isleofavalon | 01 — when the world comes apart

🧙 WHO: Alucard + you
⚔️️ WHAT: January quests (maybe magic training, general catch all things)
🕒 WHEN: during the month of January
🗺️ WHERE: all over!
⚠️ WARNINGS: sad boy hours, fighting things, mostly life dragging Alucard into things by force

mixture of prompts new and copied over from Alucard's TDM, looking to complete quests for this reluctant newcomer who would rather sulk up in his room but keeps getting caught in scenarios...tough luck buddy.

🛡️ A Knocking We Will Go

[ fae at the living quarters ]

there was a time when Alucard Ţepeş slept undisturbed and well-hidden for one entire year. granted, it was more akin to a coma, a time of recuperation more than anything, but it was certainly the most reclusive he has ever been before, or since.

the past number of days in Camelot could be the beginnings of his next record-breaking challenge; if the presence of a new brooding face topped in long blond hair and a dour disposition has been noted in the hotel's living quarters, it might have only been so brief, one might wonder if it hadn't been a mirage. he's been content (putting it most politely) to remain inside his new dwelling, mysteriously scarce and rarely emerging but for what's necessary; he hasn't reconciled being brought to this place yet, and while he's made the vaguest attempts to begin flexing new innate abilities, he's uninspired toward any cause being flung up at him.

but what is inspiring to most people from all walks of life...are annoyances. sounds, primarily, uninvited and untraceable ones that slither from walls, skip through ceilings, and chatter across floors. the solace of these quarters has been invaded by the new and very occasional symphony of sounds filling the air.

option a.

( you've been subjected to the psychological warfare of pocket-sized fae, too. it's interrupting your sleep, it's disturbing your peace, or it's been just plain weirding you out. perhaps you're becoming aware of the culprit, or you've heard a bit of a rumor about the recent infestation, and you're on the hunt...and tracked the sound down to Alucard's door.

or, better yet...you think it's Alucard that is responsible for all this ruckus.

you're at his door to confront this trouble, whatever it is... or, you're intending to, but you've been knocking on this door for a weirdly long time, maybe long enough that you're beginning to think no one's home. possibly because the man inside was hoping you'd think so, and give up.

whether you're about to bail, tired of bothering, or your knuckles are airborne and ready to give it one more college try, the door finally opens — and the man standing in the doorway, face fixed into a slumberous scowl...does not look pleased. )

option b.

( maybe you're just not the confrontation type... or you've been sussing out the situation on your own time, but you're in your own quarters chasing the sound down under your furniture, behind your walls, in your ceiling...

and there is a knock at your door. maybe you've been perfectly quiet while trying to track down the source of the brownie rudely running all over your personal space, or maybe you've been making enough sounds to sustain the entire colony while trying your damnedest to trap this one. when the knock comes, it might even spook it away — and you were so close, too! )

♱ 🗡️ Bridge Trolls

[ trolls at the farmlands ]

( Alucard isn’t even aware of there being a problem with trolls and bridges — once he gets to Camelot, he stays primarily in his small, minimalistic room, keeps to himself, and in the best of moments, observes the social media aspect of AOL, attempting to learn more about this place, but those bursts are always short. when he gets restless, he walks the streets only to get to where on the outskirts feature as little people as possible. he can forage and hunt for himself, and nestles instantly into a reclusive, low-key presence in Camelot for the initial days in the city, always in between waves of contemplation and mindless functionality.

farmlands always mean the potential for minor prey animals — rabbits looking to ruin someone’s garden, or streams nearby for fish to be found — and Alucard even considers interacting with someone long enough to barter for some vegetables… if he can’t find something suitable himself.

the plan is to roam into the wilderness beyond the farm lands, but on and attempt going west, Alucard finds a disruption along the way; a lost bridge, causing issue with the ability to travel, but more than that. a cluster of laborers, a couple dozen capable hands doing anything but work, lingering at a standstill. the lack of obvious logic captures Alucard’s attention, critical and wondering.

’trolls,’ Alucard hears them say. a couple of workers sit in the grass as if reeling, and they’re all talking with people and pointing in the direction of the bridge. he doesn’t know about any requests or contracts to dispatch the trolls when he approaches (still at some cautious distance,) but given his stature and long sword on his belt, it...might be absolutely possible to mistake Alucard for a do-gooder showing up to kick some trolls off of this defunct bridge. you can’t be blamed to mistakenly assume, and approach him as such. great, you were JUST discussing that they need someone to lure the trolls down from the bridge, or maybe you have that part covered, and seeing someone show up carring a bladed weapon was exactly the missing piece you needed for the fight. bark your orders, noble-minded person! )

🗡️ Shadlin Showdown

[ a presence at the edge of the dusklight ]

( Alucard wonders why he's even here.

well, it's obvious why — he read of the sightings at the woods. why he's bothered to come here and see it for himself is...not entirely clear. something about the plea reminded him of home, too familiar to what he knows so well and has seen so thoroughly, monsters he has faced a number so great, it's beyond measure. maybe he's been cooped up in this room for too long (he didn't think it was possible...and yet,) or perhaps something about the possibility, the potential for a fight sounds cathartic... he doesn't anticipate the idea further than venturing out with his heirloom sword, only because it would be stupid to go without.

or, maybe...it sounds like the beginnings of a legitimate threat. regardless of how he feels about being here, still carrying the dense bundled weight of experiences and memories from the past handful of months of this life of his, it's those experiences that move his feet and push him to stand out here at the outskirts of the city, meditative as he stares out at the last stretches of open grassland acres crowned in the near-distant and abundant silhouette of what he presumes to be the Edge of Dusklight. the device in his hand smartly confirms.

he doubts that what he might see will be exactly the sort of creatures he could speak dissertations on; but he wonders if they will be close...and if being so, it could be devastating without foreplanning.

Alucard, weary and cold and all only from things he has only seen and experienced long before stepping foot in this place, is just in the midst of ridiculing himself for coming out this far at all when — he hears a sound.

swiftly, he draws his sword and pivots on his heel, blade primed in position and his stance planted, twisting to the direction where his ears picked up on the shifting nearby — but dark as it is out here, he can still see quite well. )

—Declare yourself. ( because he can at least tell it isn't a demon or goblin he ought to be skewering, but that doesn't have him lowering his weapon yet, either. )

etc.

open to other thread ideas, quest related or not! Alucard is gifted with kinetic magic and could learn from some more experienced users; but of course kinetic power is not necessary at all. add me on social medias below if you'd like to discuss any ideas before the event does up.

PM @ crucifixate | TDM @ here | plurk @ plasticlove | discord @ ghoulette#8643

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Okuyasu has, like he's always done when his life gets upturned, settled into a new routine. He knows which shops he likes in the city of Camelot (and which restaurant he's still willing to travel back to the Red Spring to). He's figured out which shopkeepers will let him twenty-question them, and where to get things that look basically the same as baseballs to bounce off walls when he's got too much free time, and he's starting to really like this whole 'no high school' thing.

Okuyasu's used to big, dramatic upheaval. It's just that this was...particularly big. And dramatic. And while he never thought of himself as attached to The Hand, it's weird not having anything called forth when he's particularly angry or feeling cornered.

...Well. Anything except the little bulldog-sized kappa that stares at him with a weirdly-kind expression, quiet and persistent despite Okuyasu demanding it tell him what the hell's going on. Stray Cat, who also seems to have lost her stand powers, is still very much a healthy cat-plant creature, and Okuyasu takes the both of them for regular walks if only to have something to do.

At least he's still got stuff to take care of, or without any sign that his friends from back home are okay, he'd probably go insane--

Which is what he thinks is happening at first, when those damn brownies start making noise. ]

Come on out, you little jerkass... I can wait all day! [ Honestly no, he probably can't, but this thing doesn't know that! It might not even speak Japanese, for all he knows! (Although not a lot of people seem to, but he can understand everyone else, so...maybe it doesn't matter here.)

He thinks that this time, he's finally gonna get it. Okuayasu is laid out underneath his bed, belly on the floor, a goblet from the continental breakfast's earlier spread in his hand. If he stays quiet, the brownie's surely going to jump out again and he can catch it...

Which is when someone knocks. ] What the-- Ow! [ Okuyasu jerks to turn around and yell at the door, incensed, and bangs his head on the underside planks supporting the bed. Grumbling he crawls backwards out from under it, wriggling the last few inches, and fairly flings himself at the door. ]

What is wrong with you! I'm trying to catch one of those flying assholes! I could barely sleep last night because of that thing, and you-! [ Okuyasu has finally caught up to what he's looking at through the opened door, and apparently it is...someone who really fits the theme here. Tall, flowing hair, sword at his waist, big fancy leather boots...

Damn, okay. The once-over is obvious and Okuyasu is abruptly feeling self-conscious about the fact that he's pretty sure he has dust in his hair right now, and his shirt's both wrinkled and ridden up from dragging himself around on the floor under the hotel bed. He sputters, embarrassed now as well as angry, and says in a last-ditch effort, ] Y-you ruined it, dude!

[ Wow, what a zinger. Perhaps more noticeable than Okuyasu's attempt at intimidation is the fact that while he's yelling, there's a flare behind him from the electric lamp - it flashes brighter and brighter and then its bulb entirely gives out. He doesn't notice only because the hallway's still nicely lit, and that's where he's staring. ]

[He... Tries to let the noise go. Yes, it's annoying, and yes, he would like the brownies to stop once he hears about the infestation but - but. It just. Seems rude? To barge into someone's room and demand that they deal with the brownies or let Kaede deal with the brownies before he rips his hair out.

He's very, very tired, and it's making him very, very cranky.

Still, it takes him almost a week before he approaches the room that he figures is The Source, and when he's face to face with Alucard he almost loses his nerve.]

...There's an infestation of brownies in your room and it's been keeping a lot of people awake and I'm sure you've noticed because, wow, it's your room! And it should probably be taken care of before someone does something drastic out of sleep deprivation and everything goes horribly wrong so could I just - help. Take care of it?

[It's all said in a rush, as if he's afraid that if he let's Alucard interrupt he'll lose his nerve.

Which is basically... Exactly what he's afraid of.]

Ah geez, dude, put the sword down!

[ Clearly spooked by the sword, the teenager blurted out the first thing that came to mind-- a cry for peace. Naoto knew it was a bit childish to do so, but sometimes, the most practical approach was to show that you meant no harm. He tried his best to keep his fear in check, even as he continued to answer the man. ]

Is this how you greet everyone you talk to? [ He couldn't help his quip though. ] I'm just trying to figure out what's going on with these Shadlin things, that's all.

01 — when the world comes apart — open!

a knocking we will go - b.

knocking a;

Shadlin Showdown