Relief Log #2

[modaccount]

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

Comments

oh nooo DW ate my reply and I didn't notice!!

[maskedtyrant]

Codi blinks a couple of times. It would be difficult for her not to place that voice with a name, and combined with the sheer brazenness of what he's saying, she doesn't even need to turn around to see the expression on his face. Maybe the one she's envisioning is a little more smug than what Jack's actually wearing, but her reply probably wouldn't change much regardless.

"You have any suggestions, Jack?" she asks, still looking straight ahead. The smile she flashes the back wall turns ever so slightly menacing.

no worries. Just had to randomly tag for AC.

[nitashix]

“Yohoho! Or perhaps I’m mistaken! Ye’ still looked lively as ye’ were!,” he laughed heartily, but gradually faded into awkwardness. For a few moment, silence reigned between the two until Jack finally broke it with a series of rasping coughs.

“Err…I could help ye’ with that lad if ye’ tell me what to do,” he offered suddenly, hoping to redeem himself from his tactless greeting.

[maskedtyrant]

Codi lets Jack stew on that one, punctuating the awkward silence with a glance behind her and a sharply raised eyebrow. But any chance of that changing to venom goes away when he offers to help.

"Sure!" she chirps with a pleasant smile, waving him over to join her by the bed. This is not the outcome Codi was hoping for - pairing up with someone she could mooch knowledge off of would be her preferred - but at least Jack is continuing to follow her lead, and attempting to be useful to boot. "If I give you some gauze, could you help me wrap some of his cuts? It's easier with two sets of hands."

[nitashix]

Jack returned the smile with a wide grin. As awkward or inappropriate as it was, that’s just how the pirate was used to. Nevertheless, Codi got him all ears.

“Of course! Ye’ just tie it like a rope, aye?,” he responded promptly in a fool’s confidence, something which Codi might have been used to - or not. Though it might have helped that he immediately gestured his hand to ask for the gauze.

[maskedtyrant]

Codi barely hesitates. "Exactly," she reassures, handing Jack a roll of gauze from her first-aid kit. There's no further thought given to whether or not he's actually qualified to do this - once that bandage left her hands, Codi has determined that she is no longer culpable for his actions. She grabs a set of scissors and takes a step back to give Jack some space. "I'll cut the ends when you're done."

[nitashix]

Jack’s grin never left his face, to the point that it got too awkward to let go. His eyes then darted between the gauze in his hand and the lad whom Cody was tending to, momentarily catching peaks at the other patients. The ritual went on for a while, before he decided to finally apply the gauze, oblivious of the patient’s wince and soft grunt.

“Done,” he concluded, facing Codi once again, as he held the uncut end of the gauze.

[maskedtyrant]

Good enough. "Nice work!" Codi says brightly. She cuts the end of the gauze, ignoring the quiet, pleading looks of their patient in favor of following Jack's gaze around the room. He seems...curious. Which, of course, makes Codi curious.

"You ever done stuff like this before, Jack?" she asks, tone is conversational rather than accusatory.

[nitashix]

“Errr…watched Bernard a couple of times,” the pirate responded casually as he indulged one satisfactory look at his work. “Ah! The man’s our cook an’ physician on board,” he continued, to fill the information gap that he created. His confidence continued to echo in voice as well as in his unspoken gestures.

“And how about ye’?,” he asked while his eyes committed at their patient’s wounds, applying more bandages where he thought they were needed. Oddly enough, his current role seemed to have caught his interest by a lot. Such irony that a battle thirsty pirate would find interest in medicine but spontaneity was part of Jack’s personality after all.

[maskedtyrant]

Codi nods along, letting Jack take the initiative on patching their patient up. It makes sense to her that a crew of combat-ready individuals would include someone that practices some form of medicine; neglecting such duties would lead to rapid and inevitable deterioration of resources--people. Of course she means people. It's the main reason why she was so determined to have an entire medical branch of her company when she took it over, and a big reason for why she picked up a basic healing spell now that she's here.

Speaking of. "Oh, lots," Codi insists, lying cleanly through her teeth. She transitions to telling the truth seamlessly. "Mostly as a part of my healing magic classes - you know, to keep us informed in case we're low on mana or something."

[nitashix]

“Shiver me timbers! They ‘ave classes ‘ere! D’ya think they ‘ave one fer drivin’ this thing?,” the pirate exclaimed, while ending in an inquisitive tone as he pointed at the broken hoverboard that he previously placed at his feet.

“Aw!” Unfortunately for the patient, Jack’s sudden switch of attention unintentionally resulted in a slightly tighter bandage.

“Ah, me apologies!,” the temporary pirate medic quickly responded in a surprising apologetic tone, while proceeding to loosen his work.

[maskedtyrant]

Codi is starting to get a feel for the kind of person Jack is, so his sudden outburst doesn't catch her as off-guard as it could have done. She flinches just a fraction but recovers quickly, placing her hand delicately over her mouth to suppress a giggle.

"Jack, please--focus," she says, trying not to sound too entertained at their patient's expense. Codi waits patiently for Jack to rework his bandages before answering his question. "They have classes for mages. Tian mages. I attend them regularly to learn spells."

There's a pause as the words I'm sure you can find some for hoverboards if you look sit on her tongue, but Codi stops herself short. There's an opportunity here. She closes her eyes, smiling wide.

"There are other classes for more general applications, too - sparring and such," she continues. "I could probably get you in touch with someone that can tutor you on how to use those hoverboards, if you'd like?"

[nitashix]

Codi's call for Jack to focus was merely met by a momentary guilty grin, before quickly darting his eyes back on the patient's arm to carefully adjust the bandages. His ears however, kept its focus on the Tian mage as the latter supplied his query with a few warm up answers then gracefully ending with a tempting offer - which the pirate responded with a widened eye.

"Blimey! Ye be seriously doin that?!," he exclaimed, sporting a full smile that gave away his utmost excitement. Fortunately this time, his task was almost done before losing his focus, bandage freely hanging with its end tightly gripped by Jack. Though the pirate's sudden reaction earned another anxious look from the patient, the injured stranger didn't seem to show any signs of pain this time.

[maskedtyrant]

"Sure!" Codi says through a wide, enthusiastic smile, subtly reaching over to cut the end of the bandage in Jack's hand to set their patient's arm free. "I'd be more than happy to do a favor for you, Jack - I know you're good to pay me back one day, when I need it."

There's something ever so slightly dangerous about the glint in Codi's eyes when she says that - like she's daring Jack to contradict her and say that he won't. She suspects that won't happen.

[nitashix]

Jack's eyes narrowed at Codi before quickly bursting into a lunatic's laughter. "Haha! Yer' a sneaky one me hearty! I like yer wit!," he exclaimed in an embarrassingly loud tone, earning the attention of perhaps all the infirmary.

His hearty laughter went on for a while, before his attention gradually came back to his companion. "Ha! The day ye' need me, is that day I be rushin' with me gun and me ship!," he affirmed, beating his chest twice with his fist.

[maskedtyrant]

Well, at least they're looking at him and not at her. Codi allows herself to flash a toothy grin, but otherwise maintains her composure.

"Glad we could make a deal," she beams, extending a hand to shake - bent a bit to grab his forearm, a more casual and companionable gesture that she hopes he'll appreciate. "Maybe you'll even have a ship by the time I call on you, eh?"

[nitashix]

'A ship eh,' he thought as he gave out his hand to meet Codi's. Of course, what he blurted out was merely an expression but why not. Impossible as it might seem, having a ship of his own would be a wonderful addition to his current life.

"Haha! Of course!," he replied in a strong voice, his full smile intact even after their handshake broke. "So shall we take a look at the other patients while where 'ere?", he continued, as his eyes darted around the room.

looks like a good place to wrap up!

[maskedtyrant]

"That's the plan," Codi chirps, clapping Jack on the shoulder to spin him around. She passes their mostly-competently-bandaged patient a thumbs-up behind his back for his cooperation. "I'll pick them out - triage is important, you know? Here's one--"

She is, of course, intentionally isolating people that look like they won't die if Jack fumbles his way through whatever patch job he settles on. But it's the thought that counts.

Sorry got busy during the holiday season. And sure is a good place to wrap up

[nitashix]

There were times when one wished time to elapse more leisurely than usual. For Jack, this might be one of them, indulging himself in a routine of patching and bandaging the injured. An oddity maybe, especially for one with an obvious thirst for bloodshed instead...but then again, it might not be the work, but the person he was with.

He marched across the infirmary, being led by Codi as he assisted in the patching up of the wounded one after another. He earned a few smiles as well as winces from time to time but perhaps what he took to heart was Codi's approval.

"Arrrr! That was one hell of a job!," he exclaimed, letting loose a few stretches after patching up their last patient. "By the looks of it. I think we're done 'ere!," he continued, facing Codi with a confident grin.