southern mission

[promittere]

CALANDO OF WITHERING AMBER

It's mid-morning, with the sun rising high into a bright, cloudless sky, that Tatara summons Bruno, Comet, Maya, Yodarha, and Joyous Day to the manor elevator. It's urgent, he tells them with that soft smile on his face, and your services are needed.

When you arrive at the elevator, standing there to greet you is a young man, finely dressed and with kind eyes; that his mop of brown hair is slightly unkempt is not the only giveaway that he's incredibly stressed. He stands with his shoulders tensed, and almost flinches when he sees you.

"It's...a pleasure," he begins, hesitant at first. But when he inhales, squares his shoulders, he finally looks more like a government official than a meek boy. "My name is Cock Robin, and I am a secretary from the Central castle. On behalf of the minister of arcane management, there's an urgent request for you."

From his thick folder, he pulls out one paper—worn and handwritten. He glances it over briefly before handing it to Joyous Day.

"A town in the southern part of the Southern Country has been having problems with its crops. It seems there's some sort of...sickness that's taken hold of the plants that's spreading rapidly, and they can't seem to find a cure. The only thing they haven't tried is magic. That's where you come in.

"Find the source of the sickness and neutralize it before it destroys their crops. The South is already inhospitable as it is. I can't imagine how they'd fare if they lost a food source. And, personally..." he glances out the window, at the moon fading in the morning sun. "...I have a really, really awful feeling about this. I don't think this is going to be a regular request."

OOC NOTES

Welcome, Southern wizards (and witch), to your mission!

Missions are mod-guided events that are partial CYOA, partial play-by-post instances. In general, you are free to interact with a scene as you please, and the mod will tell you how the scene reacts as a consequence of your actions. Some scenes will allow for more flexible threading, such as exploration or conversation, while some scenes will require strict turn order to preserve rounds, such as combat or other time-sensitive conflict. The mod will inform you if strict turn order is required at the start of a scene. Regardless, always be sure to bold any important actions you take.

This mission has been specifically tailored to Southern disposition, attitudes, and magic. If you find yourself struggling to tackle a situation, refresh yourself on the description of the South on the locations page, and make sure to confer with your teammates too! But you've been assigned South—we don't need to remind you of that, do we?

As a bonus, here's your theme music!

You will have until 11:59 AM EDT on Saturday, April 20 to reach a conclusion for this mission. Good luck!

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Comments

[serenesinker]

[Yodarha unsheathes one of his blades and calls his focus into the other. Clanging them together and imagining his weapons never dulling, he utters his incantation:]

Ougi! Reinforce!

[A green grid-like pattern envelops his weapons with a bright glow. Hopefully this should help keep them from breaking while slicing these vines.

With quick movement, he leaps forward and rapidly whirls his swords at the living plant matter, doing his best to keep them away from his allies while they do the hard part.]

[jorunna]

[ A handful of salt is fine, and they promised to use it well. It's kind of distressing to see it spread the next day, but that makes this urgent and something they should do as soon as possible, before the Southern Country falls more ill and begins to starve from the loss of their wheat.

'Sup ugly vines. Slimy tendrils. Whatever you are. As well as the unpleasant feeling of anxiety dread. Comet remembers it from when they flew over, particularly the latter. ]

You won't deter us. Mare Imbrium

[ Two can provide support. Yodarha can provide something physical, Comet will try to ward off the malignant aura for the wizards. Their focus taken from their pocket and held in their clasped hands, they clasp their hands in prayer.

The feeling that covers everyone like a light blanket over their shoulders tries to be the opposite of what they had felt last time. Something warm and encouraging, like a summer morning. Hopefully it can drive off the cold too. ]

[positivize]

[As they push closer to the center and Yodarha does his job as the group’s vanguard and Comet casts their protective spell, Maya will try to provide additional support.]

Alright, it’s whoop-ass time! Vivere è sognare!

[Attempt number one here is a small burst of light magic aimed at the vines beyond Yodarha, with the hopes that it’ll help clear the way. The intent is that it’ll either disintegrate the vines if they’re undead or purify them from the corrupted magic, but who knows how it’ll go with mutated vines.]

[fallingsand]

[ Comet might think a handful is enough but Bruno sure wishes they had more. Oh well, it means he'll have to be careful about placement. Once they had given them the salt, he had done his best to imbue it with magic — at least, he hoped so — to ward off evil, corruption, bad spirits, the whole kit and caboodle.

While the rest either fight off vines or play music and pray, he'll begin forging a way forward closer to the center and placing the salt in the inner ring of corrupted ground. If Day's music does nothing else, it does manage to keep Bruno calm so that he doesn't cringe and panic every time something moves or seems dangerous. ]

[troublereduction]

[ It should be said that if nothing else, they had very nice mood music along the journey that almost didn't fit where they were heading; the song Day plays is calm and soothing, more like a ballad. With all the other magic working to protect them, it helps them stay clear-headed as they press into the field. As long as they remember their purpose, even the looming anxiety feels less oppressive and more manageable.

The tune does get interrupted for a moment when Day has to dodge a vine, but he immediately picks it back up like nothing happened (or he hopes it seems that way). He'll be focusing on playing to keep the dread from overwhelming everyone, supporting Comet's own spell. ]

[promittere]

[ As the group presses deeper and deeper into the field, what would have been oppressive dread is quickly soothed by Comet's protective aura and Day's soothing music.

Yodarha is quick to snap down any vines that so much as look in his direction, and Maya's blast collides with the mutated wheat stalks with force. As the light hits, they fizzle and fall limp, and soon look like nothing more than extra appendages to the plant. It seems as thought the magic has quelled the infecting corruption, but it's very likely to be re-corrupted if they do not deal with the cause soon.

Vines lash out, but most scarcely scratch the Southern wizards. Yodarha, Comet, and Maya all slip past with ease. But not all are so lucky—one manages to whip out and latch onto Bruno's leg (17), and another catches Day's bow arm as he draws out a note (12). Despite how fragile they are, they have a strong grip—the vines will not let them move forward. ]

[fallingsand]

[ Haha, well then, so much for Day's music keeping Bruno calm. ]

The salt does nothing!

[ BETRAYAL. Also he is lacking in a) a weapon or b) any consideration in defending himself violently apart from attempting to kick the vine off with his free foot as he begins to panic. Kick, kick, kick it! Kick the vine (with a 9)! ]

[troublereduction]

[ It was nice while it lasted...

Day is going to apologize later for handling this fiddle so roughly, gods forbid he ends up breaking it, but in one practised movement he loosens his grip on it so that he can catch it with his arm, freeing up his hand.

Instead of casting magic or doing anything actually smart, he's going to punch the vine that's caught his arm (19). ]

[serenesinker]

[Uh oh! Yodarha's friends are getting attacked by wayward plants! With his attention split, he sprints over to try and help Day out... but is tripped by a smaller vine he didn't manage to see. (3)]

Oof!

[positivize]

[Well damn, there was no way this was going to be that easy, huh. Since both Bruno and Day seem like they have things handled with their respective vines, Maya is going to try and continue to clear the path ahead since poor Yodarha took a spill there.

Anyways we’re going full Pokémon logic here but since these wiggly assholes are trying to trip them up, she’s going to try and go for an ice spell to freeze a path through the vines so they’re hopefully immobilized enough that people can just step on them with a nice crunch. Apparently this goes well (20!?) but I’ll leave it to mod discretion when it comes to how far this can get them to the center because how does power scaling work help]

[promittere]

[The vines thrash and continue striking out at the wizards, landing a few stinging hits—Bruno and Day are able to pull themselves free, at least, managing to overpower the vines. The punching and kicking doesn't seem to have done any damage to the vines, and they simply wrap themselves around them once again—

Or they would, if not for the layer of frost that covers them from Maya's spell. She can tell the ice won't keep them for long, not with the spring sun shining above them, but the path does extend several feet in front of them, almost reaching the center.]

[jorunna]

[ Comet will pull ahead then! Not that it's really a race against his fellow south wizards and witch but more so against the frosted vines. ]

Makes sense ice works well in them... Good job, Maya!

[ They're taking their (11) roll with them until the mods make me roll again, wheee—

Also materializing a (borrowed) shovel in their hands to work a little ahead. ]

[positivize]

Thanks, Comet-kun! I don't think it'll last long though, so we'll all have to make a break for it!

[Which means she's just going to go to cast a buff to raise everyone's agility first. Her luck continues to hold somewhat with a 15, so hopefully that will make it easier for everyone to get from point A to B and evade any stray vines that may still be active.]

[serenesinker]

[Yodarha immediately jumps to his feet with the increased agility granted by Maya.]

Ooooh, I feel like a hurricane of blades is comin'!

[A barrage of dashes and slashes makes its way around the field, attacking any wayward vines that dare reach out toward Yoda's allies. (12)]

[promittere]

[Yodarha is able to clear quite a path for everyone, with the agility enhancing the skill he already has. Working together, they can pass through the rest of the vines to the very center of the circle...

There is a palpable tension in the air, a heaviness that feels like it's pressing against their skin. It feels almost like something is eating away at their protective magics from earlier, but the protection keeps it from eating away at them. At least they don't have to worry about the vines anymore, as there is no plant life in the center of the circle—no life at all, it seems, as even the dirt itself seems to have been drained, it crumbling down towards something half-buried in the dirt.

It's not glowing in the light of day, but Comet can easily recognize it as what they saw last night when they flew over the field. It seems to pulse with magic, resonating with something, and that resonance seems to be fighting against their very presence.]

[fallingsand]

[ Bruno's nerve isn't going to recover from the vine attack, regardless of having fought it off or not.

With the salt having proven pointless, he'll instead clasp his focus in his hands and take over where Comet left off on trying to shore up the protections against the corruption radiating from the center of the circle. He mutters his own prayers alongside his incantation, bidding the menacing aura to go away, go away, and let them heal the land. Other than that, he can only drag himself along towards the center, hunched in on himself, eyes wide with fear. ]

[troublereduction]

[ While they're here, Day has to wonder if this is what dealing with the Wyld feels like back home. At the very least, this sensation of an intangible force that would change whatever it touches sounds a lot like it. At this point he's given up on playing music for his magic, quietly murmuring his spell to add to their protection. May the spirits let them dodge misfortune, or in this case, unwanted change. ]

Comet, can I borrow the shovel? [ He gets the feeling they'll want to dig it out quick, and he is the most built person here. ]

[jorunna]

Sure thing.

[ He holds out the shovel for Day to take, then swapping the fiddle from him so that he has free hands to dig. ]

[positivize]

So this is the cause...?

[She's hoping that it being half-buried doesn't mean it actually extends deeper into the ground than expected, but only one way to find out. With Day taking the reins with the shovel and the others already maintaining the protective blanket around them, Maya's going to try and see if she can dispel even a little bit of the corrupted magic coming from the object while they work at digging it out. She'll attempt something similar to what she did with one of the patients back in town, just trying to clear the corruption rather than something more offensive.]

[serenesinker]

[Yodarha speeds over, sheathing his normal sword but holding his focus just in case more spells need casting.]

Whoo! Okay, I think I bought us enough time to finish this off once and for all! Thanks for the boost, by the way.

[promittere]

[This close, they can tell it's half-buried, but in a way that's from a heavy impact. It's a pale white color and looks like some sort of stone.

Maya's attempts to cleanse the corruption don't do much, but she gets the feeling that it's because alone, she's not powerful enough, not that it's entirely impossible to cleanse the object in the ground.]

[troublereduction]

...Looks like it fell here?

[ Is this a meteor or something. Like did the heavens end up messing with them, in a manner of speaking.

He's going to dry digging it up, but first: ]

Amor manet.

[ A spell to try and protect this poor shovel that has to get close to this thing. ]

[positivize]

[There's a smile and nod at Yodarha when he comes running over.]

We couldn't have made it this far without you too, Yodarha-san. Grazie!

[Honestly though, all of them are doing their part, and she earnestly believes the only reason this has been going relatively smoothly is because they've been doing their best to support each other, one action at a time. So it's not much of a surprise that she can't do this alone--this endeavor has always been a team effort.]

Guys, I think we can purify this, but we'll all have to work together at it!

[Since Day is working at digging it up, she'll focus on shoring up protections with the rest of them for now though, just to make sure that they can unearth it before attempting anything.]

[fallingsand]

[ Bruno's still just trying to ward off the bad vibes, man (and woman and nonbinary teenager), pushing his magic at it feebly. He has no idea how this is more difficult than healing someone, though perhaps, just perhaps, it's due to the corruption in the farmers not actively fighting back, unlike here.

When Maya exclaims that they need to work together, there's only doubt from the poor lil' guy over here. They could do it without him... he wasn't needed here... ]

A-are you sure? But how?

[serenesinker]

By pushin' our magic at it together of course!

[Yodarha holds his focus high up in the air - the tip of the blade is at chest level for pretty much everyone else due to a slight height deficiency.]

Everyone gather 'round real close and put your focuses near one another's! Then we can try to blast a super spell at the thing!