week two: mingle

[cyclists]

Week Two
26 in Competition

As the sun rises on Monday morning, all participants will find themselves awakening with a sense of purpose. Regardless of where they slept the night before, they’ll find themselves compelled to return to the main meeting hall first thing in the morning.

Approaching the hall, however, they will find a large, swirling mass grey in color looming near the sakura tree. This swirl cannot be approached just yet, but seems to be locked and waiting for something more.

As the last member of the village enters the hall, they will find Lune and Sol at the head of the room. Though they’re together, it’s Lune who speaks up first this time.

"Good morning, good morning. You've done well to purge the corruption in the previous gateway - allow us to assist with the finishing touches. For the time being, it would appear as though we've been able to locate another. The land might appear a bit familiar to some however... I only advise you watch your step."

When Lune finishes, Sol chimes in from their place at Lune's side.

"The corruption is still out there, and we're going to do all that we can to find a way to contain it. But until then... stick close to others this week. Do your best to protect yourselves and look after each other. Okay?"

The moment participants leave the hall, they will find that the gateway has changed from grey to white, the opening widening enough for multiple people to step through. The Signs will soon take their leave, and all will remain peaceful once more.

The only oddity is that throughout the week, in a noise that extends past the portal but seems to resound even through the village, there will be the occasional, resounding call of a war horn.

In addition, as the week goes on, partners will find ever-growing feelings of anxiety and nervousness dwelling within them the longer they are separated from one another. They will feel compelled to be very close to their partners at all times, and will be on edge if separated for more than an hour by the end of the week. Welcome to surprise codependence at its finest.



Welcome to your week two mingle! As a reminder, murder proposals are open. We will also be hosting a mini-event on Tuesday, so please be on the lookout for that.

In addition, ensure that all of your week one private conversations were reported on the page, and your week two private conversations are reported on that page. If you'll be taking anything from locations, please report that as well.

main navigation.

locations ✧ powers ✧ profiles
private conversations ✧ audiences ✧ faq

Comments

Xion & Val

[omegathree]

[Valvatorez is certainly at home in the battlefield. This whole situation is different than the way the fights work at home, but at the same time- a battle is a battle. An enemy is an enemy. Here it's clear what they need to do.

He's cutting straight through the soldiers without a thought, determined to get all the way to one of them on the horses with the scrolls.

He calls out to someone nearby.]

Do you see it?

[The one that stands out from the others? The one with the aura of malice around them.]

[blackcoats]

[ xion doesn't even verbally respond to valvatorez's call; she just zips through the foot soldiers to go straight for the one he'd pointed out. she isn't completely familiar with swords, but it's similar enough to a keyblade that she's able to wield one with some degree of familiarity.

the blood is different, though. she isn't used to that.

clad once again in the hooded coat she'd discarded upon arrival to better blend in with the existing forces, her small stature allows her to dodge most of the fire coming her way—but one particular soldier manages to stop her in her tracks, grabbing her by the arm and unceremoniously hoisting her up, letting her dangle about a foot off the ground. ]

Let me go!

[omegathree]

[He remembers this girl. The one who pressed the Corrupted just a few days ago. They may not have spoken much, but he'll pivot and slash at the soldier who has her. A quick slash to the soldier's back and then he moves closer to her.]

They won't listen to anything but force.

[A clipped response. Another soldier comes right along and takes a swing at him with a spear.]

[blackcoats]

[ despite her struggling, she lands gracefully on her feet once valvatorez cuts down the soldier holding her and returns the favor by tucking into a ball and rolling behind the spear-wielder, stabbing clean through them before they can skewer him. ]

I noticed... thank you. [ with the pleasantries out of the way, she takes a look around the crowded battlefield with a grim expression, taking particular notice of the maze before turning back to val. ] If we want to take out the general, we should try to lure him away from the rest of the soldiers. He's the only one we need to take down.

[omegathree]

[He's a little too busy to respond when another soldier tries to take a swing at him.

He hops out of the way and just yanks the spear out of his hands before throwing it directly at the general.

If they want the general's attention and they want to get him to the maze, it makes perfect sense to Val to get the guy's attention by attacking him.]

We'll lead him there.

[blackcoats]

[ well. xion's first instinct was to charge right at the general to provoke him, but javelin throwing works too! while val does that, she scurries over to a cache of guns and grabs one each for the both of them. this surely is not a recipe for disaster. ]

We can use these to keep him under fire!

[omegathree]

[He'll throw whatever. Usually he has a prinny to toss, but weapons will work too.

Once she gives the gun over to him, he fumbles with it, but he does aim it the correct direction. It's... too light? He's not sure if these have that many shots in them, but he'll nod and shoot at the general before... also tossing it at the general. There's not that much ammo it in, after all.

Val's gotten all of his attention and he's getting charged. He's running into the maze]

Go!

[blackcoats]

[ with val... doing that... xion holsters her gun for later, should they need to divert his course yet again. she keeps her grip firm on her sword as she takes off with a surprising burst of speed, outpacing val. it ain't her first battlefield, after all. ]

I'll go ahead and clear a path—make sure you keep him on track!

[omegathree]

Understood!

[His own sword is in his hand as he runs along behind her. It's odd to be in this position, if she can clear the path then Val can focus on keeping attention.

Which he mostly does by grabbing the soldiers' weapons and throwing them at the general's head.]

[blackcoats]

[ val is short for "valid," i've just decided

... it's only after she's gained a considerable amount of distance on him that she realizes she. doesn't know his name. oops? she stops in her tracks as this suddenly comes to her—how is she supposed to signal once she's taken care of what's up ahead?

fun fact: sora and sora derivatives aren't exactly known for their forethought.

because while she's distracted, she's ambushed by a soldier hidden amongst the logs of the maze. val's only cue as to what's happened is a surprised yelp of pain further on ahead. ]

[omegathree]

[Val is fairly certain he does know her name, but he's also spent a decent amount of time looking at everyone's profiles.

He hears the sharp yelp, but there's so much distance that the only thing he can do is continue running towards the maze. Now to look for her.

The general is still on his heels.]

Lass?!

[blackcoats]

[ val can probably follow xion's voice to try and pin down her location; she's doing a lot of frantic yelling as she presumably fights back against her assailant, much like how she'd done while hitting both saix and mary during the first trial.

she's. a well-adjusted young girl. i promise.

once he finds her, she's on the ground, looking a little tussled up... but scratches and small spatters of blood on her coat aside, she otherwise seems fine? the still body several feet away from her seems to complete the story. as she pushes herself back up into a kneeling position, she grunts, ]

Sorry... I got a little careless, but I'm fine. [ she looks past him. ] Where's the general?

[omegathree]

[It's easy for both of them to get through the maze, neither one of them have to steer a horse. There's the distinctive noise of a mount trying to get through the maze, but getting slowed down without a wide area to work with.

Val doesn't notice the slice that one of the soldiers managed to land on his leg. He knees down next to her and the injury actually hits him. It's suddenly and unfortunately difficult to get back up.]

He's coming.

[As he tries to get up, stabbing the ground with his sword and pulling himself up with his upper body instead of relying on his injured leg.]

[blackcoats]

[ seeing him struggle puts a frown on her face; even as she regains her footing and holds a hand out to him, she makes a small noise of concern. ]

...You're hurt. You should stay back and let me handle the close combat. I know I don't look like it, but I can handle myself in a fight.

[ again, the trail of bodies leading up to her ambush spot should probably tell him she's not just trying to grandstand. ]

[omegathree]

[He can stand, but it's clear he's going to need his leg treated before he can really do much else. Terrible, to be honest.

The thing is, Val believes what people tell him, and all these dead bodies also makes him think she's telling the truth.

Still, he doesn't like not being involved in a situation he technically caused.]

Be cautious, lass.

[blackcoats]

[ the smile she gives him is small and rueful, but it's there. she's silently thankful he doesn't put up a fight; all of her focus needs to go into the battle. ]

I will. I have people counting on me, after all.

[ with that, she draws her sword and charges at the general, closing the distance between them. it's completely reckless, yes, but it's what she does best. ]

[omegathree]

[Reckless- well, he can't say anything about that. It's the same way Val fights, after all.

He likes this coat very much, but he also likes having a working leg. While she's dealing with the general, Val is trying to bandage himself with what he has on hand. Which means he's pulling his coat off and trying to use it to staunch the bleeding.

Does he need to start carrying around a med kit?]

[blackcoats]

[ it's really too bad that xion loves animals, because she's literally incapable of hurting the general's mount in order to try and slow him down. at least if swift wind is ever a victim, you can count on xion being innocent?

while val is trying to patch himself up, xion tosses her still-unused gun in his direction to provide some cover fire. ]

He's strong, way more than the others...! Is that what the corruption's really capable of?

[omegathree]

[He'll catch the gun and scowl at it. Guns have never been his forte and this also doesn't feel fully loaded. At the same time, he sure would prefer to be useful.

Unlike Xion, he doesn't have any reason not to go for the horse, but he's just got the gun next to him as he presses down on the wound.]

It seems like it. Keep your guard up!

[blackcoats]

[ he doesn't need to tell her twice! with a firm nod, she charges back into the fray—

—but she's immediately knocked aside as the general sweeps at her with the pole of his naginata, sending her flying and collapsing into a ball a few yards away, unmoving.

so much for keeping her guard up. ]

[omegathree]

[Nope, alright. he can't just stand here. He's using his sword as a crutch and moving slowly toward Xion while shooting at the horse, hoping the general will hop down and attack them on more equal ground.

Eventually, he'll make it to her side, putting a hand on her shoulder.]

Lass?

[blackcoats]

Ugh...

[ as she rolls over onto her back, there's a slightly bleeding cut on her forehead from where a rock scraped across her skin. she's about to brush off his concern and assure him that this isn't the worst injury she's gotten by a landslide, when suddenly— ]

—Watch out!

[ it's a split second decision that she ends up having to make, and she chooses the option that means keeping someone else safe. so, she forcefully pushes val with her full body weight, so that he's out of the way of the oncoming general.

and she's right in his path as he jumps off his mount and pins xion under his heavy boots, the darkness heavily exuding from him like a choking miasma. ]

[omegathree]

I-

[He's sturdier than Xion. He would've much rather been the one pinned by the corrupted general. But he isn't, and he's pushed aside and he can't-

It's familiar until it's not. It's Judge Nemo but it isn't. The malice is familiar and somehow completely incorrect.

He can still do something though. Xion's still alive.

His right leg is injured, so he can't get up. Still, his sword has a decent amount of reach. A stab at the general's leg in an effort to get his attention off of Xion.]

[blackcoats]

[ val's sword might sink into the general's calf and draw blood,

but he isn't fast enough to stop him from lifting that naginata,

smirking a twisted grin,

and bringing it down on xion's left eye,

to which she lets out a piercing scream.

he doesn't strike hard enough to kill her; even through the corruption, he has to admire the sheer tenacity of a girl like her jumping to the frontlines the way she did. that respect grows even more when he considers how many of his men she was able to take down... but ah, little girls should know their place, shouldn't they? let that be a lesson to carry with her for the rest of her life.

with xion out of commission, sup val. what's good, buddy. did you want your sword back? ]

[omegathree]

[He snarls, red eyes flaring. Twisting the sword out of the man's leg with the full intent to ruin this man. There's no excuse for that kind of cruelty on the battlefield. No reason to toy with an opponent that way. Xion is a good fighter, a respectable ally in this battle and there was no reason she had to suffer that way.

Not even a demon would be so callous as to ruin someone's sight.

He stands up, heavily relying on his good leg for balance. That man near the gate said something about the scroll.

Instead of going directly for that, Val charges at him, stumbling awkwardly, but using his body weight to push the general down and away from Xion.]