyclad Light Show

Once the feasting throughout the late afternoon and early evening is about complete, characters will be invited out into the courtyard of the Central Command for the evening's entertainment. The courtyard is essentially a small but beautiful park, with benches, patches of grass, a few ornamental trees and gardens, and plenty of places to spread out a blanket (provided by friendly volunteers!) and watch the show. And what a show it is!

Every year around this time the Skyclad take magical lights that trail behind them, and put on a spectacular light show in the sky. Streaks of vibrant color follow each hoverboard as those riding them in the sky flip, twirl, dive, and perform other feats of hoverboard artistry for the crowd below. The show goes on for about 45 minutes, with the Skyclad twisting and twirling, drawing beautiful designs against the evening sky.

Characters who really bonded with their hoverboards and took to tricks and flips and kicks after the mission would have been invited to participate, especially if they were interested in joining the Skyclad. The Skydance, as they call it, is quite highly choreographed to avoid midair collisions, all with the goal of producing something truly beautiful and ephemeral. Try not to choke!

IV. Night of Remembrance

The final tradition of the evening is a solemn remembrance of the warriors who have fallen in the fight against the Sylphid. After the Skydance, volunteers would have set up another table of those bento boxes from earlier as well as little bags containing 5 mandarin oranges, and would brief the people in small groups about the traditional Night of Remembrance. The Night of Remembrance is a really big deal among the Witches, and is a great opportunity to prove yourself if you're looking to gain respect and rise up the ranks, as it's also partially a test of courage. The tradition involves taking leftover food from the feast to the shrine at the cemetery in the Mages Sector in order to 'prepare a feast' for the dead and honor those who have fallen, and offering oranges to the fallen along the way. The food must still be at least a little warm when it's presented to the spirits. Sounds simple, right?

Once characters who wish to participate find their way to the cemetery, they will discover a couple more volunteers with a variety of lanterns. For some reason, nothing electric, battery-powered, or at all technological will work in the cemetery, and they haven't for as long as anyone can remember. Any light source must be either very old-school or magical in nature, and texting someone for help would be completely impossible. But why would you need to call someone for help?

Well, it wouldn't be a test of courage without a little danger, right? On this night, every year, the spirits in the cemetery are stirred up and come back into the land of the living. Yes, ghosts do really exist. The ghosts have a variety of temperaments - some of the ghosts are very pleasant and will chat with people for a while before accepting their orange, some are playful and mischievous and will play pranks on people coming into the cemetery (these pranks are sometimes harmless and sometimes very not-harmless), and others are angry and resentful at being dead and won't hesitate to viciously attack interlopers. Some of the more unfriendly ghosts can be calmed down with pleasantries and shows of respect, but others cannot be and will continue to attack interlopers until offered one of the oranges that they've brought.

There are two types of lanterns available: traditional lamps that are simply a candle in a glass bell that can be easily carried with a ring on the top, and magic lamps that attract spirits and appear as a glowing blue-green orb floating in a glass bell fitted with a ring for portability. People carrying traditional lamps are seen as quite brave, but those who take a magical lamp are absolute legends.

Participants will need to take a bento, some oranges, and a lantern of either variety, present the oranges to various ghosts as they make their way to a shrine on the other side of the cemetery, where they will set out the food from the bento as beautifully as possible...and don't let that food get cold, or your offering will be worthless - who wants congealed gravy and soggy stuffing?! At the shrine, they will find an assortment of delicate beaded charms attached to the branches of a large weeping willow tree. These are protected by magic, and can only be taken by someone who's completed the tradition. They will light up a different color depending on what kind of lantern the participant is carrying. These charms will provide a one-time magical boon to whoever takes them.

Characters carrying traditional lanterns will find their charms lighting up orange and these charms will, when used through the calling of a keyword by either Heba or Tian characters, summon the spirits of the dead in an area with a radius of around 50 feet to attack an enemy or group of enemies. The keyword can be set simply by speaking it to the charm. This charm can be offered to another person as a gift or kept for the character's own use, and can be used only once. If the charm has been gifted to someone, it will turn red, but will still be functional.

Characters carrying magical lanterns will find their charms lighting up blue and these charms will, when carried on a character's person, provide one resurrection from death without the loss of memory that usually comes as a side effect of resurrections. This charm can be offered to another person as a gift or kept for the character's own use, and can be used only once. If the charm has been gifted to someone, it will turn purple, but will still be functional.

Regardless of which charms are given, characters are encouraged to show them off as evidence of having participated in the Night of Remembrance. Anyone who is gifted one of these charms should be grateful, they are regarded as high-value gifts to be given only to someone you care about a great deal. Many people, regardless of whether they've earned the charms themselves or been gifted them, will attach them to their network devices to show them off.

NAVIGATION

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[ His mouth opens and closes for a minute before he shuts it, deflating slightly. Clara wasn't wrong. If the situations had been reversed he would have been angry - but it didn't mean he would care about her any less.

He had never extended the same level of care to himself as much as he did to the others around him whether it was physically or mentally. Whenever it came to matters that involved him, matters like this, he always preferred to skim over them. Their interaction after he had pulled Clara from the Troop came to mind and while he hadn't forgotten, he certainly hadn't spent anymore time thinking about Clara telling him that she loved him.

It was resurfacing now though. ]

No, it does. [ He hazards a step towards her closing the space between them again. ] It matters because you care about me even though you shouldn't have to. [ Even though he didn't deserve it. ] Thank you for caring for me, Clara.

[ She doesn't move away again, but she does manage to blink away a tear of frustration before it falls. ]

You're welcome. I won't stop, just so you know. It's easier to just tell me, because I find out anyway.

[ Not always; he did get away with it for a while. But this time she'd been hurt and tired. She still is, and she lets out a soft breath. ]

You're definitely gonna have to sonic the soufflé

That sounds like the teacher talking.

[ It's a weak attempt at trying to diffuse the situation, but he tries all the same.

Wordlessly he pulls out his sonic giving the soufflé a quick blast so that it's back to the temperature it was when it came out of the oven. ]

Did you know soufflés are tricky for the sonic too? The last thing you want is to mess with the molecular make up of the egg white and have it overheat again. Or worse. Deflate.

Hard to tell how good I am anymore since you hardly listen.

[ She huffs, trying to pretend it's as fine as he wants it to be as he sonics and talks. ]

It's a miracle it hasn't deflated yet. Probably breaking multiple laws of physics by not. At least we still have the cookies.

[ Clara walks back to the path again, falling in line once more with the others. ]

I listen. [ He's just oftentimes very selective about who and what he listens to. It's a weak rebuttal to a very strong argument. His longer strides catch up to her very quickly as he joins her in the line again. ]

We probably bought ourselves an hour. What lanterns did you want to take?

[ It's clear to him that maybe returning to a neutral subject is probably the best course of action. ]

If you say so.

[ He's right, she'd rather move on, and she contemplates his question. ]

Might as well go with a magic lamp, done everything else up all the way today. Why stop now? Gives us all the more reason to hurry.

You mean you don't want to stay and chat with some ghosts? I imagine they have a lot to say.

[ They reach the front of the line rather quickly and he takes one of the lanterns. ]

Do you want to keep holding onto the soufflé? Would you prefer the lantern?

I'll take the lantern, I could use a break.

[ Taking the lantern, she stands beside the Doctor and lets out a soft breath. ]

You really wanna talk to a ghost, don't you? [ She thinks normally she would want to, but she's also unsure of what a ghost might say or do. Her mind is tired. ]

We should, how many times will we actually have the chance?

[ He remembers meeting a ghost with Clara (maybe it was this Clara, maybe it was a different Clara), but the details become fuzzy after that. No time to dwell on that now though. His eyes light up at her agreement and he grins, shifting the pastry into a more secure position. ]

So you'll do all the question bits? You're good at the questions.

Oh yeah, because I'm almost positive if you do the talking, we'll wind up being haunted for the rest of our lives. [ Clara pauses and looks at him, asking a serious question of him. ]

Do you think they can...tell us things about people we've lost? The ghosts here, I mean.

[ Immediately there's a frown. ] Why would you say that? I'm a great conversationalist.

[ He motions for her to lead the way into the cemetery and is very vigilant about where he's stepping. ]

Dunno. We could ask. There you go, already asking questions.

Because I had to make you notecards in order to have conversations.

[ Clara eyes him, then looks at the ground to make sure she sees anything that might trip him up. ]

What if they say something we don't want to hear?

Right. [ The realization comes quickly to his face and he can't help but look slightly disappointed. ] Well I have gotten better.

Like what? [ He casts the briefest glance towards her not breaking his stride. ] Are you worried about them being rude?

I'm more worried about you being rude without meaning to.

[ Clara's quiet for a few seconds as they walk, thinking about whether or not she's going to sound silly. ]

Do you think they could know anything about me, about...anything at home?

Well that's why you're around, isn't it? To make sure that I'm not being rude.

[ That makes him stop and really turn to look at her. ]

I don't see how they would. They're ghosts not clairvoyant or psychically inclined. [ At least he doesn't think so. ] Are you worried about something?

I don't know how ghosts work, alright? I don't want to be face to face with my dead mum, I can't handle any more today or tonight. Whatever.

[ It's been a long day and she feels like she's at the end of her rope. Whatever happens with the ghosts, she needs it to be more fun and less mind games and manipulation. ]

You know how ghosts work. Humans love stories about ghosts and things they don't understand.

[ Normally he would just turn on his heel and keep walking but with everything that had happened until this point doing that didn't feel right. Especially not when Clara had mentioned her mother.

His voice softens. ]

Even if something does happen, I'll be here.

I dunno if the rules are exactly the same here, Doctor.

[ But that does reassure her, and she glances up at her lantern. ]

Nothing here makes sense. With you here at least, it feels...less overwhelming.

Different ghost, different strokes. [ He frowns. ] No wait that isn't the saying, is it?

[ While Clara glances up at her lantern the Doctor keeps his gaze steady on her. He doesn't want to bring up what had happened earlier but he also doesn't want her dwelling on it amongst other things for much longer than she has to. The corners of his mouth twitch teasingly. ]

You sure you don't mean annoying? A headache?

Don't say strokes.

[ She shakes her head for a second to clear it before continuing. ] I mean yeah, you are all of those things. You drive me mad because you seem to think no one is allowed to care for you.

[ Clara looks at him. ]

But you make me feel safe.

[ She means that, even with what happened. She's still so annoyed with him because he didn't tell her about his own injury, but she'll get over it. ]

Edited 2022-11-06 14:58 (UTC)

What am I supposed to say if I have to do swimming strokes? Or if people are having multiple strokes?

[ Of all the things for him to pick on - his protests and air of teasing fade on his lips though as Clara replies.

Naturally his first reaction is to deny her claim about no one being allowed to care for him but he can't even bring himself to do it because he knows in his heart that it's true. Being a little defensive and rude was an option but that wasn't going to help matters whatsoever. In the end all he can muster is a half-hearted - ]

I have a duty of care, not the other way around. I'm glad that I can do that for you at least.

[ He notices ghostly apparitions beginning to appear on cue and he motions his head further down the path. ]

Shall we?

[ There's always more to say, but as per usual, she doesn't say it. The ghosts appear and Clara grabs an orange as they walk closer. With no more apprehension, she goes right up to a ghost and offers the orange. ]

This is for you. Thank you for everything you did against the Sylphid.

[ The ghost seems touched and a little bemused at the offering but takes the orange without being rude, at least. ]

[ Another ghost takes the place of the other one and this time the Doctor is ready to hand them an orange. Well, kind of. It's a little difficult to maneuver a souffle that requires two hands to hold into one but he does manage it. With a bit of a flourish, he hands it to the ghost with a bit of a nod. The ghost reaches for it before gently floating away with their own appreciative smile. ]

Not very chatty are they, these ones?

[ He sounds disappointed. ]

I think if I were dead, I wouldn't have much to say.

[ Clara glances up at him and opens her mouth, then closes her eyes and looks ahead again. ]

Other than being upset about it, probably.

[ The furrow of his brow would be a dead giveaway that he doesn't believe a ghost Clara would have absolutely nothing to say. In the process though he misses the fact that there might be something more she has to say in her silence. ]

I think you'd have plenty to say. I know I certainly would.

[ After handing out a couple more oranges he motions for them to keep going. ]

We're going to run out of oranges at this rate. Let's keep going?

Relief Log #2

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