beleos: (Default)
beleos ([personal profile] beleos) wrote in [community profile] kenoslogs2023-01-13 05:00 pm

⏳ THE SCORCHING ISLE: Oracle Event One ⏳


ARRIVAL
All Bearers have heard whispers of them - the Oracles. Mysterious and unknown entities of an abstract nature, they serve as the heart of each faction’s cause - both as a means to an end and a very real stepping stone in achieving their objectives. To claim an Oracle means growing ever closer to victory: to see your homes restored as they were, or to herald in a new one of your making.

So you go.

A Cornerstone has been set up for each faction; one for the Zenith and one for the Meridian in Yima’s manor and Heliopolis, respectively. They warn you that upon transportation, your safety cannot be guaranteed and there is no telling what waits for you beyond - to be prepared. To make sure you have whatever you deem necessary with you before you go, as there is no telling when - or how - you will be coming back. CONTINUED HERE...

NOTES

  • Upon your arrival, you woke up with an HOURGLASS NECKLACE. Please refer to the Time Mechanics on the OOC Summary and bottom of this post for details on its usage.
  • The COURTYARD is frozen in time. Player Characters and the Great Tree are the only signs of moving, free life in the courtyard. During the intro, time magic does not work.
  • Characters are free to investigate but cannot move beyond the courtyard if you choose a prompt during the intro. You may mingle among your fellow Bearers or speak with [MR. TIBBS] if you so choose. (Also? LOOK AT HIM HELP)
  • Iconoclasts and Stargazers will notice Aspect benefits/detriments now.
  • All characters will be weak for the 24 hours - think like mild flu - and unable to leave until Mr. Tibbs has dispersed them. This is the time in which any threads with the NPC will be carried out.
  • The INTRO concludes with said dispersal of PC’s once interactions concluded. They will be sent to a location around the castle of your choosing; they are free to move about freely from here. Your prompts can start with you waking alone or in the presence of others - whatever you’d like!
  • Your character will innately understand how to use time magic from this point forward. It will come naturally to them, like a skill they were born with.


  • CASTLE: OVERVIEW (p a s t)
    The Scorching Isles is home to the Atirat, a people of sea-dwellers who have the ability to walk on land. (Think mermaids with the ability to shift back and forth between human and mermaid forms.) As such, much of the Scorching Isles is covered in large bodies of blue water and glistening pieces of ice to accommodate their lifestyle.

    THE CASTLE, however, is what dominates the landscape and it's where the Shard-Bearers will be spending their time. The white castle with colorful glass windows is obscured by a thick layer of clouds and fog. Nearly every location on the island has a thin layer of fog that rolls through it, which gives the entire Island an inescapable chill. The castle has artfully built rooms with a CAVALCADE OF DECORATIVE ICE, lavish mirrors, and white plants accented with blue decorations. Several portions of the castle are submerged due to the aquatic nature of the native residents.

    And everywhere you go, you find them - STATUESQUE BODIES FROZEN mid-movement. They are haunting reminders of the power in your Hourglass - the very real power to decide their fates.

    The castle has many winding paths to explore, as castles often do. There are sleeping quarters, HALLWAYS, a wine cellar, and a few large rooms presumably for diplomatic affairs. Players can use these rooms at their own leisure for whatever purposes they see fit. (Exploration, combat, or supply gathering.)

    However, many of these rooms will require some strategy to access their full potential! Atirat were much more comfortable being underwater than many Kenosians may be. Therefore, rooms of higher importance may be COMPLETELY SUBMERGED or require swimming through an underwater pathway to reach them. Very minimal supplies will be kept out in the open for all to reach. More desirable supplies - such as warm clothing, small weapons, treasure, and the like - will be located past or within one of these flooded areas.

    Players may gather supplies within and preserve their Sand or use their Sand to make other rooms accessible and gather whatever lies within! The larger the asset you attempt to unfreeze, the more Sand it costs - and the more drained/vulnerable you will be as a consequence, so choose your path ahead wisely.

    Currently, a pervasive fog is preventing you from wandering beyond the Castle's limits. Should you try to venture past it, your Sand will rapidly be stolen and you will find yourself suffering the same fate as the islanders if you don't move back to safety quickly... However, if you ask Mr. Tibbs what lays beyond the mist - he will tell you about the thriving farmland, the once-bustling village surrounding the castle, and the beautiful coral reefs beneath it. Sadly, they're beyond your reach - but maybe if the Bearers decide to unfreeze them when the week is up...

    LIBRARY (s a f e z o n e)
    The ROYAL LIBRARY - A treasure trove of knowledge, history, and glimpses of a fractured past scattered throughout. The lower floor of the Library is void of much reading material and contains several intricate-looking art pieces on decorative pedestals.

    A spiral staircase dominates the center of the room, with its once delicate structure overtaken by sheets of formidable ice; it leads you toward the upper levels where a sea of books awaits. There are isles and isles of books, most perched on intricately carved shelves. Many books lay in piles or are discarded onto the floor, and scattered papers are common throughout.

    Curious Kenosians may pick out books from the shelves and read on various topics, but players may also pass through this room on their way elsewhere. This area will function as a safe haven where violence and the taking of others' Sand is not allowed; do not disturb the books or Mr. Tibbs won’t be happy!

    NOTES

  • Characters who wish to receive a book with lore specific to the island may comment [HERE]. You will be RNGed a book from a pre-written list of topics. The books may give you a deeper look into the island, its inhabitants, and its history! (Only 1 book per player! Please assume all other books they read are about commonly-available topics.)


  • THE EATING PARLOR (p a s t)
    There are no basic amenities on the island. No hot water, no warm beds, and no salacious magazines (that you know of. heh heh). That would make the Eating Parlour a wise stop for anyone. After all, this could be the perfect chance to procure some provisions!

    The EATING PARLOUR has all the equipment one would need for meal preparation. Dried plants hang from the ceiling, and the walls are lined with mason jars filled with every strange manner of presumably edible thing (Is that a head over there? Hmm… maybe you should check).

    The parlour also comes with a garden under a massive windowed dome so that the inhabitants could have fresh produce at hand. Many plants have withered, but there are some salvageable plants if you know how to look for them. But beware… Some of the plants have a strange blue glow. These plants can spell potential disaster.

    If someone should make contact with these glowing plants, they will crumble into glass shards - glass that will quickly burrow its way under the skin and curse that person with Blight. Blight will make all resources within that person's vicinity slowly age and eventually crumble to dust. (Which I relate to on a personal level tbh.) Iconoclasts will be immune to its effects.

    NOTES

  • Please see the "Blight" section below for more information on its effects.


  • TREASURE ROOM (f u t u r e)
    Faint singing can be heard coming from this room. Once you hear the song, it dulls your senses and leaves you in a haze. There is no stopping your feet from guiding you to it through the doors and into the Treasure room. The door slams shut at your back, sealed with a wall of ice and magic.

    Players will find themselves lured to an icy chamber bordered by a ring of cold blue fire. There is a deep pond that surrounds the platform you’ve found yourself standing on. Beyond its glassy surface and crystal clear water, one can glimpse all manner of treasures - from crowns, jewels, ornate statues in various statues of repair, scepters, spears, and books that seem impervious to the water's cold chill.

    As you come to your senses, you will find yourself frozen in place and at the mercy of a large statuesque being before you. This beautiful and horrifying figure in a perpetual song is the SIREN, the only Atirat you’ve seen in person. She measures nearly 20 feet (6 meters) from her head to the tip of her long-finned tail. She cradles an icy shard in her arms, singing to it as if it were a child.

    She sits serenely in front of a large hourglass filled with white sand, which is bordered by a spear and a lance. Emblazoned in faint text at the base of where she sits reads: “The future lies in our hands.”

    NOTES


    Welcome to the Siren’s Chamber! Players must use their wit, charisma, or some good ol' fashioned elbow grease to escape the room or break the Siren’s magic. The Shard that the Siren holds contains dormant time magic that players may activate by using the Sand within their necklace. Players can access the future in 5-second intervals and use whatever they find in that time period to escape their predicament.

    For example, if they activate the shard by using their time magic, that shard will begin to glow blue. The room around them will shift, and it could change to a point in the future where there is a sword nearby. If you can grab it, now you have a weapon! When the 5 seconds are up and time returns to the present, you will still have that weapon on your person. You may also try verbal communication if you’d like. If your character is someone who would try and talk their way out of a situation diplomatically, they may give it a try!

    It is up to player discretion/creativity to think of a scenario you’d like. Each “future" does not have to be the same across player encounters! What one group experiences may be tailored to the player wants (because branching timelines exist). Let your imagination run free!

    HALL OF MIRRORS (p r e s e n t)
    Should you reach the rightmost wing of the massive castle Library, you will find a door hidden in the very back of one aisle against a wall; it looks as though the door used to be concealed by magicks that have since dissolved.

    The stairwell leads down and into darkness. Once you reach the bottom, shimmering light cast from an unknown source beneath sheets of glistening ice will illuminate your new surroundings; you are in a maze of mirror-like ice. This labyrinth is silent save for the quiet creaking of shifting ice that may disquiet you and leave you uneasy regarding the stability of this area… but it holds beneath your feet.

    Mr. Tibbs had told you that the “Kaleidoscope” - where your Sand is counted - rests through here, so eventually, you must brave the journey. Is it a trick of the light? Maybe the product of an especially active imagination…?

    Did you just see one of your reflections move without you?

    NOTES

  • Please refer to the OOC Summary for details on the Hall of Mirrors!


  • THE BLIGHT and TIME MECHANICS

    BLIGHT

  • Blight is an infliction that will age supplies and infect people with a creeping disease that steals their Sand. For objects, this includes weapons, food, and items like cloth. It will take a few days to deteriorate things beyond use - so watching your supplies and acting accordingly is in your best interest. Generally, it will make it more difficult for PC's to get by given that their already scarce resources will dwindle and deteriorate - especially since it's 'contagious' through touch.
  • The Blight will not act quickly enough to severely hamper infected persons, but repeated exposure will cause effects to a person's body - notedly protruding VEINS in the face and extremities, a lower body temperature, and increased agitation. These effects start out mild and grow more severe with each 'dose.'
  • Characters must touch an object/person that is Blighted to become inflicted with Blight themselves. When that happens, it will become easily identifiable as Blighted from the faint blue, shimmering outline around the infected subject, as well as the WITHERED, FROSTBITTEN or ashy appearance it takes as it progresses.
  • However, there is one single perk with Blight. (Or is it a perk?) Players will feel reduced impact by the cold surroundings, making the climate around them somewhat more hospitable. Beware of falling victim to a chill you can't feel...
  • TIME

  • To use your Sand, each character is granted access to and innate knowledge of a spell they channel from their Shard that automatically manipulates their Hourglass. This allows the remote control of Sand (aka gathering and dispersing), as well as the ability to pull Fragments of time from Shards.
  • Fragments are literal pieces of you taken from your Shard. They manifest as memories or images displayed on little shards of broken glass (think of the memory being played out in real-time on the mirror's surface), and can be crushed to convert into Sand automatically, either voluntarily or by force. The only stipulation is that the parties must be close to one another, and the Fragment must be exchanged while both Bearers are still. This means someone has to give it to you, or you need to immobilize them before you take it - one way or another.
  • Once the Fragment is crushed, the memory and associated time of that person's life is lost and your character will suffer amnesia until the Oracle is claimed. How deep this goes is up to you; they could lose a large chunk of time - even all their memories surrounding a person or place for a big payload of Sand, or they could lose very little for a meager net gain.
  • Sand is automatically gathered or distributed by your Hourglass and added/subtracted to your running total. No need to micromanage. Convenient!
  • Please note that using Sand to unfreeze anything (resources, a door which can be then opened, etc) is an unpleasant experience. Each time you use Sand in this way, your character will be left feeling weakened and flu-like for an hour or two, which will leave them vulnerable. This effect stacks and scales up to outright KO-ing them for a few hours if they go crazy, so unfreezing too large of an area is off the table!

  • NOTES
    • An OOC POST will be coming shortly explaining how Sand is going to be tallied and the Oracle claimed.
    • Should your character attempt to unfreeze any NPC's, please respond [HERE]. NOTE: unfreezing NPC's may result in physical violence with CW's for severe mental instability/illness and a potential reference to self-harm.
    • HAVE FUN!!!
    CODING
    exhound: (50)

    [personal profile] exhound 2023-01-25 12:05 am (UTC)(link)
    [Vander understands the knee-jerk reaction of wariness upon running into other Shard-bearers around here. With the mindset that a lot of folks have brought with them to this island in the first place and the fact that it presents the first real source of opposition for the two factions, it was always best to be prepared. The thing is, a big guy like Vander didn’t have too much to worry about on that front when first running into people. There’s only a small portion of the Zenith he’s on edge about (one in particular that he’s, worryingly, seen no sign of yet), and not a lot of folks are going to take a look at him and immediately start itching for a fight.

    Not so much the case for what appears to be a very frightened kid, though. The shattering of glass immediately pulls his attention away from the still-unmoving Atirat in the other room, head whipping to the end of the hallway to see the cowering figure half-hiding around the corner. They’re not someone he recognizes, but hardly a worry for him in this moment. The stuttered apologies and downcast gaze draws concern to his face, brows furrowing.]


    Hey, it’s alright. No big deal.

    [He raises his hands placatingly, taking only a single step forward. Maybe not much help if the kid won’t look up at him, but he wants to make it clear there’s no threat from him.]

    Sorry if I gave you a fright. Let me help you clean that up.
    appeale: (it's no mystery you should obviously go)

    2 claws my way out of work hell

    [personal profile] appeale 2023-01-25 12:21 am (UTC)(link)
    [ it's impossible to have missed the sight of Hayame—since arriving on the Scorching Isle, if nothing else, all of them thrown together in the courtyard and seeing for the first time who makes up their particular little population of Shard-Bearers. there has been time to shrug off the shock of any non-human individuals, even without meeting them directly. it's not the centaur part of Hayame's body that has Rudbeckia staring so hard at her right now.

    Lady, aren't you cold? ]


    Um... I...

    [ Ruby hasn't officially joined Meridian yet, but in the days they've been here, she's done her utmost to make it clear that she intends to pledge herself to their cause. if she wants them to treat her as something other than a burden, she needs to make herself useful now. as much as she is terrified of going out there alone, asking for help is out of the question, and she can't stay here forever when she needs to prove her use. ]

    Well, I wanted to help, and I-I didn't want to bother anyone...

    [ despite her resolve, she still quails under Hayame's cold gaze. ]
    exhound: (37)

    [personal profile] exhound 2023-01-25 12:46 am (UTC)(link)
    [He continues to stand in silent sentry, rope in hand. It steadily creeps into the water as Dimitri continues his swim, thankfully with no signs of trouble so far.

    Vander diverts his attention from the water for just a moment, glancing down the hallway to keep an eye out in case any other Shard-bearers come down this path. But a brief pause in the rope’s motion seizes his attention back before long, and he furrows his brows with blossoming concern as he stares down at the water. And then just like that, the slow and steady tug of movement returns. He’ll take that as a good sign that the search continues.]
    liuli: (322)

    [personal profile] liuli 2023-01-25 01:59 am (UTC)(link)
    Well, if you don't want it, I would certainly take it off your hands.

    [ there's the communion sense of something playfully teasing. 🎶

    at any rate: ]


    How kindhearted.
    We'll see what happens - perhaps food, rest, and a little of Anders' tender loving care will make a change. We still have a few days.
    gravings: (005b)

    [personal profile] gravings 2023-01-25 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
    [ Gu Yun... She was close, at least(??).

    She looks back curiously to where the bird is cursing at, but seeing only reflections, she just tilts her head and files that away for later. Weird!!

    More importantly, Gu Yun has a game plan. She always does better with a bit of direction, especially it gives her an active role to play, so she readily settles her hand on the left side as he says. ]


    Okay. I can do that... and if we lose sight of each other, we have Communion.
    sharethememory: ([screenshot] 094)

    1/2

    [personal profile] sharethememory 2023-01-25 02:06 am (UTC)(link)
    [





    . . .

    Mr. Tibbs. Please.
    ]
    sharethememory: ([official] Chibi 01)

    [personal profile] sharethememory 2023-01-25 02:07 am (UTC)(link)
    [ It's super effective. Zhongli is mildly annoyed. ]

    Do you really consider that fair trade?
    liuli: (320)

    [personal profile] liuli 2023-01-25 02:44 am (UTC)(link)
    [ i cannot believe i forgot he was blind

    anyway. gu yun has the book in his hand and mams can't see it, but it's there! he pats the spot next to him, though, come take a seat - though he looks up with teh slap, too, and raises his eyebrows, then tsks softly. ]


    Want to take a bit on who was hit? Or who hit who? [ this is dry and sarcastic, and... probably joking. gu yun grins a little though afterwards, and leafs absently through the pages. ]

    As for findings, a bit. 'Mimsy' - that's the wizard's name, silly as it is - created the time magic.
    ragou: (11.)

    [personal profile] ragou 2023-01-25 02:46 am (UTC)(link)
    [ A man from a dead worldー practically interesting. He thinks of his own ostensible "homeworld" and the swept-clean slate that it'd become, the messianic human traversing its empty surface to rewind the clock on its destruction.

    Heroes. Something acrid crawls up the back of Douman's throat, but he swallows it. Amos is pleasantly resigned, and it's a welcome change of pace.

    "Ah", he breathes, when he feels a palm meet his arm. Unexpected, but easy to contextualize; military, Douman guesses.
    ]

    We would be owed one, certainly! After that infernal otter's utterly lacking hospitality, any mercy that our dear Lady extends would be welcome.

    [ How nice of Amos to be so friendly, when all of Douman's "coworkers" back in his world hated him on sight... A beguiling smile, and Douman leans forward like a cat bending to a palm on its head. ]

    Are Zenith's champions rewarded handsomely for their achievements? Forgive me my ignorance, I'm very new to all of this, you see.
    liuli: (135)

    [personal profile] liuli 2023-01-25 02:48 am (UTC)(link)
    [ tsk. fair enough. ]

    Well - if you can point out the general area of where the book itself might be, that would be helpful. Or a particularly good mental picture. Just enough to compare handwriting.

    I suppose it doesn't matter that much.
    Did it seem like hundreds of years ago?
    wolof: (Hi Cat)

    [personal profile] wolof 2023-01-25 02:55 am (UTC)(link)
    That will be difficult to do, without any gifts.

    [ She said, her tone blunt, but not unkind. There would be power to be found if he were to accept it. Akua is not a hard-liner for either faction, and she understands the skepticism. In fact, she does not trust Cyrus herself, or the promise he made. The promise would take such an investment of power that she worries it will take the life of other worlds, to make it known. This stays her hand from pushing, as she understands what a risk the choice would ask for.

    But at the same time.
    ]

    Your principles of course, are paramount, and a third choice can be found -- [ After all, when given two, a third might be obscured if it is not presented. ] -- However, do not let yourself be weakened by your inability to temporarily choose.

    If you think my convictions are to Meridian, however, you are mistaken. [ Her convictions were to the pattern, the story, and a part of her heart would always belong to the Warden, no matter how far she was from her. She looked toward the mirror. ]

    Do you not see the thread of logic here, or are you blinded by your judgement?

    [ Her eyes searched, looking for a source of these mirrors. Where did their cast of reflections truly begin? ]
    ragou: (43.)

    your personal bad end otome route

    [personal profile] ragou 2023-01-25 03:03 am (UTC)(link)
    [ Good questionー what is he? Displaced, power-stripped, discarded, disgraced, and now Blighted. An alter ego of something already wicked, a crumbling specter of an already-dead soul. Morbid fever thoughts; it's been so long since Douman's ever felt like this.

    He towers over Reigen, just on the cusp of being in an intimate space. Two and a half feet from touching, an arm's length away from digging his claws into the blubbering stranger's soft neck and sinking in, feeling how his throat constricts against fingers.

    Douman wonders if Reigen would turn to dust, if touched.
    ]

    Mmmmm...?

    [ Coy, and still half-naked. Douman's palm finds the wall behind Reigen, cloistering him with the cold. ]

    You misunderstand meー I'm merely a humble onmyouji, looking to extend my services to those would would need them...

    ...though, ah, I suppose my curiosity sabotaged me today. How imprudent... perhaps it would be better if you put me out of my misery!
    appeale: (i learned to take‚  i learned to keep)

    i.

    [personal profile] appeale 2023-01-25 03:06 am (UTC)(link)
    [ ... haah. is this what it looks like from the other side? everything about Crona's body language is familiar to Rudbeckia, so much that she feels it acutely: the way her own muscles would tense, her staccato heartbeat, that numbing cold sensation as the warmth retreats from her hands like her whole body is preparing to play dead. Ruby isn't someone who can afford to mete out sympathy, no matter how keen her understanding. but—even though she wouldn't reach out her hand if there was a risk she might be dragged down, she also isn't someone who takes any pleasure in watching others struggle.

    she had flinched back too, when Crona startled, but now she smiles, too warm and radiant to be considered mere courtesy. ]


    Why don't we just share it? We're both neutral parties, so it's not like it's a big deal. [ this isn't any kind of sacrifice on her part, either. it would be better if everyone regardless of alignment knows of her as the foolish, naïve, and generous princess. ] Do you want to hang out in the library with me and we'll split some?

    [ as she says this, she uses her Sand to unfreeze the jar and picks it up, holding it out to Crona in offering. ]
    kenosevents: (Default)

    [personal profile] kenosevents 2023-01-25 03:10 am (UTC)(link)
    Why of course, I do!

    [ Click click click click clicky-clicky click click click click click and another click. He floats through the air on his back happily clicking the pen again and again. ]

    Don't you?
    Edited 2023-01-25 03:11 (UTC)
    kenosevents: (Default)

    [personal profile] kenosevents 2023-01-25 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
    He's the court magician, the most powerful person there is - was - in the entire Kingdom. It was probably something he did. He was always trying all kinds of magic spells.

    Some of them didn't work out so well!
    wolof: (The Girl who (didn't) Climb the Tower)

    [personal profile] wolof 2023-01-25 03:15 am (UTC)(link)
    Hm, yes could be. I suppose we have no way to tell, given that this world is nearly destroyed.

    [ Well, they could ask Mr. Tibbs, but Akua wasn't really certain that his status as a friend versus a pet -- or if the distinction to them even existed here -- was one that they would recognize.

    She tapped her fingers against the book, thinking.
    ]

    It may be that he considers himself the guardian of this castle, in Ferenan's stead, since he cannot. Being of the royal family, I would assume that he would be in charge of these people.

    [ She wondered, though... ]

    The author says that this land is destroyed. I wonder... were they a refugee who left? Or is it...

    [ Mr. Tibbs himself? ]
    settingup: (and went right back into it)

    idk, man, sometimes you just make bad life choices

    [personal profile] settingup 2023-01-25 03:22 am (UTC)(link)
    [ A stern coach, or an even sterner captain, yeah... That's a line that Kita-san could have fed him after some nonsense that Atsumu pulled in the middle of a match. The thing is that while when the adrenaline gets pumping, volleyball can seem like it holds a life or death importance at time, the truth is that it doesn't.

    But this does, and Atsumu isn't stupid enough to know when he's outmatched.

    He is, however, just stupid enough that he's going to continue to move carefully, watching Mamoru for any openings, any signs of weakness that might let him still pull of this half-baked scheme of his.
    ]

    I ain't actually playin' at anything here. I'm just tryin' to get by, same as anyone else.

    [ Anyone who hasn't been particularly judicious with their Sand at any rate. ]
    kenosevents: (Default)

    [personal profile] kenosevents 2023-01-25 03:25 am (UTC)(link)
    [Cautiously, she seems to shrink back as the spell is cast. What were they doing?

    As she lays her eyes on the flowers and hears the thunderous applause, there is something within the atmosphere that changes. The Siren picks up the bouquet and looks at it before pressing it against her chest. She squeezes it so tightly that some of the petals begin to fall on the floor.

    It would be obvious against the pale white of her skin when a streak of black liquid slides down the side of her face. Tears. She pipes up only when the "audience" stills. ]


    Someone who appreciates my talents at last...
    copeless: (pic#16169554)

    [personal profile] copeless 2023-01-25 03:34 am (UTC)(link)
    Align with Zenith?

    [ At that, their eyes finally dart back to him - to where he's crouching on the ground. Their hand doesn't lessen around the hourglass nestled in their palm, but they at least cease desperately looking behind them. The truth is, they've tried to think as little as possible about the two factions. To align with Meridian would mean going back to a world full of people they'd betrayed, who no longer would want anything to do with them - and to go back to a mother who hardly had any use for them. When they'd heard about those little 'sunbeams' that side was doling out, they'd strayed as far away as possible.

    But Zenith... aligning with them would mean accepting that everything is gone, that they're the one person left. And that's almost too much. Predictably, then, they're stuck waffling between the two. ]


    I can't do that...

    [ More accurately, they don't want to. Well, they would rather the person before them be an ally rather than an enemy, given the frightening visage. But they doubt that's a good enough reason to join up. ]

    I'm not good for either side. So asking me to join you is... [ A bad idea, is the implication. Crona really believes there's probably nothing that someone like them could offer to Zenith that would be that beneficial. They can tell just from the man's words alone that he clearly cares about Zenith coming out on top. ] I don't want to create a new world or anything like that. It doesn't make sense for me to be there.
    copeless: (pic#16161907)

    [personal profile] copeless 2023-01-25 03:34 am (UTC)(link)
    [ They find themself overwhelmed all over again by the abruptness of the man's kind offers (orders?) — and they're starting to feel badly that they'd ever started writing him off as a total battle freak. Well... that part is probably still true? But they're not very picky when it comes to those that would show them kindness, so they find they mind that part less and less, in a strange way. That doesn't stop them from feeling badly that they're likely something of a burden to him, if he's thinking of looking out for them so much. Melted in with the warming embrace of gratitude is a persistent feeling of prickly guilt. ]

    Ragnarok is... we're partners, so it's complicated... [ Nothing can be done about their situation, and the ire that comes from his behavior typically ends up aimed at them. It's just the way of things - they've gotten used to it. So they don't even consider blaming him for a moment. There's an avoidant nature about the way they talk about him - like they've resigned themself to his "bigmouthed" disruptions. ] He says that he couldn't have known there would've been a competition like this.

    [ They two of them can't afford more blood loss, so he doesn't make an appearance, but Crona can convey his thoughts well enough, still hesitating to reach out for that hourglass. Their hand lifts a bit from the wound, but hovers awkwardly mid air, closing into a fist about half-way to the container of sand. Normally, they'd outright refuse, out of sheer shame and unwillingness to indebt themself (or get close, for that matter) to anyone. But (un)surprisingly, being told to do something rather than asked makes it harder to question. ]

    Some was taken, but... can you really give this to me? I don't have anything to give back to you...
    sharethememory: ([screenshot] 023)

    [personal profile] sharethememory 2023-01-25 03:35 am (UTC)(link)
    [ Oh.

    Oh no.

    They made her cry. Zhongli pulls a handkerchief out of his breast pocket (unfortunately human-sized) and holds it out to her.
    ]
    copeless: (pic#16161787)

    [personal profile] copeless 2023-01-25 03:35 am (UTC)(link)
    [ It's a little less puzzling to be offered it back, with everything the man has explained, so they don't hesitate as much as they normally might have to reach out and accept the jar. He hadn't particularly being vying for it, as they'd first imagined - and, if worst comes to worst, they can always just offer it back to him if he changes his mind. They'd rather be a pushover than get in a squabble. ]

    Oh, really? I wouldn't know how to deal with the ingredients.

    [ How does one know how much or how little of something to put in? How to cut it up? What temperature it needs to be cooked at? All the meals they've eaten in their life have mostly been prepared by someone else, so even though he says the basics are easy to pick up, when they think about it, they don't have the first clue of what goes on in the kitchen. ]

    Or the knives... or the stove. [ They close both hands around the jar of fruit securely, eyes wandering over to the old stove and oven here in the parlor, only now becoming more aware of how little they know about re: working such a contraption. ] It seems a little... overwhelming. To learn.

    [ Which is why they're eating this stuff, they guess. ]
    copeless: (pic#16161909)

    [personal profile] copeless 2023-01-25 03:35 am (UTC)(link)
    [ The soft way he speaks and the careful way he announces everything he's about to do work like a charm — in this state, they really are closer to a spooked animal than anything else, so the slow, gentle approach calms them down. Marginally. In their chest, their heart is still thundering away, but they slowly, timidly nod their head in response to his question, thinking briefly that if this person really wanted to take the hourglass from them, he would've done it already. He's clearly capable of it, just based on looks. ]

    Amos, then...

    [ Their voice is quiet, meek, as they try to force this swapping of introductions to be a bit more normal — because they're feeling bad for reacting so strongly now that this person has treated them kindly thus far. Maybe if they were better at reading people, they wouldn't make such grave mistakes. They'll just hope their companion isn't too offended by their suspicions. Nonetheless, they bow their head a bit in a greeting, even if they still look like one of those stressed out hamsters. ]

    You can... um, you can talk with me. It's fine.

    [ They're out of sorts, yes, but they can manage this. Well, better put, they need to manage this. They're not sure how much more of this walking around alone, fearing for their life every time they turn a corner they can take. Even though it physically pains them to stay in an interaction for longer than is absolutely necessary... they can recognize their need for survival. Their best bet is to try to stay close to someone that might pity them, even if it's pathetic. ]
    subsist: (pic#15626802)

    [personal profile] subsist 2023-01-25 03:36 am (UTC)(link)
    [ At least Kaeya isn't alone in struggling to find information about what this Oracle must be like. He wonders if this is just going to be a pattern going forward. He can only hope not, because the less they know, the more likely it would be difficult to retrieve the Oracles for Zenith's cause, but...

    Right. He's supposed to be resting. He's still wholly unaware that Zhongli is the same Aspect as him so the other man might get feedback of how chaotic his mind currently is. It feels a lot like static and white noise. ]


    It sounds as though you've had a productive time here thus far. [ Better than Kaeya, by all accounts. ] As for what's left, well...

    I've been trying to make sense of this letter that I found in the library. There's also collecting Sand, figuring out what resources are valuable, and—

    [ He might go on for a while. It's just clear he's trying to juggle several things at once. ]
    vapour: (pic#15709313)

    [personal profile] vapour 2023-01-25 03:38 am (UTC)(link)
    You deserve it all! Congratulations.