As the moon rises on the 21st, all non-emergency businesses will be closing early as the Winter Solstice celebrations are of the utmost importance. Those who participated in the ritual will feel the night is different in their very being. Anyone who participated in the Winter Ritual preparations will be immortal for the next 24 hours. No harm may come to them, they will not be affected by the cold, and their magic will be amplified significantly as they are currently a conduit for the world's magic. Everyone, regardless of whether they participated in the preparations or not, is welcome to partake in tonight's festivities as there are many ways in which the Winter Solstice is celebrated.
The most significant event of the night is the Solstice Night Run. If you didn't participate in the ritual, you may be able to get a hit off of someone's Everwarm to participate. At the edge of the City of Camelot, heading into the Brocéliande, characters will be asked to remove their clothing (or if they aren't comfortable with that, change into very light robes provided by local donations) to return as close to a natural state as possible, then run through the forest. As characters run through the forest, despite everything being covered in ice and snow, the woods will begin to come alive. Will-o-wisps sprout out of the snow and shake the frost off, floating in the air to provide lights throughout the forest. The trees seem to move and dance as you pass by, flurries pick up, and even some animals will start running alongside you. It's a celebration for all, as magic flows through your body as becomes part of the forest.
Inevitably, somehow, someway, those participating in the run all end up reaching what seems to be a crack in the ground, slabs of rock surrounding a stream of water flowing through the crack. This is the fairy fountain of Barenton, a crack in the fabric of Avalon that connects its waters to other worlds. Though it's currently unable to connect now due to the time freeze, some of the fairy folk running with you will happily let you know that some of its powers are still in tact-- try sprinkling some water on the stone slab nearby. As the waters trail down the slab and form a puddle on the floor, the drops from your hand will open a vision of a treasured memory. Anyone near you will be able to see it, so only do it if you're willing to share. There are many other uses, but since you're still very new, this is the only one they're willing to share for the moment. Regardless of whether you choose to use that form of magic or not, as you approach the fountain, it will begin to bubble and glow, and lights like an aurora borealis will begin to glow around you as your connection to Avalon deepens. You'll be able to feel the life of the forest, a connectedness to the world you've likely never felt before. Every leaf, the wind, every living being, the magic in the fabric of the world, is a part of you and you are a part of it.
As the night presses on, a large number of fairies begin to form fairy circles, both in the forest and back in the City-- so you needn't have participated in the run to find one. Toadstools and flowers sprout up through the snow that hadn't been there before, forming near-perfect circles in nature. Stepping into one, whether on purpose or on accident, will shrink you down to the pixies' size so you can dance with them, if you promise to keep going for the whole dance. The dance lasts about 20 minutes straight and there don't seem to be any rules besides keep moving around the fairy circle, even if you bump into someone. In the last minute of the dance, pixies will fly above the circle and sprinkle dust over the whole party. Anyone who completed the dance will be returned to their normal size and granted the ability to fly for the duration of the witching hour of 2-3am. You'll be invited to drink with them afterward, if that's your thing, but will not be offended if it isn't.
Not completing the dance despite stepping into their circle, being rude to the pixies, or attempting to stop anyone who is dancing will anger the pixies. Pixies are a tricksy bunch, so you'd be better off avoiding this, but if a character happens to get on their bad side, there are a few different types of pixie curses they may be inflicted with:
Small Soul: They simply won't return you to your normal size. You may need to find some other way to remedy this, or else you may be spending some time quite small. This can be fixed by a person with healing magic and a simple healing spell, as the spell wasn't originally meant to last this long to begin with.
Pixy-led: The pixies will upset your center of gravity for the rest of the night. Though in reality, there's nothing going on, you may have a huge sense of Spinning Vertigo for the next hour or so. Good luck getting home! You may want to find help. The way to break this spell is to put your coat on inside out, so you'll have to find someone willing to share that with you- the pixies might if you promise to give them something good.
Bellbark: Until broken by anti-magic, any time your character hears a bell, they will mentally act like a dog for the next half-hour. This will last beyond the span of the event until your character is able to get their hands on a counter-curse potion, so be wary if you choose this one for your character. As the night winds down, anyone who had participated in the ritual will find themselves rather suddenly sleepy regardless of where they are and may fall asleep as if under a spell right there out in the snow. They'll wake up normally in the morning, the land having used their slumber as time to finish off its work using you as a conduit. Don't worry, those under the influence of the ritual's effects won't catch cold or anything... though, we can't guarantee anything with those pixie effects-- they weren't really harmful, after all, just irritating. Anyone who fell asleep outside will find that the snow has melted in their area for about 5 feet and bright green plants have started sprouting around them on the ground, some vines growing around their limbs but ultimately nothing that can't be brushed off easily.
It would appear that while it was a permitted act during the Winter Solstice, the fae who may have told you about that little trick with the fountain and the pedestal may not have shared the whole story. As it turns out, the slab that everyone was trickling water onto is a stone known as Merlin's Step. Merlin's Step, when a little bit of water is sprinkled upon it, summons rain. When a lot of people put water on it, it summons a huge thunder storm. It is certain to, as many of the fairies are happy to attest, wash away the freezing snow so they can move about freely during the winter again. Fae often have ulterior motives, even if they're often coupled with good intentions. This may have gone a little beyond their expectations, however, as enough people have done it that the storm has brought about torrential rains and hail, frequent zaps of lightning, and strong winds. Most people are being urged and ushered into cellars throughout the city as the hail has been causing injuries, breaking windows, and the lightning is strong enough that it's been striking the ground frequently. You may end up crammed together in a small, dark room while a storm rages outside with little to do except what's in the cellar-- eat canned foods, play old board games, dust of a.. uh oh, is that a Ouija board? Get creative and have fun with what you think could be in the cellar you end up in.
After what seems like most of the day, the storm is still raging on, but the next moment you find still water, the Lady of the Lake's face shows up, with another woman beside her. The Lady of the Lake's ability to communicate via water is being used to reach everyone at once. The Lady doesn't say anything, once she's got it live, well aware that they're short on time as the lake surface is choppy and dangerous right now. They have a limited time above the surface to speak, so she leaves it to the woman with her. |
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isleofavalon2020-12-20 12:32 am
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"No weapons?" he prompts, glancing at the younger man.
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He's adjusted, to be sure, but he does miss having the capacity to cut down twenty or so foes in one sweep without a second thought.
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The rings on the boy's gloved hands seem like they'll do in a pinch for punching flesh, but unless this scrawny thing has the strength to punch through plate armour as well...
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He lifts a hand, fingers dancing in the air as he talks, not quite in the fashion of a marionettist, nor quite in the way one plucks at a string instrument, but a combination of both, along with flourishes here and there that do not approach either.
"I suppose the nature of their storage is the reason..."
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Weapons may be beyond his skill right now, but wires made purely of the source material? Surely he can manage that.
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"I hope you can turn them back if it doesn't work. I can kick, but there's only so much the sole of my shoes can take, and the fallen branches around here don't look like they'd make for a good makeshift lance."
That said, he extends his hand to offer the first five of the rings.
"They're steel, by the way. Stainless steel, for weather resistance."
Since he's using alchemy. Steel has its own symbol, Walter recalls, though he isn't sure how similar Avalon's branch of alchemy is to the one he is familiar with.
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It shouldn't matter, he thinks. He simply has to instruct the item to change its form - or so he hopes.
"Worry not. Rings are a simple shape. I should be able to restore them even if this goes awry." Beckoning his familiar over, he bends down to draw a circle in the mud with a nearby stick. Despite the crudeness of it, he's careful to be precise with his markings and lays the rings in the centre of it once he's done.
Closing his eyes, he holds a hand out over the circle and focuses on what he wants. His gwiber growls softly and touches the circle with its snout, sending a pulse of magic through. One flash of light later and there is a coil of wire sitting in place of the rings.
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One flash of light later, resting in the place of the rings he offered is a single coil of wire.
The process a success, Walter smirks with delight and reaches to lift and examine the transformed metal.
The resulting wire is thicker than the set he is used to, but it will do.
"It looks good! Great for the conditions we're in, in fact. May I trouble you to modify the other five rings into a second length?"
They can use the first length to entangle the knight, and the second to pry the sword from his hands. Easy.
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"I take it this solves your problem now?" he asks, holding out the second loop for them to take. "I am quite curious to see how you manipulate these."
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Already, he is testing them out, motioning in the opposite direction of where he wants them to go. First, he manipulates the set together with both hands, then after a handful of seconds starts to manipulate each wire independently; one for each hand.
"This forest also has a reputation for interfering with magic, but I've already worked through how it messes with mine."
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For his part, he has yet to notice anything go awry with his magic. But they've plenty of time to experience the unexpected.
As he's watching the boy manipulate his wires, he picks up the faint sound of metallic footsteps. Waving for them to stop playing around, he glances around trying to spot their target. Unfortunately, whilst he has better than average spatial awareness, his eyesight is as average as anyone else's.
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"...We should pick out a spot to use the vial at. It wouldn't be good if we poured it out only to have it washed away with the rain."
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He flexes his fingers, the wires moving in response.
"But I suppose I can keep the knight occupied while you take care of transportation arrangements."
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It would be a shame to have them die after all. He would like this rain to stop as much as everyone else.
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That having been said, he looks up again, and in the distance manages to spot their target.
Once again, the thrill of the hunt invades his senses. Truthfully, it would be more fun with another person actively along for the ride even if it is just for an object, but the older fellow doesn't exactly seem to be the energetic sort. Either way, it's an opportunity to advance his talents with this new magic, and he isn't one to squander opportunities of that sort if he can help it.
"Right then. Here we go!"
He's up and off before the man has time to say anything, racing through the trees to meet his opponent head on for the second time.
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He trails after at a more sedate pace, picking his way carefully across the slippery ground whilst keeping a wary eye for danger. As he'd mentioned, he's sure he can fashion a bowl from the earth - there's sure to be plenty of clay, or something suitable, in the ground. Failing that, he just has to find a few rocks and pile them together.
More importantly, he wants to see how they fight with the wires he has given them. He picks a spot well out of the way but with a decent view of the boy and the knight, settling down to watch.
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Even so, his words gather attention, and his intent to harass is clear enough that whether the knight remembers or not doesn't play too big of a factor in what follows; Walter isn't using the same tactics as before anyhow.
The wires are slim, virtually invisible in the night between the lightning flashes that glint off the two strands, difficult to avoid if he arcs them in at the right angle, and almost impossible to in such low-light without truly phenomenal senses of perception.
His goal is the same as the last time — to steal the sword rather than to slaughter the knight — and so he does not waste time hacking at this or that, but rather coils his new wires around the target's limbs much like a constricting snake as he dodges the swings of the sword, binding both legs and then both arms together to render the knight unable to continue.
For the second time, he takes the sword, straightening up and stepping out of his opponent's currently limited reach.
"Ready to send this thing on its way? I could probably hold this fellow for a bit, but I'd rather not spend too long at it."
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When Walter addresses him, he straightens, wiping the rain from his face, and focuses on the small pile in front of him. A snap of his fingers, a small flash of magic, and he now has a stone bowl. Emet-Selch draws the vial out of an inside pocket and gestures to the boy.
"Ready yourself to drop it in once I've poured it all out," he says. Once they're prepared, he tips out the contents into the bowl.
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"Well, now that that's taken care of... time to head back to the city, I suppose. There's not much to do while the weather is still like this, and I for one would like to dry off."
As much as he doesn't mind rain in general, walking around constantly soaked with icy-cold rainwater is liable to get him sick. Besides, it's bloody uncomfortable.
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"I agree... But are you content to leave the knight like this?" They wouldn't be able to get their rings back.
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The black knight hasn't given Walter any cause to test whether or not he is actually beyond death. But he will be cinching them a bit tighter with the knight struggling as he is.
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If the boy says he can take care of himself, then that's on them. He certainly has no cause to doubt it after watching them fight.
And so, turning away, he waves lazily in farewell and walks off, little gwiber flapping after him.
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Without crossing paths again, the boy returns to Camelot, down ten rings, and up two wires. Given the circumstances, it's not a bad trade.