TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 8

[avalonmods]

✨ Greet new players on the OOC intro while apps are processed HERE! ✨

{ QUICK NAV } Premise ⚔️️ Rules ⚔️️ FAQ ⚔️️ Taken ⚔️️ Reserves ⚔️️ Apply ⚔️️ Locations ⚔️️ Bestiary ⚔️️ Top-Levels Only ⚔️️ SUMMARY: New arrivals drop into the lake and have to climb up a cliff to the Rent a Ride, where they are given their device and some headphones and can retrieve their personal materials. They travel to Camelot, which is a multiple day journey, so they stop at the Red Springs along the way and stay at an inn there. A ⦿ Soaking in Your Arrival KERPLUNK, SPLASH! Regardless of what you were in the middle of, you and your familiar have been magically pulled into the world of Avalon just above the Bay's waters. After a brief plunge into the Bay, the rush of water filling your ears and soaking up into every creak and crevice of your body, you may need to cough to clear your airways when you rise above the surface. It's still chilly, but not enough that you can't manage on your own. The Lady of the Lake is swimming around under the water, helping to rescue any wayward travelers who look like they're struggling in the water. This month's helpers are giant pillow jellies, a species of jellyfish that is capable of ballooning itself at the surface to create bouncy pads for characters to hop across to the shore, should they choose or not be able to swim. They come in a variety of bioluminescent colors, but do not seem to be very talkative even to animal magic users. Those who try may find themselves being ignored, even if they hear the jellies talking amongst themselves about this and that. If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. The shores themselves are littered with new arrivals complaining their way up a staircase carved into the walls of the White Cliffs. There is no railing, so be careful, but if you do fall, be prepared for a mysterious sand hand to reach out of the side of the cliffs to catch you. The hand will pat you atop the head twice before retreating back into the wall. This is the Cliff Beast; despite the name, he is quite friendly. (Though.. given how hot and muggy the weather is this first week, maybe you might want to ask him to toss you right back into the lake where the waters are still cool.) *Reminder: Your character's familiar may or may not be with your character in their initial plunge. If the familiar isn't partial to water, it may meet your character on the beach or sit atop their head while they swim. Or if they are, they might splash about and swim alongside your character. Familiars have different personalities and body specs and we leave those up to the players. B ⦿ The Caravan to Camelot Once everyone is wrangled up to the top of the White Cliffs, the handsome owner of the Rent-a-Ride, Archimedes, will distribute smart phones and a pair of ear buds (the supplier was out of the regular ones) and tell them to "Check the Shit Box." The "Shit Box" refers to wardrobe more formally known as the Wardrobe of Finding, a hammerspace-like wardrobe that opens to each person's items and pets when the person touches the handle. It was recently enchanted by Merlin to prevent people from having to fish their waterlogged possessions and pets out of the water with them. From there, Archimedes directs everyone to settle in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and gives them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: The rest of the universe is frozen in time and your character has been brought here by a familiar that was able to bond with them. They'll have to learn magic to help save their own world from destruction, but first they've got to get them to Camelot. It is here that you have the first opportunity to decide who they will be in their new home. You'll have about an hour to wander around here, meet and greet, and pet the horses before it's time to go. These carriages use fae technology that combats weight, so your character will be able to get in regardless of whether they're light as a feather or weigh two tons. The carts have air conditioning when it's hot, heating when it's cold, and a mystical shield to protect from bugs. There is also a mini-bar that pops out of the console with nip bottles. Characters can use their smartphones to connect to Camelot's internet service, avalononline (AOL), to chat with other characters, watch dumb videos, learn about the world, contact Camelot Support (they'll answer any questions they can for you, from how to use a smart phone to where to find quests and resources to learn more about your magic). Be careful if you decide to use your phones while in the caravan-- if you don't use those earbuds and start forcing everyone to listen to your nonsense, Archimedes may make you walk. C ⦿ The Red Spring The journey from the White Cliffs to the City of Camelot is a long one, and the first evening you arrive you'll end up spending at the Red Spring, a booming resort town. Because of the volume of new arrivals and vacationers, inn rooms are assigned two-to-a-room. The rooms have two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and a few free movies. If you don't want to relax in the room, try taking a dip in the spring for another chance to meet your fellow travelers. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly when drunk. It is known to relieve stress, improve energy levels, and mildly accelerate healing. It may be a little chilly when you get out though, so make sure you don't slip rushing back indoors when you get out! The springs are also home to a large training grounds just outside town limits, where there are teachers who will teach basic magic safety and help you discover what kind of magic you have together with other new arrivals. Try target practice, obstacle courses, meditation circles, and other ways to try to figure out just what you can do... if you didn't already have an accidental discovery on the ride there. SUMMARY: Merlin has a Plan B in case Camelot failed the trials: raise a sunken ship and offer it to the Elphame Traders on their way out in exchange for permission to travel their waters. Characters prepare for ritual magic to raise a sunken ship and travel underwater at the empty Camelot docks to gather ritual ingredients for it. After they've done all they can, Merlin sets up a little beach party with a bit of master magic for anyone who came along for the trip. After arriving, people may have heard about recent events-- the people of Camelot voted against war and to instead accept the trials of the people of Celliwig. The trials are now concluded, and a good number of people are emotionally exhausted and taking time to recover. Word from Celliwig has not yet arrived, but across multiple social media platforms, including AOL, there are clips of Merlin's cryptic addendum to Arthur's announcement along with notes that the meeting date was delayed a couple of days due to the awful weather and a need to rest after how bleak the trials were to some people. With people down and out, it won't hurt to have the new arrivals pitch in and learn a thing or two. "Lucky me, we've got a decent group. Celliwig's out of our hands now, but what isn't is a back-up plan. Vote was close enough I figured we'd have enough people to get a head start. Celliwig is closer and much less dangerous to deal with, we'd be able to communicate much faster with the faeries' queendom. They're not big on internet. Big followers of the Old Ways. T-L-D-R, we can't just text the queen and ask if drop-bys are on the table. We'd never make it past the leviathans without permission, so here's the plan: There is a... fixer-upper of a vessel sunken about a hundred yards from shore tossed out from Bermuda. We tried to build docks here forever ago, but you can guess the Bermuda triangle spitting out stuff in the lake all the time didn't go great. We just keep it up for visitors now, but there's plenty to explore in the immediate area that we can magic back into business." A ⦿ Shipwreckers He goes on to explain that the fairies value items that were once lost and refound, so step one is exploring the shipwreck with fellow magic users to find what amounts to a scavenger hunt list of items from the ship. He sets everyone off with a quick spell that essentially transforms their clothing into swimsuits that best fit their preferences and personality-- that means no one's going to get a swimsuit that makes them horribly uncomfortable, he's not harassing anyone. After that, magicians will be directed to use their magic to get down to the ship. It's not as convenient as underwater breathing and not as easily sustainable, but there's definitely different ways to go about it. Light magic users will find they can create a forcefield above the surface of the water and go under the water, though they may run out of oxygen quickly. Elemental users can find they can create a similar bubble by pushing water out of the way, though may run into the same diminishing air without a more advanced elemental user already in the game who can pull oxygen out of the water or an alchemist who can create chemical reactions to generate oxygen. Animal mages may be able to convince local lake life to help push bubbles along, and healers will be instrumental in healing oxygen deprivation if anyone stays under too long! (Note: If two characters can't create a bubble, you can put in a third NPC to do the bubble while your characters handle other roles during the search.) No matter what, make sure you bring someone who can watch your back. Rumors have it that the Fuath are harassing anything that comes near the area. Fuath are intangible spirits that may present as giant humanoids at about 8-9 feet each, but with the mane and tail of a yellow horse, with no noses and keen eyes. They hold grudges against anyone who takes advantage of their surroundings, even if not their own, and will come to attempt to throw those who try to take from the ships and flying through the air to land somewhere else in the water. Be very cautious about using names around the Fuath, as though they do not speak in human tongue, they have a particular ability to draw people and animals in using names that makes them very difficult to escape once you've been found. They've been known to turn familiars against their partners. They can be deterred, dissipated through attack to buy you time, but they'll keep coming so get in and out of the ship as fast as you can and definitely stick to more combat-heavy magics like dark and cognitive mages! *Note: These magics are all examples of ways to use primary magic, but feel free to get creative with your character's magic if you think of something else! B ⦿ Hoist the Flags Once all the ingredients are gathered, the ritual is underway! With the mementos from the ship, swim to a protective circle formed at the top of the water by Merlin that will keep the Fuath out. There, you need to take whatever item you gathered from the ship and try to find someone with a similar item. This "sister" item will allow you to pull the essence of the item up from the ship. It takes a load of people to raise a whole ship, but pouring your magic into the item and chanting the spell will cause the ship to resurface and restore itself to its original state before the crash, using residual memories from all the different items on the ship. Of course, finding a partner with a matching item while swimming around could be a challenge, especially if you don't get along-- it may take a while for everyone to get on the same page. It certainly won't clean up all the algae and kelp and wayward flopping fish, it brings the ship back to a livable state.. and a much cooler, more explorable one. Get a quick exploration of the ship and help clean up some of the lake slime before Merlin flags over the traders. Or goof around until then, and learn a sick free spell called (Recipe) Cool Firework: create a rocket firework from your fingertips. Make sure you're aiming it into the sky when you cast this spell, or Merlin will set off a Camelot totem right beneath your feet. No sinking the ship when they just got it up. The fireworks will attract the Elphame Traders, who are leaving the day after they close up shop to head back to Elphame, before the set out to leave. Merlin negotiates offering the ship to them as an offering for Queen Elphame to give them permission to travel in the Elphame territory. At that point, the ship is pulled into the docks and Camelot citizens are ushered out for the fae traders to take over the ship. C ⦿ Beach Episode Once everything's said and done it.. really only took a couple of hours, so the whole group is done around 4pm. There's plenty of time left for dinner and a good time at the beach a short walk away from the docks and the sun doesn't go down until around 9pm. Before Merlin leaves everyone to themselves, he conjures up a buffet-style table with loads of fresh food and drink, watermelons and bats for smashing. The swimsuits provided earlier wear off at midnight, though you'll probably want to leave before then since it still gets chilly in the evening, especially if you're all wet from playing with the chest full of waterguns or the beach balls distributed around the beach. The docks are nearby, so feel free to call your friends over to come hang out with you, even if they didn't help. It's a beach party, enjoy it! SUMMARY: Unseelie faeries and unseemly humans have teamed up to kidnap a small number of otherworlders in the chaos of the trials to fight in an underground fight ring. Play as a victim or be part of the squad to put an end to it if you're more good-leaning, or villains can choose to participate as audience and pay for "gifts" to be given to their favorite fighters during matches. CW: These prompts contain kidnapping, illegal and forced fighting, and inhumane treatment of fighters. Just because people are tired doesn't mean that the world stops for them... crime certainly doesn't. Throughout the start of the month, people are going missing. Exactly what's happening.. well, finding the truth out about that is going to depend on your perspective. A ⦿ Cursed Kidnapees Kidnapping victims will find themselves suddenly blinded by a spell, and then chloroformed by a floating cloth pressed against their face. (Smart kidnappers don't touch their victims if they have magic, you know!) When they wake up, they'll find themselves in a dungeon with at least a dozen other people. There's definitely not room to lay down, and sitting down as you had been propped up immediately starts you with a potentially uncomfortable view. Don't worry, someone's peeks in from a window at the top of the room-- an extremely handsome-looking man with long, wavy hair and pupils slitted like a cat's. "Let's see.. You two, you'll be the first fight of the night. Winner gets dinner, gyahaha!" It's a fighting ring. You've been kidnapped into a fighting ring and there's no obvious escape! Fight against fellow captives and monsters for your dinner and to buy time to figure out what you're going to do... At least you start hand to hand, so there's nothing lethal... right? (See Audience for more details.) B ⦿ Audacious Audience Maybe you're a less scrupulous sort and saw an invitation to this event hidden on the dark web, or got invited by a particularly sketchy friend. Either way, you've got cage-side seats close enough to chat with either fellow audience members or interact with the cage fighters. As a bonus point, audience members can spend some of their G on betting or on purchasing "boons" for their favorite fighters, such as weapons or enhancement spells. They can also bid against other audience members for special sabotages that make it harder to fight-- foot weights, strange masks, roller skates, hinderance hexes.. get creative with it! It's the biggest fight show that you can interact with your wallet... newbies may find it's a very lucrative way to make a pretty penny very fast. (As always, remember to communicate with anyone you're helping/sabotaging so you don't go past anyone's OOC comfort level.) C ⦿ Roaring Rescuers Thankfully, the fae who want nothing more than to sow discord and the greedy humans who joined in their venture are a bit disorganized. Even the beginning-level heroes among us will be able to track them down and topple them with a little bar hopping to gather information from the locals. Eventually, one of them will give up having overheard some "scary looking fellows" talking about which of the patrons of the bar looked like they'd be good in a fight before getting extra hush-hush. Follow all the leads, and you'll find yourself at an outlying, smaller-scale castle with a dungeon tower and an underground fighting ring built beneath its floors. Sneak in and unlock individual fighter dungeon doors while the fights are providing a wealth of distraction. Maybe you'll find a grateful Fogueria who casts a temporary fire-immunity spell on you to allow you to do ride them into battle to bust up the fight going on right now. There's definitely gratitude going on, regardless of moral compass, and you may find gifts of food and drink (non-alcoholic if you're not old enough) placed at your door over the next week for your deeds. MOD NOTES: • All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, but this post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads, but should not top-level comment on this post. • If your application is accepted, you may accept TDM threads as game canon as long as both players consent. Characters may begin threading as soon as their journal is accepted to the communities. • We are testing out formats for key points displays, to be voted on for player preference based on what seems to work best for the most people. The other options were used here (end of post summary format) and here (start of post preview format). The format featured on this post is the last option, which will provide small summaries under the banner of each prompt set. A poll will be put up before the next event to see which format will be used going forward, so please keep in the back of your mind which seems most comfortable/makes the content more easily accessible. •If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt. • The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM, but contain seasonal tweaks for flavor. All other prompts will change monthly. • Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here! If you have a question about the game at-large, please head over to the FAQ.

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Two | Drakengard 3

[breakingvoice]

a. you can take a breath now [red spring]

Well, that had definitely been a way to make an entrance! After all the rigmarole of crashing into the water and finding her way here, Two looks around her inn room and she's smiling the whole time. There's definitely some things here that she isn't familiar with, but already her mind is buzzing with ways she can use them to improve her cooking. Her sword is propped up on the wall near her bed, point barely avoiding digging into the floor, and the loose ball of lights that she recognizes as a faerie from the Land of Forests is flitting around curiously, though much more quietly than she'd heard those faeries can be. Two straightens her back after looking into the mini-fridge and turns around to face her roommate. "Have you ever seen anything like this before?" she asks with a smile on her face. "How do they keep getting the ice in there to keep it cool?"

Of course, if her roommate's not around, then she's almost definitely at the training grounds, looking disappointed but feeling a little relieved inside when she goes to punch one of the targets and nothing happens to it. It's almost like... well, okay, no, she'll figure that one out later. On her way back from close-quarters combat with a target that was definitely not designed or intended for close-quarters combat, she's rubbing her fist and looking around for anyone else who might have seen her attempt. "So, um," she starts with a tinge of embarrassment in her voice, "Is there anything you're hoping you end up really good at?"

b. she could put a lion on a leash [cage fight]

Winner gets dinner. It's not really unfamiliar to her. It honestly... it feels like something one of the Lords would have put on before they were all deposed, but there's still more than enough magically sealed chambers in the middle of the Land of Sands for Two to know the concept. Fortunately, it doesn't feel like she's going to be much of a threat—after all, if she doesn't have that anymore then nobody's at risk of dying. Still, she stands up straight, cracks her neck, and assumes the kind of fighting stance that she's seen Four use when preparing for a fist fight.

"Don't worry." She sounds cheerful as she speaks loudly to her opponent, loud enough to be heard over the din of the crowd. "Even if you lose, I know how to make dinner from basically anything. You'll still get food tonight." Two, this is a cage match. Has anyone told her this is a cage match? Stop being friends with the people you're fighting in a cage match.

c. and in just four minutes they knew each other for life [wildcard]

((for the canon-familiar asking what branch she's from: uhhhhh all of them at once? listen it's yoko taro you know how it goes. if you wanna hit me up about anything in here or propose anything else, i'm at roseward!!))

cage fight (TWO!!!!🥺)

[intonings]

"WHAT THE HELL!?"

Whoever Two opponent is, they're definitely not getting that meal tonight.

Incidentally, Zero happens to be sitting in the audience, even if she's more suited to participate in cage fights rather than simply watching them. Observing people fight isn't that fun, all things considered. What she most certainly didn't expect is to see one of her sisters trapped in that cage. It's a surprising sight to Zero—confining Two basically anywhere shouldn't be that easy.

Unless she lost her powers just like Zero did.

"Two?!" Zero leaps forward, her fingers wrapping around the cold, steel bars. After a moment, she turns to her opponent and yells. "Don't you dare hurt my sister, asshole!"

That's her job, after all.

ZEROOOOO

[breakingvoice]

That's a surprise! Two's head snaps up, and she starts beaming at her big sister from the other side of the bars. "Zero!" she calls back, and her heart is filled with warmth at the sentiment.

"Don't worry! I'm better than they are even without my sword!" She giggles, never one to brag but definitely one to try to make her sisters not worry about her. Almost without paying attention to her opponent, who has definitely started taking swings at her by now, she's dodging, bobbing, weaving. It's almost a dance. "It means a lot that you're so worried about me, but I won't let them hurt me!"

so happy to see two!! sorry for the slowness, it was a long week 😞

[intonings]

"Worried?! Don't be ridiculous," It's a weird thing to say when deep down she is a little worried about someone getting to rid of her sister before she does. Which turns to be rather unfounded, seeing how gracefully Two dodges all the swings. "Let me in, you fucking imbecile!"

That is apparently out of the question, so Zero simply decides to do it by herself. It'll take her a while to slash these bars with her sword, though.

"What the hell are you doing here, Two?!"

ohhhh my gosh no worries i totally understand

[breakingvoice]

"I don't know!" She says it with a laugh as the dance takes her closer to the bars keeping Zero out. And she sees that Zero has that blade of hers, and it gives Two a moment's pause. She blasts out a jet of water from her hand to knock her opponent backwards, across the arena—and looks right at her sister while she's doing it. There's a smile plastered on her face.

"I'd tear those open for you, but I guess I'm not as strong as I used to be! Isn't that great news?" The smile thins. "You wouldn't even need a dragon's blade to do it anymore." There's light in her eyes, but it doesn't make it through the rest of her face.

[intonings]

"How could you not know!?" Zero is yelling because that's who she is as a person, even though if Two asked her, she wouldn't be able to answer the same question. How do you explain being thrown in some damn different world like it's some kind of a sick joke? She doesn't give a damn about Two being captured and forced to fight in cages.

Well, at least at the first glance.

"Yeah, this is like some fucking easy mode," It annoys Zero a bit, but again, it's really simple to irritate her in the first place. "Finish this guy so we can talk somewhere else without a fucking audience!"

Red Spring/Training Grounds

[cameprepared]

It was funny, coming back to the training grounds for this monthly sojourn to help newcomers with the bumpy landing and adjustment to Camelot. They came from so many different backgrounds, and so many walks of life that she always found herself entertained. And sometimes she found herself a little confused. Like just now, watching a girl that presumably knew a little about fighting by the way she'd slugged that stone target meant for working elemental magic.

"Plenty," she said in reply to the question, offering a friendly smile. "Always did want to learn how to fight with a sword, but never did."

Something she'd have to figure out eventually, since she was knighted and all now.

"Trying to figure out your magic?"

[breakingvoice]

"Yeah," she replied with a smile. "I know it's not the same as the kind of magic I had at home," and thank heavens for that, "But I still haven't figured out if it's supposed to be the same kind of magic here or if it's something totally different..."

She sighed, but any sort of dejection disappeared quickly. "One of the first things I tried was what I knew activated it back home," she started, deliberately avoiding specifics, "But all I know is that that's not it. I heard them talking about alchemy and I kind of hope that's what I end up with. I mean, cooking is already kind of like alchemy, right? And I know I'm good at that."

[cameprepared]

"It'll probably be different. This place doesn't let you keep what you had, and it changes that up a lot."

Eyeing the stranger and that outfit a little, unable to keep her brow from rising just a fraction, she laughs. Cooking and alchemy? Actually that does make sense.

"I guess you're right. Cooking and alchemy are all about changing one thing into another. I don't know much about it though. I got Dark magic and Green magic."

[breakingvoice]

That's a relief, and she's trying very hard not to make it clear how much of a relief it is not to have to worry about the same kind of magic she had at home. Her chest falls in a sigh and in another moment, she's bright and back to what must pass as normal. "Dark and green magic? Those don't really seem like they go together at all... have you found any way to make them work together? Something like," and she taps her finger to her chin as her thoughts start racing, trying to wrap around a combination of both of them.

And, of course, it hits her immediately what that combination might be, and her face freezes. She looks back, shifts her weight. "Well, I don't know if that's something you really want to spend too much time combining. It could get out of control fast."

[cameprepared]

"Oh it's fine. Shadow plants and stuff work out well enough. But really, they work better separately."

Claire shakes her head, looking the other up and down a few more times, just to make sure she's not hurt or anything, and then offers her hand out for a shake. The least she can do, being friendly and all. Especially with a newbie. That's another feeling she remembers, being friendless in a strangely hostile world.

"I'm Claire, Claire Redfield. What's your name?"

b

[owarifool]

Honestly, you'd think with the indignity of being kidnapped and being forced into a gladiator role for the amusement of others would have his famously short temper that much more triggered. But what really seemed to light to fuse, from the way Kipposhi's eyes narrowed, wasn't any of the peril or insult of his situation, but rather... just the bright, smiling assumption his opponent had just made as to who was going to win.

"Hoh? You think so?" The ignition was set. One could already see it within his gaze, the blazing heat within.

"You stand before the Fool of Owari! The Great Unifier of Japan! The Demon King of the Sixth Heaven!" He shouted, his figurative fire giving way to literal flames that erupted around his arms, flushing around him like serpents of inferno.

"And I'll make sure by the time we're done here, you'll never forget that fact!" And with a burst, he charged her.

[breakingvoice]

Ooh, flaming arms! Fancy. Two pumped her fist in the air, cheering him on as he ignited his arms, and then suddenly the Fool of Owari was heading for her. Clumsily, and with little finesse or preparation, she threw up a burst of water in front of her with crossed arms to block a blow and get at least a little protection from the fire.

"I don't know what any of those are," she said hurriedly, backstepping, "But maybe we can talk about it later!" With the little bit of space she'd afforded herself, the water wrapped itself around her fists in gauntlets, again mimicking her sister, and she threw a punch of her own at the Fool.

[owarifool]

The immediate collision of fire and water created a fairly large burst of steam, one that threatened to singe his face if he didn't immediately back off. Kipposhi hopped a few steps in reverse, but the steam also obscured his vision, clouding away Two's position.

Well this required a slight change in strategy. But he really didn't like his secondary magic as much...

[breakingvoice]

It wasn't something that Two had planned for at all, though she knew that it would probably be something she'd have to deal with eventually. Not the cage fight part, no, but the burst of steam from using opposing magic. She darted herself around blindly, trying to follow her opponent's silhouette as best she could, and threw a bare punch once she thought she was behind him.

Under normal circumstances, that would've been enough to punch the skeleton out of somebody, and she hesitated afterward. Then threw another, not a coordinated attack nor a one-two punch, but more like... she wasn't sure, exactly, how to properly throw a punch anymore.

b

[morganknight]

Morgan, at least in his view, was just biding his time till he got a chance to not only escape, but get others out with him. A gross usage of kinesis would probably see him home free, but he wasn't the sort to leave others in danger... so here he was, in the ring, and not really taking it seriously to judge by the fact that he had his arms folded behind his back.

"Don't you have to beat me first, before you can make promises like that?" His voice was loud and sounded serious, the sort of thing the audience would appreciate, but he flickered a wink her way nonetheless and hoped she got the message.

[breakingvoice]

Two laughed, glad that her opponent seemed to be pretty relaxed as opposed to some of the other competitors she'd fought so far today. He reminded her of—well, not important, because he wasn't Cent, and that was what she needed to keep in mind.

"I don't think I said that I was going to beat you! Just that if I do, I'll still make sure you get food. I mean, look at me," and she extended her arms and did a little fanciful twirl on one foot. "I just got here and I'm already being expected to fight to the death! It's definitely a little more intense than I was thinking."

[morganknight]

"I am looking at you, but not because of the fight." Was this the wrong time to flirt? Answer: no, it was never the wrong time to flirt. "Besides, this isn't to the death, or else it would have been 'winner survives', not 'winner doesn't eat'."

He was perfectly happy to banter -- for strategic reasons, too. Morgan's style included the concept of 'intercepting fist', the principle that once one's opponent commits, they can no longer flow to resist a counter. So he never attacked first if he could help it.

[breakingvoice]

Well, that sure was one way to take the wind out of her sails. She blushed and her arms moved in so she could clasp her hands in front of her chest. "Oh. My gosh. Are you flirting with me?" She giggled, took a few steps closer so she could get a better look at him, and sized him up with her eyes.

"I'm flattered, really, I am, but I have the most wonderful husband waiting for me as soon as I find a way back home. All I need to do is, um." And she paused. She still wasn't very... sure. About how to make that happen. "Well, I guess I could find a way to reverse the pool of water that I landed in..."

cage fight!

[shithogs]

Is she fucking kidding? Kainé has had a whole lot to say about this whole situation, most of it vitriolic and colorful, but the fact that this woman is standing across from her and offering reassurances actually manages to blindside her. Kindness usually does, if it's genuine, though she can't say whether or not this is, either way.

"You usually get so chatty with your opponents? You know this isn't a fucking game, right?"

None of this is going to end well for any of them. Kainé, for her part, isn't interested in fighting whoever is in the cage with her— she'd much rather go after those who put them there.

[breakingvoice]

Hey, it's someone else who's dressed like her! Obviously that means they can be friends. She's smiling and listening to her protests and honestly, this white-haired woman reminds her of Zero a lot, so, like. Maybe they can still be friends. Or maybe not! It's a total mystery.

She takes a couple steps forward, bouncing on the balls of her feet with each step, but she's not taking any swings yet. "I don't usually fight people who can talk back! Usually it's just trolls and ogres. One time I thought a wizard was having a conversation, but he was just chanting about some sunlight spell instead. I couldn't understand a word!"

Yeah, she's gonna be like this.

[shithogs]

Hey, you look for points of common interest where you can find them. Clearly, these two have similar fashion tastes. Friendships have been built on less— not that Kainé has a lot of experience in that area.

Something about the other woman's response does cause some of the tension in Kainé's stance to ease— for as much as she lives for battle, she's not in the habit of using her blades on people, or even fists. Shades were different.

She sighs, bringing the palm of her hand to her forehead.

"You're really in the wrong place, lady." Not that any of them want to be here. "They're looking for us to give them one hell of a fight."

[breakingvoice]

"Well, I can tell that much!" she calls back like it's the most obvious thing in the world. She's awfully peppy for someone who's probably about to get her ass kicked. "But I don't really know what they're going to get out of it. I mean, I'm brand new here, and if I had to guess you're definitely not, right?"

That's just how everyone else has been, at least. "So if they're betting on the fight, then wouldn't they all bet on you if they know you already? Can't we just say that you win and get to the part where I'm making food for everyone instead?"

a - training grounds

[inlutilis]

Emil has been sitting quietly at the training grounds for hours, sometimes fidgeting where he sits, sometimes patiently and clumsily attempting the gestures and motions he's only heard described by the nearby lessons other people are getting. This would be easier if he could see, but it's far too dangerous to remove his blindfold with all these people around, not just because it would be awful if he turned someone to stone, but he'd be robbing their cause of desperately needed people.

Aren't they supposed to learn magic so they can save people? Every one of them counts! It's a lot of responsibility, and Emil is a little discouraged by his lack of progress. Maybe not too bad. He can't be sure, but it sounds like a young woman is kicking the crap out of one of those targets. It sounds like it should be painful, he thinks, wincing a little to himself.

Perhaps he needn't have worried, because he hears her approaching and her voice makes him straighten up on the bench.

"Me?" Emil asks, softly surprised. Was his attention so obvious? She sounds embarrassed, and he feels the tips of his ears warm up as he sympathizes, embarrassed to have been caught scrutinizing her progress against that target.

"I'll be happy if I can remove a curse from my friend," he admits, and then, gesturing quietly at the seat next to him in invitation, the boy asks, "What about you, Miss?"

[breakingvoice]

Two doesn't seem to immediately process that he'd been paying attention to her, but, well, at least he didn't see her screwing up, right? She's not sure, but it's fine either way because he's being kind about it, offering her a seat and striking up a conversation. And he's got a really good reason behind it, too, and that's what has her interest more.

"Oh, that's really noble," she says, and she's completely sincere about it. "I really hope you can find something that helps. I'm just hoping to find something that helps me help other people. One of the things I loved doing back home was helping out the orphans... so if I can do something like that here, I'll be really happy." She gives him a smile, either oblivious or not caring that his eyes are covered. "I've heard that alchemy actually works here. Have you had any luck with that?"