Hijikata Toshirou (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mayoninofukucho) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
isleofavalon2021-09-05 11:40 pm
mayoninofukucho) wrote in isleofavalon2021-09-05 11:40 pm
September Adventures
WHO: Hijikata and ✨YOU✨
WHAT: TDM prompts (another trip to Lestari and the spirit guardian ritual back in Camelot), camping and moping around, needing help from animal- and bargaining mages with an armoured archaeopteryx, and an unexpected encounter!
WHEN: Throughout September
WHERE: Lestari, Camelot City, and a campsite by Lake Avalon close to Camelot City
WARNINGS: Branding/Tattooing and Power Imbalance in Prompt 2 (it's closed, but just for the record)!
1) Fizzy Lifting Bar
[It was only a few weeks ago that everybody set out to the Ash Mountains in search of the slumbering necromancer Kymbyr, but Hijikata doesn't mind joining the multi-day trek again. With King Arthur almost back to full health and the unsettling events of last month - the gruesome murders and the hunt for animal mages - apparently resolved (Hijikata sought out a local siphoner to get rid of his cattle traits before the first trek, mainly because his horse refused to carry him) he's keen to provide a safe escort for the traders and everyone else who's coming along.
Once in Lestari, however, he's baffled to see the traders invite everybody into the most suspect seasonal bar. The vials of colourful liquids make the place look like a mad scientist's laboratory, and the fact that they're not even meant to be drunk but rather inhaled as fumes really gives him pause. This is going to get them all totally drugged up, isn't it?]
I think I'm going to pass on this.
2) A Pain-Tolerant Badass and a Caring Badass (forcorpsewarblade)
[Once back from Lestari Hijikata finds that preparations for the autumn equinox have gone into full swing in Camelot. He's rather aghast to hear what they entail, though... it seems like while he was accompanying the group collecting fairy coins another group headed to the Lands of Rot to capture undead creatures to be burned and have their ashes boiled in the most ominous couldron in the town square. It honestly makes him wonder if they're still the good guys. Is this really okay?!
He's reassured by several locals, however, that this happens every year and purely serves to ensure that the dead can pass safely into the afterlife, so he tentatively agrees to volunteer as a vessel for a spirit guardian. When he runs into Mukuro and she agrees to partner up with him the decision is finalised, and before long he finds himself shirtless on his stomach on one of the obsidian slates surrounding the couldron.]
This feels like a really dark ritual...
3) Summer's End
A ⦿ The Multiverse Gives, the Multiverse Takes
[A day after undergoing the spirit guardian ritual Hijikata sends a text message to Riou. He lives out in the wilderness, so there's a chance that he's been missing out on what's going on, and Hijikata knows that he's tough and brave enough to make for a good spirit guardian vessel too! However his message bounces back with a error. Hijikata stares at his phone. He knows what this means - he's seen it several times before, each time someone he knew and was close enough to send a message to disappeared from Avalon and had their MagiCast signature disabled as a result.
For it to happen to Riou, though... he's one of the few people Hijikata first met on Prismatica who saw everything through to the end - the final battle against the seven Beasts of the Calamity, the victory, the planet's restoration - and who remembered it. Somehow he never thought that he would disappear like this. But... sometimes people return, right? Several fellow outworlders got bounced ahead to their homeworld's future, or even to yet other worlds like Prismatica and Avalon, only to eventually end up back here with a head full of new memories. Usually that only takes a few days in Avalon time, going by previous cases, so Hijikata decides to head out to Riou's camp and keep an eye on it for him.
If anyone else happens to come by during daylight hours Hijikata will be either in the camp or nearby, practising his swordfighting or his elemental magic, but especially in the evenings he's more pensive than usual as he sits by the campfire, grilling some fish or game or maybe just something he got from the supermarket. If anyone walks into Riou's wire traps it'll alert him, and he'll come check on them, but those who make it through undetected may just catch him by surprise.]
B ⦿ An Armoured Archaeopteryx - Animal Mages Wanted!
[After a week in the camp Hijikata has pretty much accepted that Riou won't come back. Nonetheless he's still lingering, often thinking of all the people from different worlds he connected with on Prismatica and Avalon. Will he ever see them again? Surely not all of them. What about those who already died in their homeworlds? If they're pulled back, then... what will become of them?
While he's mulling over these gloomy matters there's suddenly a strong gust of wind as a large creature approaches from above. Hijikata is startled. Over the last couple of months he's sometimes seen a solitary big bird in the sky above Camelot, Celliwig and the open fields, but since nobody showed any signs of distress he assumed it was just a normal part of Avalonian fauna. Why is it coming down?! He gets ready to fight, but the creature, while interested in him, doesn't seem intent on devouring him, instead sniffing him, flapping its clawed wings and making all sorts of noises. Hijikata tries to scare it away with fire, lightning and his sword, but it merely draws back a bit before cautiously approaching again. Eventually he turns to AOL, starting a video stream without much preamble.]
If any animals mages are seeing this, I could use some help over here. This big bird won't leave me alone, and I can't figure out what it wants. It doesn't want to eat me and also hasn't tried to eat my food, so I'm at a loss.
[He turns the camera towards the creature. It's taller than an adult man and looks much like a bird, only more... archaic, in a way, with reptilian traits in its face, clawed feet, and arm wings. Its feathers shine like silver, as if coated in tinfoil. When it sees the phone aimed at it it yells, though it sounds more excited than anything else.]
If anyone could come over, I'm attaching my coordinates. Thanks in advance.
C ⦿ An Armoured Archaeopteryx - Bargaining Mages Wanted!
[Later on the same day Hijikata bombards the network with yet another unannounced video stream, clearly still in the same location as before.]
Okay, we more or less figured out what the bird's deal is, and I think I'm going to need a bargaining mage now. Sorry for the hassle, I'm going to stop spamming after this. I heard that making bargains is risky, so I'll pay for the service... or I'll just owe you one. I've got elemental- and death magic, just in case.
[Now the animals mage(s) who helped him earlier will probably also ask for retroactive payment, and yeah, he'll send some virtual gold over alright. He also attaches his coordinates once more.]
4) Questing or Resting?
[After Hijikata felt uncharacteristically unmotivated to pursue his usual knightly activities for a good while the experience with the archaeopteryx shook him out of his melancholia, and after checking out the QuestBoard he decides to spend a night in Camelot City again after a long time. Perhaps he'll be able to catch that rotten guy who's been roping innocent people into movie fights, or else he ought to check out that strip club where his fellow knights from Celliwig are being held... damn, he really dropped the ball, didn't he?
However once back in the city he soon notices that, as usual, his fellow outworlders are reliable. As dusk falls on Camelot he passes by several people he recognises who just so happen to be headed for an evening walk in the backstreets like him, and when he passes by the strip club he sees a couple of familiar faces being allowed entry. Honestly, it looks like on the whole they have this in hand. Is he even needed? Maybe he can really just take it easy this month. He lights himself a cigarette and wanders around until he passes by the large cauldron in the town square, still bubbling and boiling, and stops for a moment to contemplate it, reminded of the tattoo on his back and the unnoticeable spirit he's housing.]
I really hope this all goes well.
[Maybe someone else who also has misgivings about the ritual may want to chime in - or maybe someone is unimpressed with this knight just idling around when there are quests to be done, and wants to let him know as much?]
5) Revisiting the Forest of the Felled (foremet_sulk)
[Despite the setback in Hijikata's productivity this month he did continue to educate himself on the nature of spirits and ghosts, and given everything he learned of the history of the Forest of the Felled from the archivist's books he wants to at least try and identify some of the spells and curses that have been placed there.
This also provides an opportunity for him to test his new bond with "his" archaeopteryx (it doesn't belong to him, it merely agreed to be his companion and supporter as long as he's on Avalon, provided he doesn't lose sight of the righteous path). It's nothing like riding a horse - instead of sitting upright Hijikata has to lie on its back, keeping himself flat and still, arms wrapped around the base of its neck as it soars across the sky with him. A local animal mage kindly played interpreter for them, so the ancient bird knows where the samurai wants to go and finds the way without trouble. Once it sets down beyond the Bridge of the Pure of Heart Hijikata pets its head and waves goodbye as it takes to the sky again.
He spends a few hours trying to investigate the edge of the forest, but it turns out to be full of advanced curses and barriers that leave him stumped. On the upside its ghostly inhabitants with their volatile resentment of Camelotians seem to take no notice of him (perhaps thanks to the spirit-repelling spells on his cloak and shield), and he doesn't encounter a single one. He's about ready to call it a day, but before he signals his flying partner that he's ready to be collected he wants to pay a visit to the old man who lives close by and who welcomed him into his home so warmly about half a year ago when Morganna had called for him to be poisoned (or so Hijikata believed at the time). As he approaches the old man's hut, though, he spots somebody he least expected to meet here.]
...
Emet-Selch?
[Is it really him?]
[OOC: If you'd like any additional prompts please feel free to hit me up on my plotting post! If anyone wants to be Hijikata's caretaker for a day please assume that they were directed to the camp (Prompt 3A). Also here are Hijikata's permissions.]
WHAT: TDM prompts (another trip to Lestari and the spirit guardian ritual back in Camelot), camping and moping around, needing help from animal- and bargaining mages with an armoured archaeopteryx, and an unexpected encounter!
WHEN: Throughout September
WHERE: Lestari, Camelot City, and a campsite by Lake Avalon close to Camelot City
WARNINGS: Branding/Tattooing and Power Imbalance in Prompt 2 (it's closed, but just for the record)!
1) Fizzy Lifting Bar
[It was only a few weeks ago that everybody set out to the Ash Mountains in search of the slumbering necromancer Kymbyr, but Hijikata doesn't mind joining the multi-day trek again. With King Arthur almost back to full health and the unsettling events of last month - the gruesome murders and the hunt for animal mages - apparently resolved (Hijikata sought out a local siphoner to get rid of his cattle traits before the first trek, mainly because his horse refused to carry him) he's keen to provide a safe escort for the traders and everyone else who's coming along.
Once in Lestari, however, he's baffled to see the traders invite everybody into the most suspect seasonal bar. The vials of colourful liquids make the place look like a mad scientist's laboratory, and the fact that they're not even meant to be drunk but rather inhaled as fumes really gives him pause. This is going to get them all totally drugged up, isn't it?]
I think I'm going to pass on this.
2) A Pain-Tolerant Badass and a Caring Badass (for
corpsewarblade) [Once back from Lestari Hijikata finds that preparations for the autumn equinox have gone into full swing in Camelot. He's rather aghast to hear what they entail, though... it seems like while he was accompanying the group collecting fairy coins another group headed to the Lands of Rot to capture undead creatures to be burned and have their ashes boiled in the most ominous couldron in the town square. It honestly makes him wonder if they're still the good guys. Is this really okay?!
He's reassured by several locals, however, that this happens every year and purely serves to ensure that the dead can pass safely into the afterlife, so he tentatively agrees to volunteer as a vessel for a spirit guardian. When he runs into Mukuro and she agrees to partner up with him the decision is finalised, and before long he finds himself shirtless on his stomach on one of the obsidian slates surrounding the couldron.]
This feels like a really dark ritual...
3) Summer's End
A ⦿ The Multiverse Gives, the Multiverse Takes
[A day after undergoing the spirit guardian ritual Hijikata sends a text message to Riou. He lives out in the wilderness, so there's a chance that he's been missing out on what's going on, and Hijikata knows that he's tough and brave enough to make for a good spirit guardian vessel too! However his message bounces back with a error. Hijikata stares at his phone. He knows what this means - he's seen it several times before, each time someone he knew and was close enough to send a message to disappeared from Avalon and had their MagiCast signature disabled as a result.
For it to happen to Riou, though... he's one of the few people Hijikata first met on Prismatica who saw everything through to the end - the final battle against the seven Beasts of the Calamity, the victory, the planet's restoration - and who remembered it. Somehow he never thought that he would disappear like this. But... sometimes people return, right? Several fellow outworlders got bounced ahead to their homeworld's future, or even to yet other worlds like Prismatica and Avalon, only to eventually end up back here with a head full of new memories. Usually that only takes a few days in Avalon time, going by previous cases, so Hijikata decides to head out to Riou's camp and keep an eye on it for him.
If anyone else happens to come by during daylight hours Hijikata will be either in the camp or nearby, practising his swordfighting or his elemental magic, but especially in the evenings he's more pensive than usual as he sits by the campfire, grilling some fish or game or maybe just something he got from the supermarket. If anyone walks into Riou's wire traps it'll alert him, and he'll come check on them, but those who make it through undetected may just catch him by surprise.]
B ⦿ An Armoured Archaeopteryx - Animal Mages Wanted!
[After a week in the camp Hijikata has pretty much accepted that Riou won't come back. Nonetheless he's still lingering, often thinking of all the people from different worlds he connected with on Prismatica and Avalon. Will he ever see them again? Surely not all of them. What about those who already died in their homeworlds? If they're pulled back, then... what will become of them?
While he's mulling over these gloomy matters there's suddenly a strong gust of wind as a large creature approaches from above. Hijikata is startled. Over the last couple of months he's sometimes seen a solitary big bird in the sky above Camelot, Celliwig and the open fields, but since nobody showed any signs of distress he assumed it was just a normal part of Avalonian fauna. Why is it coming down?! He gets ready to fight, but the creature, while interested in him, doesn't seem intent on devouring him, instead sniffing him, flapping its clawed wings and making all sorts of noises. Hijikata tries to scare it away with fire, lightning and his sword, but it merely draws back a bit before cautiously approaching again. Eventually he turns to AOL, starting a video stream without much preamble.]
If any animals mages are seeing this, I could use some help over here. This big bird won't leave me alone, and I can't figure out what it wants. It doesn't want to eat me and also hasn't tried to eat my food, so I'm at a loss.
[He turns the camera towards the creature. It's taller than an adult man and looks much like a bird, only more... archaic, in a way, with reptilian traits in its face, clawed feet, and arm wings. Its feathers shine like silver, as if coated in tinfoil. When it sees the phone aimed at it it yells, though it sounds more excited than anything else.]
If anyone could come over, I'm attaching my coordinates. Thanks in advance.
C ⦿ An Armoured Archaeopteryx - Bargaining Mages Wanted!
[Later on the same day Hijikata bombards the network with yet another unannounced video stream, clearly still in the same location as before.]
Okay, we more or less figured out what the bird's deal is, and I think I'm going to need a bargaining mage now. Sorry for the hassle, I'm going to stop spamming after this. I heard that making bargains is risky, so I'll pay for the service... or I'll just owe you one. I've got elemental- and death magic, just in case.
[Now the animals mage(s) who helped him earlier will probably also ask for retroactive payment, and yeah, he'll send some virtual gold over alright. He also attaches his coordinates once more.]
4) Questing or Resting?
[After Hijikata felt uncharacteristically unmotivated to pursue his usual knightly activities for a good while the experience with the archaeopteryx shook him out of his melancholia, and after checking out the QuestBoard he decides to spend a night in Camelot City again after a long time. Perhaps he'll be able to catch that rotten guy who's been roping innocent people into movie fights, or else he ought to check out that strip club where his fellow knights from Celliwig are being held... damn, he really dropped the ball, didn't he?
However once back in the city he soon notices that, as usual, his fellow outworlders are reliable. As dusk falls on Camelot he passes by several people he recognises who just so happen to be headed for an evening walk in the backstreets like him, and when he passes by the strip club he sees a couple of familiar faces being allowed entry. Honestly, it looks like on the whole they have this in hand. Is he even needed? Maybe he can really just take it easy this month. He lights himself a cigarette and wanders around until he passes by the large cauldron in the town square, still bubbling and boiling, and stops for a moment to contemplate it, reminded of the tattoo on his back and the unnoticeable spirit he's housing.]
I really hope this all goes well.
[Maybe someone else who also has misgivings about the ritual may want to chime in - or maybe someone is unimpressed with this knight just idling around when there are quests to be done, and wants to let him know as much?]
5) Revisiting the Forest of the Felled (for
emet_sulk) [Despite the setback in Hijikata's productivity this month he did continue to educate himself on the nature of spirits and ghosts, and given everything he learned of the history of the Forest of the Felled from the archivist's books he wants to at least try and identify some of the spells and curses that have been placed there.
This also provides an opportunity for him to test his new bond with "his" archaeopteryx (it doesn't belong to him, it merely agreed to be his companion and supporter as long as he's on Avalon, provided he doesn't lose sight of the righteous path). It's nothing like riding a horse - instead of sitting upright Hijikata has to lie on its back, keeping himself flat and still, arms wrapped around the base of its neck as it soars across the sky with him. A local animal mage kindly played interpreter for them, so the ancient bird knows where the samurai wants to go and finds the way without trouble. Once it sets down beyond the Bridge of the Pure of Heart Hijikata pets its head and waves goodbye as it takes to the sky again.
He spends a few hours trying to investigate the edge of the forest, but it turns out to be full of advanced curses and barriers that leave him stumped. On the upside its ghostly inhabitants with their volatile resentment of Camelotians seem to take no notice of him (perhaps thanks to the spirit-repelling spells on his cloak and shield), and he doesn't encounter a single one. He's about ready to call it a day, but before he signals his flying partner that he's ready to be collected he wants to pay a visit to the old man who lives close by and who welcomed him into his home so warmly about half a year ago when Morganna had called for him to be poisoned (or so Hijikata believed at the time). As he approaches the old man's hut, though, he spots somebody he least expected to meet here.]
...
Emet-Selch?
[Is it really him?]
[OOC: If you'd like any additional prompts please feel free to hit me up on my plotting post! If anyone wants to be Hijikata's caretaker for a day please assume that they were directed to the camp (Prompt 3A). Also here are Hijikata's permissions.]
Page 1 of 9