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Event #6 Arkoda's Awakening & the Wyrm Moon
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| 🜙 Arkoda's Awakening. | ||
| With the emergence of hibernating creatures and the arrival of the thaw, Arkoda's awakening is being celebrated across Idan. In Krimnos, King Sitka, adorned with the white laurels of peace, announces the opening of the Krimnos Greenhouse to all of Idan, the many magical plants within it available to any in the general public who might have need of them. The Hymn of the Mountains tolls out gently from the crystal bells in Arkoda's temple, and the Krimnos knights hold a competition of skill in Hippogriff Flight Courses, Aerial Jousting, Archery, Armed Combat, and Unarmed Combat that is open to all. Participants have the chance to take on the mantle for themselves and join Krimnos' Knights, with the winners of each category potentially acquiring a rare Hippogriff from the Krimnos Aviary or a horse from the stables and a hefty sum of gold. In Didymos the celebration is split between the quarters. In the overlook quarter Queen Adira pardons a number of people from serving out time for their crimes with the option of joining the crew of any of the large fishing fleets or assisting the academies in keeping the buildings orderly, and a celebration of the Didymos justice system includes debates and elections for the Queen's staff of judges and advisors. In the ocean quarter, the fishermen are celebrated with sea shanties, shoreline bonfires, dancing, music, and a jubilee for the upcoming spring, all culminating in a grand feast where the main dishes feature fish, berries, boars, rabbits, fruits, nuts, and various honeyed sweets and drinks. No one talks about the shortage of fish in the bay, or the dragon that emerged from it last month. In the chaos surrounding the City of the Free Peoples, a group of rebel fighters in conflict with the city's current self-proclaimed leader are holding a celebration for anyone to attend at the Immortal Duke well into the night that focuses on bolstering spirits and joyfully, loudly, singing and dancing in spite of Captain Koroc's threats. Oddly, the Defenders seem unwilling to make a move on the heavily warded inn and everyone who joins in seems to lose their worries and cares the moment they step foot over the threshold. An elf with blond and brown streaked hair offers support and uplifting words and gives a speech at one point in the night that seems to really rally the crowded inn's crowd, promising that brighter days are soon to come and that before long the city will belong to the people once more, with no need to fear their true leader. There is even a mocking play that makes light of the former and current rulers. An armadillo beastfolk depicts Captain Lykos as timid and uncertain, waffling over decisions and eventually curling himself into an armored ball and rolling away off stage. An orc with horns on his head plays Koroc as a bullish brute that charges a mysterious masked and taunting character with a cape, careening right off the stage behind him and into a pile of prop boxes where he is 'slain' by his own stupidity. | ||
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| 🜙 Arkoda's Awakening: Potion Seller | ||
| The black markets of the three cities are constantly moving, never lingering in the same place for long. You may not have even known you were in it, were it not for the battle-scarred hyena and his human friend calling out to you with a gruff barked "Hey," followed by a smooth as silk sing-song "I know what you've been searching for." Against your better instincts, you find yourself compelled, stepping one foot after the next over to the harmless looking alchemy market stand. Nearly a hundred colorful bottles and vials of assorted shaped are stacked and stored around the lantern-lit stand. "You'll know which potion you need when you find it." The singsong voice of the woman washes against you like a reassuring touch, and she holds both hands out palms up, gesturing to her many wares. The leering hyena beastfolk beside her grins dangerously at you, winking. "If you think you can handle them." There's something unusual about them, they almost seem to shimmer in the light. As you pick up one of their offered vials you feel a dizzying sensation as if the earth has suddenly gone out from beneath your feet. You catch yourself on a tree and look up to find yourself standing in the middle of a mostly empty marsh somewhere between Didymos and the City of the Free Peoples. You're disoriented, confused, and your head is pounding. It feels as if you just went on an all-night drinking bender. The vial is gone, as is the market, but you aren't alone. Another individual is picking themselves up out of the marsh beside you, feeling the same effects of an unfortunate encounter with the tricksters or perhaps they were just out for a walk when you appeared out of nowhere and knocked into them. | ||
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| 🜙 The Wyrm Moon: Wolves of Atrómitos | ||
| King Ardis and his men have set up camp in an abandoned village near the outskirts of the City of the Free Peoples while the roguish leader of Didymos' ocean quarter attempts to get Captain Koroc to agree to assisted mediation from him and his men. So far his request has been repeatedly scoffed at by the towering red orc who views the man's attempts at diplomacy as a power grab. Dozens of rebels remain locked in custody of the Defenders and the knights of the City of the Free Peoples seem on edge, an air of anxious and paranoid tension rampant in the warcamp while a feeling of distrust and fear permeates the city itself. Prior to the Wyrm Moon, Captain Koroc declares that King Ardis' presence is an act of war and that the city is now under his rule. The City of the Free Peoples is still in a state of internal conflict. Their unofficial leader, Captain Lykos, has been missing since the end of December and in the wake of his disappearance, a red orc named Koroc has declared himself the new leader of the Defenders of the City. His greed for power has progressed over the months he has been in command of the army of Defenders, and he has now claimed himself King Koroc, rightful ruler of the city and its people, calling the city once more by the more familiar name of Atrómitos. His erratic, increasingly violent behavior and the fairly fresh scars covering one of his arms make him an even more fearsome sight than the already over-sized orc had previously been to behold. Even his most trusted fellow Defenders seem nervous in his presence. Dervish, the smaller orc that has been at his side since Captain Lykos' disappearance is quieter, remaining behind him rather than beside him. Dozens of citizens are locked up in cells in a makeshift Defender's warcamp prison and a struggle for power has risen to the surface. King Ardis is willing to help find a diplomatic solution by force if necessary, waiting outside the city with a small force of soldiers and putting out calls for information on the situation to help him help the people of the city. The newly recovered Captain Lykos is laying low, assessing the state of the city and searching the network for supporters to reach out to while he waits out the full moon. The rebels numbers are depleted but their current leader, an enterprising elf named Lorna with connections willing to fund her attempts to take back the city, is reorganizing her people and recruiting people to the cause of putting the city in saner, more capable hands. Koroc's new leadership seems to involve enforcing militaristic force and overbearing control over the city, but he is making broad claims of returning the city to its former glory, assuring his people that when he is in power, Didymos and Krimnos will give their city the respect they've been denied since the fall of Atrómitos Things have come to a violent final head, and the actions of everyone involved over the next few weeks could alter the City of the Free Peoples forever. As the full moon rises over the city's internal conflict, fearsome howls fill the brightly moonlit night and dozens of werewolves emerge from the shadows, attacking the newly re-named Atrómitos and the city's outskirts with a pack mentality rarely seen in the usually lone, cursed creatures. They hunt together, clawing their way from the wilderness toward the city, eyes blood red in the night, their black fur allowing them to melt into the shadows. The defenders can be seen all over the outskirts of the city, armed and ready, their response time impressive. Dervish leads them, and they beat back the werewolf attack. It's clear the werewolves are out for blood. Some of them make it through the Defenders' defensive lines, but many of the creatures retreat and turn their claws and teeth on the farmers and King Ardis' camp. | ||
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| 🜙 The Wyrm Moon: Dawn of Dragons. | ||
| Under the light of the larger than usual wyrm moon, the claimed dragon eggs scattered across Idan begin to hatch. The dragons that emerge from the eggs have no magical abilities, no flight, and no voice, but their personalities will grow and define rapidly. All but one of the hatching eggs found its way into the clutches of an awakened, for better or for worse. A lone egg, hidden away in a crate on Didymos' shore is found by the Didymos guards on patrol sometime after the waters have cleared. They take their discovery to Queen Adira, who is faced with a startling discovery. Another dragon outside Didymos. A proud denizen of truth and justice, she makes a courier post visible to all of Didymos, allowing them to see the hatchling for themselves, and explaining the circumstances of its discovery. She admits she is unaware of whether or not there may be more such creatures but assures her citizens that her scholars will be closely monitoring the hatchling. It is a frightening awakening for Didymos, but Queen Adira insists that until they know where it came from, if there are more of them, and if this creature is a threat, she and her advisors will be keeping it contained and monitored. Its kind may have destroyed the kingdoms of old, but she implores her people not to let that color their judgment. Frowning, she reluctantly admits that the actions of the people and creatures of the past must not be used to sentence people and creatures of the present and that if they travel down that road it would darken the clarity of justice they uphold in Didymos. Understandably, reactions throughout the city are wildly mixed. | ||
| 🜙 Note. | ||
| April's plot write-up will feature a follow up on both the Einjar Excursion and the Wyrm Moon events. Next month players will be helping to decide the future of the City of Free Peoples: Its name, its leader, and how it reforms following the conflict that has divided it and caused a rift of fear and confusion between its people. | ||
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no subject
On the one hand, great! He's slowing down. On the other hand, he's not quite down yet, and he might still have just enough strength to do something stupid, so Shura is still on guard. It does give her the time to answer Billie's question, maybe give Strange a bit of an explanation of just why they're doing something that might be just a little crazy.
"Yeah, I wanna see if we can find out anythin' from 'em." There's a thump as the wolf's other leg gives out, then a second, much louder thump as he collapses on the street. He's still very much conscious, but it's not as difficult to handle a werewolf who only has energy to snarl and glare.
"Strange, see if you can't use some of that silver or something else to muzzle 'em." Use that metal-bending for good!
no subject
Shura's suggestion gets a shake of his head. "I already know I can't do that," Strange points out. He's baby level with his metal-bending, okay? He can draw out a point or move an object a little bit and that's it. "I can use plant life, but he might be able to break through it."
Though after a few doses of wolfsbane, he's not so sure.
no subject
Though Billie isn't liable to stick around long enough to hear that tale. There's still an entire night to deal with. Anyway, she lowers the silver shiv and steps over to stand next to Strange, holding a hand out expectantly for her crossbow. The whole while, she's still watching the werewolf, just in case, but it seems it'll growl and whine uselessly for now, chomping at air but not finding the strength to get up again.
"And use thick enough plants, maybe, but didn't you make a whole wall out of dirt and stone before? Couldn't you use stone?"
no subject
But that's all planning and scheming that Shura isn't good at, so she'll leave it to someone else. She'll gather information and take him her pay, that's what she's good at. Catching and subduing the werewolf was all just part of the job, and she'll just keep her sword raised for now.
"A stone muzzle will work just as well. You see how he's lookin' now, don't you? It's an extra precaution for when we move him, not somethin' that has to last forever. I know you can come up with something or other to keep that trap of his shut."
no subject
Still, that's somebody else's problem. Strange gestures to the werewolf and mutters something under his breath. A combination of mostly rocks but a little of packed together earth starts to rise from the ground. It snakes around the back of the werewolf's head and then around his snout, making a slightly impromptu yet very solid muzzle.
"Keep the silver, by the way. And I've got some for you as well, if you want it," Strange says, as he nods vaguely in Shura's direction.
no subject
With Strange saying to keep the silver, though, she'll do just that. It's pocketed, disappearing into somewhere in that big red coat of hers.
no subject
"I'll take it in a minute. You think you can float him? Draggin' him's going to be a pain." Good job bringing back presents, though.
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"You just have to tell me where we're taking him."
no subject