isleofavalon | EVENT ✨ The Summer Solstice

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EVENT ✨ The Summer Solstice

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This is the event log for IC comments only! Ask OOC questions/plot/view event notes HERE or use the FAQ for general questions. Click here to view top-level comments only. A poll to collect results of the trials will be posted this weekend and stay open until the end of the month to give people a little time to see how their threads are going.

KEY POINTS

Celliwig responds-- y'all barely passed, so they kidnapped everyone and brought them to Celliwig for the summer solstice.

The summer solstice ritual is about renewing the sun and moon within a sacred fountain called Diamond Falls within Celliwig, which requires large-scale magics to essentially create a sun and moon cycle for the following year for Avalon, which exists outside of normal space and time.

Not everyone is happy about Celliwig opening back up, and some cursed spirits cross the river to attack the homecoming trip.

There have been some whispers about the summer solstice, but for some reason, Camelot doesn't seem to have put in as much effort for the summer solstice as they do for the other solstice and equinoxes. If anyone had asked around town, they'll say that the sun always seems to come out after they banish the water spirits, so there isn't much to do for it. A few of the more elderly fae around town seem to say there's a lot to do about it, but not to worry about it and just enjoy the time off. Even more silent has been the results of the trials. It seems as though it's bound to be a quiet June, relative to the last couple of months.

At least until the morning of the 20th. The sun has yet to rise, though birds have started their morning rounds and chirping. Rather suddenly, the entire atmosphere goes completely white, as if everyone has been enveloped by the sun itself. It's too bright to keep your eyes open, though if you'll try to squint through it you'll notice the entire ground is enveloped in shadow despite the impossible blinding light all around before you're pulled down into the darkness within a matter of seconds.

Regardless, when you open your eyes next, everyone has been teleported to a strange-looking park. The trees seem to be made of ceramic, blossoming strange, pure black leaves. Those with green magic will be able to tell the trees are alive and well, despite their odd appearance, and once out of the park, it may become more apparent where everyone is: A city beautiful and glistening, its buildings made of crystal and glass. Welcome to Celliwig, the Splendored Court. And this time? Their doors are open.

Explore: Celliwig
Celliwig is a city that's hidden with a large-scale glamour that causes it to look like a shanty-town from the outside. Those with permission to enter, however, will find that the city is actually a splendorous city made entirely of crystals and glass of all kinds. At its center is the Hall of Mirrors, which is typically closed to the public and guarded by a strange old man with huge, rippling muscles of at least 7 feet tall and a long, scraggly beard. Some may recognize him as the man from the #ChaliceChallenge trial, but he'll mostly ask you to call him Glewlwyd (the IV, but you can drop the number.)

Everything in the city appears to be open now, in contrast to the city mostly hiding away during the first visit. It isn't too crowded, but there are people out and about, and they seem to be less wary. The popular fashion seems to be styles similar to gothic lolita/aristocrat and cyber lolita/aristocrat, largely in black, white, or gray with sparks of color for accent that make each outfit unique to its wearer, and each person seems to have an almost airy, ethereal nature to them. They seem humanoid, and yet distinctively not human, gliding around rather than walking. There aren't too many typical dogs and cats around as pets, but snow-white ferrets and owls seem to be the popular animal companion of choice, often being carried around with their owners. There are also wild hamsters with tiny, useless wings that seem to run around during the day, so please watch your step. (They are fairies who used to be able to fly, but their wings seem to have gone the way of the appendix.)

Music seems to be largely string in nature, though it can range from calm and peaceful to sometimes more familiar music styles. It is played more openly in areas like the park or shopping centers by musicians who simply wish to share their sound, but outside of those designated areas it is mostly quiet in nature, save for the clamor of the newly transported guests from Camelot.

Celliwig's restaurants typically serve molecular gastronomy versions of food, and alcoholic drinks seem to come in vapor form and flashes of light if ordered, but seem effective nonetheless. Stores in general are open now, though except for a singular general store, seem to be very specific in nature. If you're going to a magic store, there is one specific store for crystals, one specific store for hand-crafted woodcrafts (wands, staffs) to better direct magical energy, a store for vegetables that's peculiarly separate from the store for fruit and the store for fish and the store for cooking supplies (which again, are all oriented toward molecular gastronomy-- good luck finding a whisk, enjoy your nitro whip canister), and so on.

Of note toward the entrance of town is a very large waterfall fountain that seems to be made of massive amounts of diamond, with inscriptions and a plaque toward the front. The plaque reads "Those who walk only in the light miss the truths hidden in the dark." This is of particular note given the invitation extended to all devices in the area:

Welcome to Celliwig. Tonight we celebrate the summer solstice. Having Barely Passed your trials, we ask you to participate in this sacred ritual before we grant safe passage and open communication with Queen Elphame. To the north of the park you arrived in, a hotel is prepared for your stay free of charge for the night. At sundown, come to the Diamond Falls. Be warned, thieves: The Diamond Falls are sacred, and thus cursed.

Those who try will experience a curse that causes food and drink to turn to ash in their mouth and an inability to experience pleasure, heal from injuries, or die. While they appear normal in the sun, the moonlight will reveal their true nature-- no matter how gruesome that gets, and will only be lifted when the sacred diamond is returned. Drinking water from the fountain is fine though, and if drunk can heal all wounds, regrow limbs, and get rid of scars so long as the drinker stays within the walls of Celliwig. The sacred water's effects wear off outside of the Splendored Court, unfortunately. Characters can ask around and Celliwigians will tell them this information freely, as they are quite proud of their splendor.

Those who choose to participate in the summer solstice rituals and show up at the Diamond Falls on time will first be offered a drink from the fountain, though it is not necessary to take the sip. (You may choose whether or not your character was informed of the effects of drinking the water ahead of this decision, if you want them to do so but they would not on their own.) After the drinking, a number of Celliwig's citizens will engage in a dance that rapidly picks up pace until they go into a trance, glowing magical energy starting to flow out of their bodies and create an almost solar flare-esque glow before they collapse to the ground. Not a moment later, the earth shakes and the ground begins to open up beneath the fountain, the waters draining down over a staircase that opens up beneath the floor of Celliwig to a large crystal cavern. The crystals within are huge, some easily surpassing twenty feet in length, and burst out from both the floor and ceiling. At the bottom of the staircase, the ground itself is covered entirely in at least half a foot of water save for raised platforms that those performing the ritual will be expected to jump across instead of disrupting the waters. At the end of this long passageway, there is a door made of stained glass. On the other side, a room carved out in stone, lit in vibrant orange and heated by a scorching heat. The stone forms a circle that flows around a large pool of lava.

One of the Celliwig leaders reads some sacred texts, then offers the following instructions: "Turn to the person next to you and offer them a piece of yourself. It can be tears, blood, hair, a whispered confession made tangible with magic-- anything that is yours. That person must then throw it into the lava and do the same in exchange. By giving part of ourselves to the fire and weaving that energy through those around us, we share the light with all around us. We fuel the sun of Avalon."

Once this portion is done, water will rain down from the ceiling and the entire room will be filled with steam, and then darkness as the lava's flames are rapidly put out. It's blinding and almost unbearably hot, and you'll have to find your partner-- or maybe someone else, by wandering around carefully and blindly. It may help to use a little magic at this point to see or guide yourself or others, either by cognitive suggestion or something more physical like creating vines to catch someone from falling on the still-rather-hot solid substance created by the water hitting the lava. Regardless, there seem to be giggles and screams and all manner of unnerving sounds as people try to find each other in the dark and look for the exit, which... doesn't seem to be where it started.

Eventually, the steam seems to get hot enough and shatters the stained glass door, which reveals a different room than before. The temperature drops rapidly, the air fresh and much easier to breathe as the steam spills out over the surface of the cool water. Light spills out from the ceiling, dim from the moon, and it becomes apparent that everyone has been let out into a massive cenote. It seems as if it's now time to relax and swim for a little while and just enjoy the cool release of no longer being trapped in the hot Diamond Fall's underground.

Eventually, everyone will find that regardless of how they felt when they got in, anyone in the cenote will feel their mood lift, until eventually they find a song in their heart that cannot be contained. People start bursting into songs that express part of who they are. For some, it will be songs they know. For others, it may be a song they've never heard but matches who they are to a tee or shares something they hadn't intended to about themselves with whoever is there. It's also possible two people could end up in a duet and end up swim-dancing together through a musical number. With each song that finds its way into the cenote, crystals seem to light up in the walls, as if they're reacting to the music itself. Once the entire cenote is lit up, the water begins to rise within the cenote much as the tide might, finally raising high enough to bring the people within back to the surface, the small pond within the park that everyone started in.

"The tides can feel your hearts and souls and raise with your spirits, and the Moon of Avalon in turn finds its will to dance with the Sun, providing light for the dark as the sun rests." the same leader speaks, before finishing, "Thank you for your assistance. With so much more energy than normal, even with the world as strained as it is now, Avalon's day and night cycle will remain as it should be. Rest now, and stay as long as you like. We will speak to Elphame and arrange a meeting. This shall not be forgotten, and you are welcome in Celliwig so long as you remember that light and darkness exist in tandem."

With the stay in Celliwig over, a special squad designed to help use a large-scale dark magic spell to pull everyone back to Camelot has come to greet everyone at the entrance to the city. However, the sudden increase in noise and flow of magic has attracted spirits from the Forest of the Felled to start crossing the nearby stream. The Forest of the Felled is a haunted forest, filled with spectral creatures alike of all manner that are often trapped in a labyrinth of spells and wards that were once put up by Camelot's finest. This haunted forest is part of the reason that Celliwig had cut ties with Camelot to begin with, after a group of people from particularly morally strict times had decided that the dead and cursed should not wander among the human witches and wizards that, at the time, had largely populated Camelot and sealed them off in the Forest of the Felled.

Enraged by Celliwig's reacceptance of Camelot citizens into its borders, a wave of specters has rushed across the white waters without concern for the Pure of Heart bridge to attempt to possess and attack the citizens of Camelot and prevent them from easily getting home. Ultimately, those with death magic are going to be most effective in this case, particularly at stopping possessions. However, green mages, alchemists, and elementalists are going to be important for staving off the death-like state of freezing that specters passing through your physical body can cause by creating means to rewarm people before they succumb to freezing temperatures and die. It seems as though light magic is very good at hiding people from the specters as well as temporarily warding them off with large blasts, and they seem particularly fearful of dark mages who are willing to curse the dead, given they've already lead a miserable existence. There are plenty of ways for each type of magic to find themselves useful in this battle, whether it's to help others escape or to fight on the frontlines.

Be particularly cautious as some of the will-o-wisps joining in the battle can transform into the visages of the deceased that they sense are close to your heart and draw you into the white rapids of the river. In the end, it will be a fierce battle.. or a fierce retreat, for those who don't have fight in them. Regardless of your solution for getting home, this time, you're going to have to walk home after escaping instead of relying on Celliwig's shadow transportation ritual.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Tifa withdraws a bit, her insecurity suddenly showing in her hunched shoulders.]

Uh... Not practiced.

[As in she hasn't even touched the other elements yet. She wanted to master one before moving onto the next. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and while her doubt runs deeper than her confidence does, she isn't going to just back down because she's afraid of what might happen. What's the worst that can anyway?]

... But I could give it a shot. You thinking ice, if we're making a bridge?

[ This isn't a time to be insecure about such things though. Bakugou isn't asking to humiliate or put anyone on the spot. He just needs to know what the capabilities of the person next to him are. ]

My recommendation is to fix that when we get out of this and you have the time. Shit like this happens a lot so being ready is a damn near requirement.

[ But honestly? yeah, she's getting the idea of what he wants to do. ]

I'm thinking a bridge of ice, yeah. Now I can make some platforms with my light magic too, but those would only be temporary and not as stable.

[Tifa flashes him a look, but it doesn't linger. She knows she needs to practice, and she has been day in and out whenever she has the chance and the energy but learning a new magic from scratch is... tiring, to say the least.

Doesn't mean she's not going to try.

Her familiar appears next to her, the dolphin swimming circles around as if it can sense her worries.]

Let's give it a whirl, then.

[She says it more to the dolphin than to Bakugou, but her eyes land on the boy, red eyes holding his gaze for a moment longer before she turns to the rapids. It might be easier for her to create ice from the water, rather than making it from scratch, and so the dolphin flaps its tail and dives into the river to make a splash while Tifa centers herself in her magic.

Control is all about breathing. In, then out, and again. And when the opportunity presents itself, she strikes ice cold fists against the ground, and from there, it spreads across the grass and the dirt and into the water to form the bridge. It's slippery, and won't hold for long, she knows, so she beckons to Bakugou and the others to get moving.]

Hurry...!

[ Actually, Tifa's familiar being a dolphin and working on supplying them both with water will make things much easier. It beats Bakugou's initial idea of one of them creating the water and the other one freezing it. He might have overlooked the fact that the familiars have their own magic to contribute as well. That being the case, he gives a shrill whistle. Ruby isn't going to be able to help them with the actual bridge making but... The phoenix appears in a bright burst of flame.

She can continue to keep the ghosts at bay while they work on this problem. Ruby is a shining inferno perfectly designed for this. ]

All right let's get started then.

[ With the bridge being made, Bakugou is already shouting at bystanders to get moving. When they don't initially move, Katsuki starts to yell and make something of a fuss. That's when people really begin to move. ]

Watch your step and don't fall!

[ He's going to extend his barriers as best as he can along the sides. To act as a railing of sorts. ]

Hey—!

[The sharp call is directed at her familiar, who she knows all too well risks being distracted by the sight of another familiar, this one shining a bright red when she appears, a stark contrast to her blues. The dolphin chirps back as if to tell her not to worry, but Tifa keeps her eyes on her anyway as the two of them lead the way with Tifa going first.

She can hear the ice crackling under her feet, but she keeps her focus tied to her magic, concentrating on strengthening the bridge so that the others may cross. Her hands reach out from the other side to help them move a little quicker, some of them even jumping halfway only for her to catch them.

Under her breath, she counts the number of those who did get through, and once she's sure that everyone is, including Bakugou, she'll whistle again. A wall of water follows that will take care of any ghosts that might have followed, buying them extra time to check in on people, Bakugou being the first that Tifa rushes to. Some of the others have already started continuing on in the direction of the city, running and not looking back.]

You good?

[ She isn't the only one that keeps their focus on the bridge under them. Bakugou stays behind the group while Tifa leads from the front. He's placing his hands on the ground to reinforce the bridge with a layer of his own ice. Yes, he'll exhaust himself from using both Light and Elemental, but if it's to complete this mission then it's fine. That's why he has been developing his magic in the first place.

Ruby continues to soar overhead, chasing away the ghosts should the come too close.

once the last person gets across, Bakugou is following behind. He'll run as Tifa uses that water to wash away anything that might have followed. His hands are on his knees and he's breathing, a bit worn from the exertion. ]

Tch. I'll be fine. Was that everyone at that location?

[ Was that everyone that they could save? ]

Yeah. From what I counted...

[It was a quick count, mind, but it accounted for everyone she'd seen on the other side before crossing first. Most of them are checking up on each other, working together to make sure that those who are injured can still make it home, which is good. There's still a lot of cleaning up to be done around here.

The phoenix and the dolphin circle above, and they've done a good job at keeping the specters at bay for them. Her familiar thinks this is more of a game than a threat, as always, so she's chirping happily at Ruby and chasing her around, diving in and out of the water wall as they move together.

Tifa's hand reaches out for Bakugou, resting a careful hand on his shoulder.]

I think you should take a breather.

[She could use one, too... Neither of them are going to be any use to anyone with how much energy they used up getting these people to safety, and she needs to remember that.]

[ Ruby doesn't mind the presence of other familiars. In fact, she tends to prefer them over people. Right now she's content to play around with this dolphin. There is a degree of pride in the way that she dips and dives. She knows that she has done a good job here.

As for Bakugou, he doesn't actually do anything about the hand on his shoulder. If anything, it's shocking. Normally he would be a person that would smack it away or tell the other person to fuck off. ]

Well it's not like we can get back across without pulling another stunt like that.

[ Which means that they would need to be at full strength for it. A rest would be needed. ]

Can't be the only people that are doing shit about this though.

There're others. We can afford to take a break.

[Before getting back into it, but that's a given. Tifa isn't going to go very far until she's certain the specters are all taken care of, and she has a feeling that Bakugou is the same, and from the looks of things further down the river, their little show wasn't the end of them. For now, he's okay knowing that they were able to help a small number of people get to safety.

She removes her hand from Bakugou's shoulder to readjust her gloves and sweep herself off.]

Saw some trees and bushes over there that might hide us for a while. Least until we can get back on our feet.

[She nods in their direction, but just as she's about to wander that way, her eyes go wide when a realization strikes her.]

Tifa Lockhart by the way.

[ She certainly is right to assume that. Bakugou isn't going to leave until he knows that everything is going to be fine. Not until the specters are gone and everyone is safe. That's how things are going to work for him from here on out.

He pushes himself to his feet. The initial wave of exhaustion has passed and he's getting a small second wind. Not enough to do much, but enough not to fall over. ]

I don't like the idea of hiding.

[ It doesn't seem like anything is following them? At least not for the moment. Katsuki checks himself over and takes stock as Tifa now introduces herself. Western style name, he supposes. ]

Bakugou Katsuki.

I wouldn't call it hiding.

[Tifa lifts a finger, her voice a touch stern.]

No point in getting rest if the specters are just gonna find us.

[If they need a breather, then it would be better to take five where they were safe than to risk getting attacked before they have the energy to do anything about it. That would only put them in a worse position than before...]

Alternatively... We work on getting this group back to the city.

[ Because if those things do decide to follow, then.... Well all of the hard work that they put into escape means nothing. Bakugou wants to get back in on the action, but at the same time? It might before the best that they do this.

You win by also saving lives... ]

A lot of these people can't fight back.

[She can commend his bravery and determination, she'll give him that, and she knows what it's like to be stubborn about a cause, so Tifa won't fight him if that's what he wants to do. She'll agree to disagree for the greater cause at hand.]

Okay, [she concedes, but her voice still carries that same sharp tone.] But I'm going to watch your back in case you need it.

[Not that she thinks he does, but she isn't about to leave him all on his own either!]

[ That's the thing though, isn't it? What he wants to do and what he knows he needs to do are different things. What's more important? Fighting or saving? There's a place for both, but seeing the small crowd of individuals they had brought over? They're just as tired as he and this Tifa. ]

Somehow I knew you were gonna say that. But that ain't how it's gonna work.

[ He's already motioning for everyone to start walking back to the city. After all, there's no one that's going to teleport them back. The faster they achieve getting these people far enough away that there will be no reason to chase after them... Well the sooner they can come back to get more. This is partially an evacuation effort. ]

You watch mine. I watch yours.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

EVENT ✨ The Summer Solstice

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gonna start pushing to a wrap if that's ok!

of course <3