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)
isleofavalon2022-01-07 11:50 pm
mayoninofukucho) wrote in isleofavalon2022-01-07 11:50 pm
Entry tags:
January Adventures (Open/Closed)
WHO: Hijikata and some friends and maybe YOU?
WHAT: Gathering baking ingredients, escorting baby aurora bears, and questing all over the place!
WHEN: Throughout the first half of January
WHERE: Forest of the Felled, Edge of the Dusklight Woods, Township near the Lands of Rot, Camelot City
WARNINGS: Violence (partly with potential enemy NPC death, but we can avoid that if you prefer) for most of the quests!
1) Frosty Forest Camp - Ingredient Hunt for the The Great Avalon Bake-Off 2022
[After celebrating the winter solstice in Nicnevin Hijikata welcomed the new year in Camelot, watching the castle's fireworks at midnight with his ghostly subordinates. It seems like Elphame will remain open for travellers, and he's tentatively glad for it, after all they went through much trouble to politically court the fae queen. His muted enthusiasm picks up when he realises that a camp has been set up at the edge of the Forest of the Felled as a halfway station of sorts. Finally he and the ghosts won't be the only ones out here!
When a store of well-preserved ingredients is found and a baking contest announced he decides to join in. Sure, the judges of Celliwig's cooking competition were unimpressed with his cooking, but this is baking! So he can be found wandering around to gather ingredients. He meant to use his two hen-sized compsognathuses like truffle pigs, but the dinosaurs aren't enjoying the cold and screamed at him until he picked them up and started carrying them in his arms.]
You two are really useless, you know that? What do I even feed your greedy mouths for?
2) They Grow up so Fast
[Colourful eggs showed up all over the place in Camelot and Elphame, just as seemingly out of season as the fruits growing in the snow in the Forest of the Felled. But not enough with that: the eggs had little legs they ran around on, and anyone who got in contact with them was "imprinted" with a protective parental instinct.
Was Hijikata lucky enough to dodge that bullet, or did he end up as an egg parent (possibly even for the same egg as you)? Or is he accompanying the current expedition in his function as a knight? Well, either way, he's here, because after the eggs hatched into little glowing teddy bears it quickly became clear that they're not fit to live among people.]
I hope they'll be fine out here and not come back once they've grown huge... where are their real parents, anyway? What kind of lousy procreation method is this to just lay eggs and have random people do all the hard work of rearing them?
[To be fair, it worked out well enough for the bears! (OOC: Please press A for Camelot and B for Elphame!)]
3) Quests
A ⦿ Gravestone-Faced (foritsmypower)
[When Hijikata asked Shoto if he wanted to be his squire the boy stood so proudly, it filled his own chest with pride too. The ceremony later on was small and simple (and yes, there was some paperwork to be done), but all of that was just a formality to him. This is different from his relationship with his subordinates in the Shinsengumi or Yuureisengumi, and he still needs to find his footing as a mentor figure, but he trusts that they'll work together just as well now as they already did before Shoto's squiring.
The new year has only just begun, but already a serious threat appears to be haunting the edge of the Dusklight Woods: a strange creature seemingly made of leaves and mud and covered in a ragged cloak and wooden mask. The bodies that were sighted speak for themselves, and Elphame, where the monster escaped from the underground prison, provided further information: as soon as it reads a person's emotions on their face it's able to turn their greatest weaknesses against them and, once they're mentally broken, pull their soul out of their body.]
Well, Shoto, let's put on our best pokerfaces.
B ⦿ Knight Quest
[Hijikata takes his position as a knight pretty seriously. At the time of his knighting there were only a couple of other outworlders with the title (though more had come and gone before him), and while he's glad to see that the ranks have filled considerably since then it doesn't mean that he can slack off! Despite not being anybody's Vice-Commander here he can't help but feel like he needs to set an example. So he doesn't hesitate to accept the special task and set out towards the occupied township near the Lands of Rot.
Given the distance he used an archivist's totem for himself, his pedigree horse Black Star, and whoever is accompanying him (knight or non-knight), so it didn't take the group long to make it to their destination. Having left the horse(s?) behind some cover a good distance away he and his partner are currently observing the orc bandits from a secure location (or, perhaps, from under a dark magic cloak or a light magic glamour).]
Looks like there aren't all that many of them, at least not right now.
[He's confident in his battle skills and apparently plans to apply brute force... if his partner is on board with that, great! But if not they may want to curb his latent bloodlust a little.]
C ⦿ Beta Testing (fortroubadamsel)
[It sounded like such a nice and thoughtful Camelotian tradition: pass on the stone, and you and whoever you pass it on to will have good luck in this new year. The kindly woman clearly just wanted to cheer Hijikata up, having seen him struggle with a bunch of thorny cuttings for an elderly man with an overgrown garden. He doesn't even notice that the stone absorbs the traces of blood it gets in contact with as he's distracted by the sight of Maribelle.]
Maribelle! - Thanks again, Madam! - Maribelle, wait!
[He leaves the stranger and tries to flag the little noblewoman down. He wants to thank her for the warm gloves she gifted him for Christmas! That was completely unexpected, and while he already sent her his 'Mirror Mirror' in return he still feels like he owes her an expression of his gratitude in person. And what better way to do that than include her in the lucky stone custom? (Later on he'll file that under "thoughts moments before disaster".)]
D ⦿ Roast Pork (fortroubadamsel)
[Hijikata has been on the dark web's radar for a while now, and ever since last month's hunt for his ghostly subordinates tensions have been higher than before. The Yuureisengumi constantly finds itself missing at least one or two members, and the resources needed to find and rescue them are always sorely missed elsewhere. Hijikata thinks of running another recruitment campaign, but the new year starts off with such a bang on the dark web that that'll have to wait.
When he sees the ridiculously sadistic quest involving a giant hogweed potion that, sneaked into the private Jack Rabbit's club's champagne fountain, will cause everyone who ingested it to burn to a crisp in the sunlight, he simply can't abide it... despite his lasting predicament of still being trapped in Maribelle's body.
He contacts the quest-giver through his burner phone, and once arrangements are made he soon receives the fatal potion in a post box in Camelot City which he rented specifically for this undertaking. Before long the would-be murder weapon is safely in the hands of Camelot's native law enforcement (he conducted a covert collection with them, just in case), but he isn't satisfied with just that. He wants to get a hold of the madman who cooked up this entire horrible plot!
This is why he, after sneaking into the club and pretending to be a new server lost on the way to the dressing room, uses his phone to invite the mysterious quest-giver to come watch the "pork roast" show. He allows himself a narrow-eyed smirk as he sees the inappropriately cheerful text message response. So far, so good! Now if only he didn't feel so exposed in this goddamn bunny suit, and if only he could walk in these high heels... and if only he knew that the dalmation stone enchantment that made him and Maribelle swap bodies is about to run out in 3, 2, 1--]
[OOC: If you'd like any additional prompts (egg-raising adventures, body-swapped run-ins, etc.) please feel free to hit me up on my plotting post! Also here are Hijikata's permissions.]
WHAT: Gathering baking ingredients, escorting baby aurora bears, and questing all over the place!
WHEN: Throughout the first half of January
WHERE: Forest of the Felled, Edge of the Dusklight Woods, Township near the Lands of Rot, Camelot City
WARNINGS: Violence (partly with potential enemy NPC death, but we can avoid that if you prefer) for most of the quests!
1) Frosty Forest Camp - Ingredient Hunt for the The Great Avalon Bake-Off 2022
[After celebrating the winter solstice in Nicnevin Hijikata welcomed the new year in Camelot, watching the castle's fireworks at midnight with his ghostly subordinates. It seems like Elphame will remain open for travellers, and he's tentatively glad for it, after all they went through much trouble to politically court the fae queen. His muted enthusiasm picks up when he realises that a camp has been set up at the edge of the Forest of the Felled as a halfway station of sorts. Finally he and the ghosts won't be the only ones out here!
When a store of well-preserved ingredients is found and a baking contest announced he decides to join in. Sure, the judges of Celliwig's cooking competition were unimpressed with his cooking, but this is baking! So he can be found wandering around to gather ingredients. He meant to use his two hen-sized compsognathuses like truffle pigs, but the dinosaurs aren't enjoying the cold and screamed at him until he picked them up and started carrying them in his arms.]
You two are really useless, you know that? What do I even feed your greedy mouths for?
2) They Grow up so Fast
[Colourful eggs showed up all over the place in Camelot and Elphame, just as seemingly out of season as the fruits growing in the snow in the Forest of the Felled. But not enough with that: the eggs had little legs they ran around on, and anyone who got in contact with them was "imprinted" with a protective parental instinct.
Was Hijikata lucky enough to dodge that bullet, or did he end up as an egg parent (possibly even for the same egg as you)? Or is he accompanying the current expedition in his function as a knight? Well, either way, he's here, because after the eggs hatched into little glowing teddy bears it quickly became clear that they're not fit to live among people.]
I hope they'll be fine out here and not come back once they've grown huge... where are their real parents, anyway? What kind of lousy procreation method is this to just lay eggs and have random people do all the hard work of rearing them?
[To be fair, it worked out well enough for the bears! (OOC: Please press A for Camelot and B for Elphame!)]
3) Quests
A ⦿ Gravestone-Faced (for
itsmypower) [When Hijikata asked Shoto if he wanted to be his squire the boy stood so proudly, it filled his own chest with pride too. The ceremony later on was small and simple (and yes, there was some paperwork to be done), but all of that was just a formality to him. This is different from his relationship with his subordinates in the Shinsengumi or Yuureisengumi, and he still needs to find his footing as a mentor figure, but he trusts that they'll work together just as well now as they already did before Shoto's squiring.
The new year has only just begun, but already a serious threat appears to be haunting the edge of the Dusklight Woods: a strange creature seemingly made of leaves and mud and covered in a ragged cloak and wooden mask. The bodies that were sighted speak for themselves, and Elphame, where the monster escaped from the underground prison, provided further information: as soon as it reads a person's emotions on their face it's able to turn their greatest weaknesses against them and, once they're mentally broken, pull their soul out of their body.]
Well, Shoto, let's put on our best pokerfaces.
B ⦿ Knight Quest
[Hijikata takes his position as a knight pretty seriously. At the time of his knighting there were only a couple of other outworlders with the title (though more had come and gone before him), and while he's glad to see that the ranks have filled considerably since then it doesn't mean that he can slack off! Despite not being anybody's Vice-Commander here he can't help but feel like he needs to set an example. So he doesn't hesitate to accept the special task and set out towards the occupied township near the Lands of Rot.
Given the distance he used an archivist's totem for himself, his pedigree horse Black Star, and whoever is accompanying him (knight or non-knight), so it didn't take the group long to make it to their destination. Having left the horse(s?) behind some cover a good distance away he and his partner are currently observing the orc bandits from a secure location (or, perhaps, from under a dark magic cloak or a light magic glamour).]
Looks like there aren't all that many of them, at least not right now.
[He's confident in his battle skills and apparently plans to apply brute force... if his partner is on board with that, great! But if not they may want to curb his latent bloodlust a little.]
C ⦿ Beta Testing (for
troubadamsel) [It sounded like such a nice and thoughtful Camelotian tradition: pass on the stone, and you and whoever you pass it on to will have good luck in this new year. The kindly woman clearly just wanted to cheer Hijikata up, having seen him struggle with a bunch of thorny cuttings for an elderly man with an overgrown garden. He doesn't even notice that the stone absorbs the traces of blood it gets in contact with as he's distracted by the sight of Maribelle.]
Maribelle! - Thanks again, Madam! - Maribelle, wait!
[He leaves the stranger and tries to flag the little noblewoman down. He wants to thank her for the warm gloves she gifted him for Christmas! That was completely unexpected, and while he already sent her his 'Mirror Mirror' in return he still feels like he owes her an expression of his gratitude in person. And what better way to do that than include her in the lucky stone custom? (Later on he'll file that under "thoughts moments before disaster".)]
D ⦿ Roast Pork (for
troubadamsel) [Hijikata has been on the dark web's radar for a while now, and ever since last month's hunt for his ghostly subordinates tensions have been higher than before. The Yuureisengumi constantly finds itself missing at least one or two members, and the resources needed to find and rescue them are always sorely missed elsewhere. Hijikata thinks of running another recruitment campaign, but the new year starts off with such a bang on the dark web that that'll have to wait.
When he sees the ridiculously sadistic quest involving a giant hogweed potion that, sneaked into the private Jack Rabbit's club's champagne fountain, will cause everyone who ingested it to burn to a crisp in the sunlight, he simply can't abide it... despite his lasting predicament of still being trapped in Maribelle's body.
He contacts the quest-giver through his burner phone, and once arrangements are made he soon receives the fatal potion in a post box in Camelot City which he rented specifically for this undertaking. Before long the would-be murder weapon is safely in the hands of Camelot's native law enforcement (he conducted a covert collection with them, just in case), but he isn't satisfied with just that. He wants to get a hold of the madman who cooked up this entire horrible plot!
This is why he, after sneaking into the club and pretending to be a new server lost on the way to the dressing room, uses his phone to invite the mysterious quest-giver to come watch the "pork roast" show. He allows himself a narrow-eyed smirk as he sees the inappropriately cheerful text message response. So far, so good! Now if only he didn't feel so exposed in this goddamn bunny suit, and if only he could walk in these high heels... and if only he knew that the dalmation stone enchantment that made him and Maribelle swap bodies is about to run out in 3, 2, 1--]
[OOC: If you'd like any additional prompts (egg-raising adventures, body-swapped run-ins, etc.) please feel free to hit me up on my plotting post! Also here are Hijikata's permissions.]
It's all good! 👍🏻
I'm not really one for sneaking missions, but if you gotten reports of more hidden camps I'd say we'll need air support. I'll have my familiar scan the area for any sights of campfires or movement from above and then give us a report.
[Hijikata's bond with his familiar doesn't allow them to communicate telepathically, but he can mentally call him to his side. He briefed him of the undertaking before he left Camelot City and told him to stay in the vicinity, so it shouldn't take the crow tengu long to make his way to them after surveying the area.]
Thank you~!
Eyes from above would help things along. It would also give our scouts and lighter forces a better idea on where and how best to harass them.
[They were all in this together now. It was better to make sure everyone was on board and connected to the ongoings of everything. Or most of everything and as best they could.]
It would also give us the benefit of an added warning system....
[She really misses having planes and radios by now.]
♡
Let's retreat for now. Arashi will find us.
[He quietly gets up and starts heading back to where they left his horse. Many of the others who are hidden between the rocks and barren trees are probably on their silent, dimmed phones, communicating their locations and findings to each other. It's always amazing how quickly some technologically savvy people can whip up a chat group with an integrated map that can be updated in real time by verified group members! Hijikata takes his own device out to check.]
Looks like the others already found some smaller camps. There's one east of us that has approximately a half-dozen bandits, and two to the north with about 10 each... we'll have to send more people over there.
[Once his familiar arrives he can hopefully corroborate or correct those preliminary reports. Hijikata only hopes that they won't be discovered prematurely, because then they'd be forced into an all-out fight without having the moment of surprise on their side.]
Re: ♡
Mm, it shouldn't be too hard to send them packing. Or at least throw them off enough to send the others into further confusion.
[Better to allow them to be further confused and disorganized, than to be organized into one giant doomstack of a blob. Well things were going smoothly enough right now, so as long as everyone managed to keep up their current momentum then they might be able to get through all of this without any hiccups!]
We don't have too many to spare, but everyone is getting better at acting in unison and in smaller groups. Under a dozen shouldn't be too bad....
[The camp's smaller numbers were a little disconcerting though. Hm... further defense maybe? All others seemed to have larger numbers, right?]
no subject
Maybe the majority of them is actually out of sight in the village. I wouldn't be surprised if they'd taken over a building or several for themselves.
[He looks up at the sound of small wings and raises an arm for his familiar to land on. Arashi's crow form is far less conspicuous than his humanoid true form, so he currently looks like a regular bird.]
What's the situation?
Your people have the village surrounded. From above I saw four camps that appear to have been set up by the invaders - two north of the village, one east, one south. I believe that they see no reason to guard the border to the Lands of Rot, given the presence of the wards.
Makes sense.
In terms of invaders within the township, I counted about thirty.
[Hijikata nods, apparently finding that manageable. With Arashi's guidance he adds the last camp location to the map and adjusts the numbers. The small groups of knights and volunteer fighters can be seen as little dots as they change position to match the enemies' expected strength.]
Honestly, until the guys in the last camp realise what's going on we'll already have thrown them all into chaos. I think we're about ready.
[He mounts his large black horse and, once situated, takes the shield off his back.]
België, you'll be my support? Actually I almost want to ask that you focus on the villagers. If the bandits get the idea of taking them as hostages that'll complicate things significantly.
no subject
Hm, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Our Chasseur have been working to disrupt their lines of communications and supplies. On top of general harassment. They're getting a taste of their own medicine.
[Besides, when faced with an overwhelming force it was always better to slowly wear them down. She didn't really come dressed or prepared to fight directly or fairly anyway.]
If that makes you feel better, I can certainly support you. [It was better than trying to act alone like a few others seemed to be doing.]
Just remember that they don't go down without a struggle. So, it would be best not to completely corner them.
CW: Battle Violence
Oh, they can struggle if they want to. They'll see how much good it does them.
[He fires off a small message in the chat, signalling that he and Belgium are about to charge, and immediately gets some responses of others ready to join them. Good. The more overwhelmed the bandits get, the better.]
Alright.
[One more deep breath, and...]
Let's go!!
[He charges straight ahead, in full gallop within moments, and the orcs guarding the path into the village barely know what hits them. One of them rushes for the horn to warn the others - if only he'd carried it on his person instead of letting it sit aside! - but before he can blow it Hijikata's sword flings it out of his hands and away into the distant undergrowth. He twists his hand and strikes the man down with the pommel - or that's the plan, but orcs have thick skulls! The guard remains on his feet, albeit clearly very dizzy, while his comrade rushes at Black Star's side with a battle axe. The horse whinnies fearfully and starts turning to flee, but Hijikata sharply pulls the reins and forces it to stay in place as he blocks the powerful swing with his sword and then quickly slashes at the man's upper arm, making it fall slack.
The bandit cries out, but doesn't flee even then, instead grabbing Hijikata's leg and trying to forcefully pull him down from his steed. The samurai kicks and struggles, then jabs his sword into the junction of the man's neck and shoulder, eliciting another howl of pain as he lets go. Meanwhile several other Camelotians, some on horses and some on foot, have rushed past the battle scene and into the village to make use of the fleeing moment of surprise before everybody takes notice of the commotion. Hijikata is displeased; he's totally falling behind!]
God damn it, you annoying bastards!! I don't have all day!
no subject
Right keep him alive, and everyone else! No problem, no problem at all. She kicks herself up into high gear, wondering how well the defenses held. They were all built in haste, but still they should have proven better than nothing at all. She unslings her crossbow and fires off a bolt at another before he can alert his fellows. Another bolt is quickly cranked into place before being loosed into another.
Wash, rinse, repeat.
A rifle would have been better. She really has been taking modern conveniences for granted...]
Technically we do have all day.
[And then some most likely. She sighs and commands some roots to shoot out from the ground and grasp a few more orcs that tried to get in their path. It was going to be a long couple of weeks, wasn't it?]
no subject
We do?
[Yes, they do - he's just not used to it. Back in Edo a raid is usually over when one party is dead or captured, and that generally doesn't take long. But this isn't a raid, it's a mid-term operation. By now pretty much everyone is involved in the battle; screams and shouts carry from within the township and, more faintly, from the camps some distance away. He gallops over to the bandits captured in Belgium's vines and, now in kill-or-be-killed mode and no longer willing to take any risks, delivers hefty slashes that, if nothing else, will render them unable to fight for a good while.]
Okay, then I just don't want to spend all day on this!
[It was a volunteer expedition, why is he complaining? A bolt from the direction of the village narrowly whizzes by the horse's neck, making it whinny in panic and rise up on its hind legs for a moment. Hijikata stays in the saddle, but allows it to flee out of range before making it halt.]
Can you do something about the crossbowman?
[Just as he asks that he sees a handful of bandits running towards the village from one of the camps to back up their comrades.]
Shit. I'll handle that batch!
[He charges towards them, and this time he acts more wisely, using his elemental magic to shake up the soil beneath their feet just a second before the impact between them. As they quickly try to regain their balance he already delivers his next strike, using his blade on two of them and a summoned charge of heavy electricity on the others. Even so not all of them collapse immediately, and the horse whinnies fearfully across the battlefield.]
Black Star, you're a shitty warhorse!! Get a grip!