Event #7 Crowning the Cat & The Celebration of Spring

[usirmods]

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🜙 Crowning the Cat: Deception of Aegas
	The Celebration of Spring is being held across Idan, and normally the City of the Free Peoples is at its heart. This year due to the fearful farmers suffering losses in their families and herds to werewolves and the broken city torn between its fears and loyalties, the first sprouts of crops planted during the thaw are significantly less impressive than past years and the hunters bring their hauls back to the cities find themselves facing even more dangerous odds in the wilderness, outwitted and outmatched more often than not. Feasting, dancing, music, staged entertainers of illusion and elemental magic, and heavy drinking still overtake the cities and small outlying villages, putting a temporary halt to any work or other priorities, but there is an air of uncertainty that can't fully be shaken, and an uneasy and unspoken fear of a famine year lies just beneath the lighter festivities. Among the celebrating, people go out of their way to honor the feline constellation deity called Aegas. The youngest of the Constellation Deities, he is known for many things. Aegas' stars are fainter in the skies than most, seen just off the left from the Great Golden Dragon Atromo. In April, Aegas is not honored so much as tributed to keep the fickle feline's wiles and tricks at bay. Children and younger citizens of the cities or those with playful or devious minds play tricks on one another, some harmless pranks and others far more dangerous or deceptive. Despite this uptick of shenanigans, however, for most Aegas' day is a day spent ensuring the secretive trickster cat deity that he has not been forgotten, as well as a celebration of Spring. Openly jealous of Atromo's status and reverence, and long overlooked in favor of the other star gods, the people of Idan learned to show their reverence for Aegas in a ritual known as the Crowning of Aegas. Cat sculptures, paintings, figurines, or idols can be found all across Idan for those who can't make it to one of Aegas' shrines, and offerings of fish, sheep or goat's milk, silver or gold bells, silk, or saucers of water are left out for the many wild, stray, or tame felines of Idan to take at their leisure. Known for being a deity over secrets, pleasure, trickery, and charm, Aegas is a favored god of rogues, assassins, bards, bandits, thieves, and charmers. An enchanted spring illness common in Idan has long been attributed to Aegas not feeling that his charms have earned him the favor of the people. The illness is known as The Aegas Affliction and is actually caused by the pollen of a flower that blooms in April after particularly harsh winters (the Golden Bellflower) Aegas' Affliction causes those who have caught the illness to be easily charmed. Their complexion is often flushed and they give in to their whims with very little self-restraint. The main symptoms are: Susceptibility to personal suggestion (Their own whims, thoughts, and desires), susceptibility to charm-based magic, a tendency to be secretive or deceptive, and a heightened sense of hunger. The illness usually goes away on its own within 1-3 days and has no known cure. It's possible to get infected by Golden Bellflower pollen from April 5th to April 30th anywhere in Idan. Only exposure to a nearby flower is necessary. During the Crowning of Aegas and for the rest of April flocks of lesser winged cats can be seen migrating from their winter homes in the Wavecrest Isles back to the unclaimed lands. Occasionally these flocks of small, canary to bobcat-sized winged cats are accompanied by fiercely protective and dangerous greater winged cat guardians while other flocks travel on their own. The playful smaller felines can be seen frolicking in fields and playing over the rooftops all across Idan while the greater winged cats stay far from the highly populated areas, hunting the wild forests, cliffs, and open lands to stock up food for them and their small flocks of fur and feathered friends.
🜙 The Bloom
	Among the celebrating the dangers of spring are temporarily forgotten. Not all threats come with fangs, talons, and claws. Creeping vines and sprouting plants lurk in the tall grasses of the plains and the dense forests. Some of the more dangerous varieties bloom and thrive in the earliest month of spring. Viperlily. A small free-roaming flowering vine with two thorns that protrude from the middle of its flower. The vine slithers along the ground in the grass toward sources of movement or sound and sinks its thorns into the feet or lower limbs of any living thing it encounters. The vine subsists on blood rather than water and uses the gathered blood to provide itself with the nutrients it needs to keep moving. It injects its victim with a venom that causes them to become weak, sluggish, and unable to use their magic so it can continue to drain blood. Most Viperlilys are too small to cause much permanent damage to their victim, but being left vulnerable in the wilderness does lead to many post-bite deaths, especially with the smell of blood in the air. Bloodthorn. A dying Viperlily that has gone dormant and taken root. Small Viperlily seeds grow all over its vines, each one prepared to drop off and grow into a new Viperlily. A thorn protrudes from the bloody sap-filled bulb of this vine. It points up toward the sun with a thorn as sharp and dangerous as a needle dagger. Those unfortunate enough to be stabbed by its thorn are injected with a modified Viperlily poison that causes victims to become feverish and reckless, encouraging them to remain nearby and engage anything near the Bloodthorn aggressively. The bloodshed caused by its victims or the Bloodthorn's own destruction causes the dozens of Viperlily seeds to sprout and take off to find their first meals. Creeping Dragontrap. A member of the carnivorous plant family, the Creeping Dragontrap is a fully mobile creeping vine with one to four heads that each have thorn-filled 'mouths' they snap down on the prey they find. The acidic toxins inside their mouths prevent their prey from being able to fight free on their own. An antitoxin is produced by the sap within their vines, but a victim captured by one of these plants will need help getting free and provided with the antitoxin before the vine escapes in a speedy retreat into the wilderness or ground. Rogue's Blush. The dense cover of this flowering ground vine is a network of sensitive thin vines can sense vibrations in the ground. The night-flowering vine is covered in dormant flowers that open in the darkness. They release pollen into the air when vibrations are sensed nearby. This pollen is collected and used in a common rogue tool: Flash Dust because eye contact with the pollen results in a blinding white flash that causes temporary blindness for 24 hours. Bramble Mimic can shape its vines into any form it has collected a template of. The thorny brambles rest in the form of a dense bush, usually settling itself partially into worn paths made by creatures or people. It uses the blood it collects from creatures or people that bump into it as a template to rearrange itself into their form, though its size is dependent on how large the original mimic has grown. It then uses its new form to hunt for food to sustain itself, holding a natural preference for predators, carnivores, and herbivores. The most common forms are those of predatory forest or swamp creatures such as jaguars, bears, wolves, and alligators.
🜙 A Mod Note
	A "Network log" will be going up the week of the 19th that will be paired with the next event log. The network log will contain courier messages from Queen Adira, King Ardis, King Sitka, Self-Crowned King Koroc, Resistance and Rebel Leader Lorna, Former Defenders Captain Lykos, and Former Defenders Lieutenant Alice. Player characters will be able to ask these leaders questions and attempt to communicate with them personally if they wish.

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[exaomori]

running sitting amok inside the city

In theory, Aegas should be one of the deities Shura held in some kind of esteem. But Shura's irreverent at best, and praying isn't her thing. It is fun to watch the chaos, the often harmless and dumb pranks people play during the month. Of course, that was provided no one was stupid enough to try to pull one on her.

For the moment, she's set herself up outside of a tavern, drink in hand as she engages in some idle people watching. A minute ago, a girl tricked her mother into picking up a toad, but now there are winged cats playing on the roof of the neighboring building. A stray cat is lapping milk near the doorway of the tavern, and sitting at Shura's feet is Shishi. For all that he's behaving, he's staring at the stray, wondering when it'll be his turn to get a treat.

"You don't count," Shua tells him cheerfully, perhaps a little intoxicated. Shishi grunts in reply, clearly displeased.

bloom - either outside didymos or the freeps

There had been a plan. Shura knew how to gather the pollen from Rogue's Blush. She had done it a million times before. There was just one little kink in her plan. She might have known how to approach the dangerous flower, but Aconite had no clue what she was supposed to do, and instead of playing in the tree Shura set her in, the dragonet decided to investigate the plant Shura seemed so interested in. Aconite's curiosity led to her carelessly approaching the plant while Shura was setting up the trap to catch the pollen, and well--

Well, now there's a blind Shura and dragonet, which is pretty pathetic. At least with Shishi unaffected they aren't completely defenseless. Whether or not she called for assistance or was found by a wandering good Samaritan, she's pretty much at the whim of whoever's come to her aid, which might be why she's especially whiny.

"Aren't we getting close to the city?" If she didn't have Aconite on her, the whole thing would probably make her less nervous.

wild/dragon play time
hmu if you'd like something else!!

[fuga]

Aegas is a deity, but not one that Lauralae has spent much time worshipping or devoting herself to. Her heart has always laid in the place where she had been raised, in the temple to Usir, and there's no hiding that as she wanders around the celebrations, frowning a little. People are in chaos, they are awkward and uncomfortable, and she feels overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people that are coming and going, her heart in her throat a little.

It's not easy for her to duck between people, especially knowing she has to keep the bundle curled under her hair a secret for as long as possible, but she notices someone familiar, frowning for a moment as she weighs up the risks.

Shishi is, at least, a welcome sight, even if she is less sure of Shura.

"I think one would not be intolerable."

[exaomori]

Oh, Shura recognizes that face. She didn't think she would see someone like Lauralae making her way through the throngs of people crowding the street. She was a little too fey, too wild for the city streets. But she probably had some business in the city, and it really wasn't any of Shura's business, so she won't question it. Shura leans in, setting her elbows on the table as she grins.

"Intolerable? Nyaha, you give 'im a treat if you want."

Shura isn't going to object to that. Feeding Aconite isn't a big deal, but Shishi always has an appetite for snacks and good things.

[fuga]

Lauralae is clearly doing her best to duck around people and not get too close, on edge and anxious, a knot in her stomach. She does not like being around so many people, does not like being so close to people that might touch her or talk to her or make demands of her, so she ignores it; she shoves it off and pretends as though she is fine, steeling her face and gritting her teeth.

"Does he have a kind he prefers?"

Offering her hand, she waits for the lion to either shun her or lean in to be pet.

bloom, didymos

[kingsroads]

Having purchased a house on the outskirts of Didymos (or at least, a slightly falling apart building that most people would call a house), Strange thought it would be best to get himself, Bell, and Alistair acquainted with the area. For him and Bell, it was the city. But now that he wanted to bring Alistair along, it was outside, in the forest. Both dragon and hare are at his side, not really staying far from Strange, as he hears a familiar voice.

Seeing Shura wander around like this is a complete and total surprise. Unaware that she can't really see him, Strange raises an eyebrow, stops and watches her for a moment, before continuing with,

"The city's in the other direction," he says, as he points in the opposite direction of where Shura's facing. "Don't tell me you're lost."

[exaomori]

For a moment, Shura doesn’t believe her ears. She knows that Strange was going to purchase a house in Didymos, but to run into him when she actually needed some kind of help? It’s a relief, though she won’t admit how much of one it is, nor will she relax quite yet. She really could be hearing what she wants to hear instead of what she’s actually hearing.

“Is that you, Strange?” She doesn’t turn her head to follow his finger, only looking in the general direction of his voice. Shishi recognizes him, of course, nuzzling Shura’s leg before approaching Strange and rubbing against his leg in turn.

[kingsroads]

"It is," Strange answers, as he reaches down to give Shishi a few scratches behind the ears. "And Bell, and Alistair Tourmaline."

The tiny dragon is hiding behind Strange because there is suddenly a huge lion nearby and he doesn't know what to do? In contrast, Strange is looking at Shura with a small frown. Why on earth would she ask if it's him? She has eyes. Unless, of course, something was wrong with her eyes at the moment.

One way to find out. "This might be a stupid question, but are you feeling alright?"

wildcard

[redwhaling]

"Your security is trash," is the amazing new information that Shura has in store for her when she returns home one evening. Seeing how knowing where people are tends to be useful, it was only a matter of time before Billie showed up here. It's on friendly terms, at least, if the bottle of brandy on the table — a Krimnos label, no doubt picked up in her little sidequest to the mountain city — says anything.

Billie herself is sitting at that same table, balancing back on two chair legs with her boots propped up on the edge of said table. It's not very polite but she isn't here expect polite company, right?

Her own animas, the black and white feathered tern, dozes idly on the sill of an open window, left there as warning enough that there was going to be company inside. Provided Shura bothered to notice, anyway.

[exaomori]

Shura’s security relied a lot on the idea that she was too broke for anyone to bother burglarizing her current home. Leave a couple openings, a couple vaguely valuable items out and hope that no one smart enough to recognize the subtle illusion and sound proofing seals on the pile of clothing and blankets in the corner of the room.

It’s naturally concerning to see her window open, the first test of her crappy security system. The bird in the window is a sign that this is a familiar visitor, but there’s always the chance that this is some random bird hanging out in her window, so Shura will keep her guard until she recognizes just who’s sitting at her table. And the bottle . That’s a sign of peace if there was one.

“Is it?” Of course it’s trash! “Honesty, it probably woulda been faster to just pick the lock on the door, y’know~?”

Shura will worry about what Billie wants in a moment. Time to check in on that giant pile of stuff!

[redwhaling]

She just wanted her to know! Admittedly, that it's on purpose isn't a fact that has escaped Billie but it's a good a conversation starter as any other.

"If you jiggle that window the left and lift, it just pops open," she replies, matching that upbeat tone best she can. It's not easy. She's more natural at perpetual sarcasm, really. Though now that Shura is making her way straight over to the pile of junk, well, it does draw her own attention to it.

Daud's the one who can spot magic with ease, not her, so it's been left untouched. Of course, nothing else has been blatantly rifled through, either, so chances are that's just out of professional courtesy.

Daud | OTA

[forswore]

weed whackers anonymous [city of the free peoples & krimnos ]

This isn't really what Daud came out here for, but for a reformed assassin, the sounds of someone screaming in distress are hard to pass by. With spring, more people are venturing out on the road, but said people are also equally prone to running afoul of the vicious, sentient greenery that bursts out of the earth, indiscriminately attacking what's nearest.

So perhaps you too are running in the direction of the shouts when a shadow passes you by -- and in the distance, a winged form ducks and pours flame out onto writhing vines. Or perhaps you're already in the thick of it yourself when a tiefling seems to burst out of nowhere onto the scene, blade in hand, to help dispatch whatever's come after.

For the less inclined to venture outside the perimeter of the city, they may chance into the grim tiefling escorting shaken-looking folk back, sticky, drying sap hopelessly spattered all over his clothes and hair.

outskirts investigations (city of the free peoples)

Once Daud actually gets to where he's going, it's mostly to talk to people to try and gather information. The thing is, it's spring, and folks are a bit short-handed. In the course of his answer-seeking, Daud finds himself playing at being impromptu farmhand, shedding a few of his heavier layers to help wrangle recalcitrant farm animals back where they belong, or helping plow up dirt in fields to prepare them for sowing.

Farms, naturally, attract an abundance of cats. They're commonly at play around the area, chasing each other, watching what's about them, or indulging in the many offerings laid out for their amusement.

wildcard

Daud spends the first half of the month around the City of the Free Peoples and occasionally traveling to Krimnos and Didymos via airship. He can be encountered about his business in either.

outskirts investigations

[kingsroads]

Though he's entirely moved in at Didymos, Strange had already taken a few jobs as a mage for hire at the City of Free Peoples that he wasn't going to turn down. So, a little rearranging schedules, and he's back at the City for a few days. One of these jobs involved helping to overturn some fields in preparation for farming. Despite knowing nothing about farming, Strange knows enough about making magic do stuff to help magically turn some earth and plow those fields.

However, the magic is taxing as hell. Inevitably, Strange has to take a break to catch his breath and have a glass of water. As he does so, he spots Daud finishing up some animal wrangling. Well! That was unexpected.

"It truly is a miracle, he's taken his coat off." Should he sass the guy who can kill him? Probably not. Is he doing it anyway? Yep. Noticeably, Strange is out by himself: no animas or baby dragon at his side. Also noticeably, he is not dressed for farmwork at all.

[forswore]

Since the Einjar expedition's end, Daud hasn't had much direct contact with Strange -- not that he was the most social of people to begin with. However, if he had to guess, Daud wouldn't suspect that the magician was much of a fan of fieldwork, which makes his presence here a bit unexpected.

Not that Daud's expression looks particularly surprised, even when Strange comes out with that instead of, you know, a proper greeting. Nonetheless, Daud will finish the task he's in the middle of -- using a long stick as an extension of his arm to bully some goats into a pen, then locking the gate shut -- before he looks up at Strange.

"Didn't feel like getting my coat eaten." Practicality wins out over his usual preference for keeping his skin hidden, although he's still wearing heavy gloves.

[kingsroads]

"That makes sense," Strange admits, as he looks over at the goats. "One of them tried eating my shirtsleeves earlier."

It was a hassle. Seriously goats, you have your own food, don't eat his shirt. Noticeably, Strange isn't making a move to help Daud bully those goats: he's just standing and watching, hands in his pockets as he watches.

"Though I can honestly say, I didn't expect to see you here. Helping out with animals like this doesn't seem to be your style." Strange is entirely unaware of the irony in his words.

outskirts

[exaomori]

Do you know who's watching Daud doing farm labor from a distance and laughing? This chick. Of course she is, what else is Shura going to do? Technically, she has a good reason for not helping, being on patrol and all, but watching Daud digging trenches with a hoe is probably one of the entertaining things she's seen in the last week or so. It's entertaining enough that once Shura gets a break, she'll approach him, arms up behind her head and a leering grin on her face.

"Thinkin' of takin' up a new profession or something?"

She doesn't expect a reaction out of him, the old fart. It won't stop her from poking at him.

[forswore]

Not much of a reaction, no, but they at least know each other well enough by now that Daud will deign to answer -- though not before he spares a second or two to let his gaze casually tail over their surroundings, checking to see that there isn't anyone with the city guard who'd mark Shura talking with him.

Paranoid as ever. He lets the hoe dig into the ground, feeling the ache of the work he's done this afternoon in his muscles, and finding he doesn't mind it at all.

"If you're building up to a punch line," he rumbles, pulling the hoe back again, words punctuated by the crunch and plink of the metal breaking up stone and soil. "It better be original."

[exaomori]

"Ha! So you do have some kind of sense of humor~" As crappy as it may be. He's not even bothering to stop working to joke! Either the pay was amazing or his work ethic was just that incredible. Or maybe he didn't care. Whatever it was, Shura doesn't care enough about his opinion to leave him be, dropping her hands to rest on her hips.

"But I don't think I could come up with a punchline clever enough for you. You must have some have standards when it comes to jokes." Maybe he'd show off his sense of humor if he was super drunk?

weed whackers

[swordproof]

Six cannot turn away from someone that is suffering and so she goes to them immediately, moving through the street and drawing her new blade, gripping the hilt in her hand. Even here, back in the cities and amongst so many people, she appears so large and heavy that she has become used to people give her space almost immediately; seven foot tall and built like her Goliath kin she does seem to be more of a threat than aid.

She only hesitates when she sees a shadow go by her, causing her to pause, taking a deep breath. Seeing a tiefling appear from nowhere has her stopping, eyes flicking one way and another before she presses forward again, raising her blade to cut down what's in front of her.

"Are you well?"

[forswore]

What’s in front of Six, as it happens, is a tangle of plant life that seems to have gained a mind of its own, vaguely in the shape of a dog, though the blade cuts through easily enough. It tries to snap at Six weakly, hissing, but its form won’t grant it much purchase.

Meager produce is scattered everywhere on the ground and a small cart overturned; Daud holds the reins of the horse he’d caught before it could bolt further, a bit of alchemical dust blown into its face to calm it down. At the sight of Six, he sheathes his sword and gives her a quick nod.

There’s a man who’s been thrown on the ground, shaken and bruised but otherwise unharmed, and a tearful woman at his side. It takes a moment or two for them to start talking, but when it does, the story is straight forward enough. He’d thought his dog was merely feeling unwell — it wasn’t until he started to unload the cart that the monster sprang out.

[swordproof]

It's clear that the matter is being well taken care of, even as Six's eyes flick between the dog-shaped creature and the man beside her; her eyes flick up to look at him, hesitating. She's not sure what to do with herself, torn between putting the creature out of its misery and paying more attention to the people that are shaken.

Eventually, her need to help wins over the need to do anything else and she puts her sword to one side, creeping around to reach and touch the bruised man. His wounds, however slight, are healed, and Six offers him a soft, gentle smile before she turns to look at Daud properly, rising to her full height.

"Is there any way to repair the hound, or must we end it?"

wildcard

[redwhaling]

When she returned from Krimnos with news about Lorna and Alice not being who they claimed to be — that is, not knights of Krimnos, at least not in recent memory — she hadn't expected to be giving her report while surrounded by cats but, apparently, Daud is fine with this. Of course, he would be. He's never pissed them off during this particular holiday before and she damn well knows he remembers that.

"Couldn't someone else fix these things?"

She asks this sullenly from as many paces behind as possible to put space between herself and the cat shrine he's tidying up, yet still have a somewhat private conversation. It's not a shocker that some stupid kids have gone around knocking shrines over. There's always a few and she was one of those, once.

And even now, she still swears the damn things remember. It may have been over a hundred years ago but the cats still make a point to break away from their offerings and sniff around her as she tries her damnedest to ignore them.

[forswore]

Whine all you like, Billie, it's not going to make this go any faster. The tiefling is kneeling amongst the upturned remnants of a small shrine, something he'd offered to fix back up for the distraught shopkeep who'd been moaning about it being ill luck for their shop earlier this morning. Daud doesn't have any tools, but he's already smoothed together the shards of broken pottery and put out new plates of milk and fish; now he's only trying to determine if a broken cat statue is worth gluing back together or if it's a lost cause.

He hadn't come here out of altruism, though. What caught his eye about this particular shrine is that it so happens to be adjacent to a wall not far from a main thoroughfare that sees a reasonable amount of foot traffic.

"I'll be done in a few minutes," he says, glancing over his shoulder. "Do you think you can survive?"

[kingsroads]

cat celebration, didymos
It's almost dark, the tail end of an evening. And Strange is on the outskirts of the city with...a picnic basket. He's bending down near one of the makeshift shrines: someone has set out a cat statue and various offerings lie at the base of it. Strange reaches into the picnic basket to pull out a ball of yarn and a few small fish, which he lays in front of the shrine. As he does so, he's talking under his breath.

"Now this is a celebration to Aegas, the crowned cat. He's one of the constellation gods and a god of trickery and secrets. This isn't honoring him like one would honor Atromo or Taiseach, but it's more along the lines of keeping Aegas satiated and keeping yourself safe from his tricks."

The basket audibly chirps. Strange is not as subtle as he thinks he is.

cat roofies, city of the free people
Strange has straight up gotten hit in the face by Aegas' Affliction. His normally pale skin is flushed pink, he's grinning like an idiot, and he's stocking his arms full of pastries outside of a bakery. Bell is with him this time as she bites on Strange's trouser leg with her teeth, trying to pull him away from the food. Alas, she is only a tiny hare and is going to lose this battle between her and Strange.

It's a comical sight as Strange pays and tries to balance two exceedingly large bags of baked goods in his arms. "Bell, stop tugging," he scolds, "I'll give you a few later."

why have cats when you could have KNIVES (aka i hope you don't mind a wildcard)

[redwhaling]

"These are pretty standard throwing knives," Billie is explaining as she stands next to Strange in the yard behind Amy's shop. She's nailed a wooden board to a tree as a target. It has the dead center marked but that's all. The knives she's handing over, though, aren't really like any knife he may be used to.

The sides are a bit blunt, even if the tip itself is sharp the touch. They're hefty, too, even for their size, though Billie already checked their balance beforehand. All in all, safe enough for a beginner and it's not like Amy is around to answer any questions about them — or, you know, express dismay that she just took them out of their display.

Anyway, she'll keep one of the knives herself to demonstrate with. Fast at first, taking the knife by the blade rather than the handle and turning and whipping the knife just slightly left of the center mark on the board. It sticks with an audible thwack.

That done, she turns back to Strange.

"Right. Tell me what you saw when I threw that before I go over it again more slowly."

that 'what do you have? A KNIFE' vine is now reality

[kingsroads]

Strange is just a series of mental questions as he experimentally holds the knife. Are all knives this big? These are blunt, would they even stick in the wood to begin with? Why didn't Billie use a softer target, like a pillow or something like that? Are all knives this heavy? Why would—oh, shit, she's throwing, time to pay attention.

He looks up just in time to watch Billie toss the knife into the target. He can't help it: he's impressed with how good her aim is. If he could learn even a fraction of that sort of thing, it would help his spellwork and his firearms use magnificently.

"You held the knife by the blade and tossed it into the target," Strange explains. Yep, he did see it when Billie threw it. "Why wouldn't you hold it by the handle? That's less likely to tear your fingers up."

Says the person not wearing gloves.