station72 | [mission: hyrypia] then the holy paths we'll travel strew'd with rubies thick as gravel

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[mission: hyrypia] then the holy paths we'll travel strew'd with rubies thick as gravel

CHARACTERS: EVERYONE
WHERE: Hyrypia - The Graze
WHEN: DAY :014 - 016
SUMMARY: Two days of horseback hunting training, followed by the second round of competition.
WARNINGS: Will update as necessary. Need a warning added? PM this account please!

THE GRAZE
DAY :014 - :015
THE DAY FOLLOWING the festivities finds the majority of competitors and spectators still buzzing with the competition’s failures and successes, but there is little time to gloat or moan about the results. By the time the sun has risen over the graze there's a new announcement: there will be two days of additional training followed by another day of competition. Today and tomorrow will be dedicated to learning skills vital to the hunt.

0. TRAINING
THE TRAINING FIELD has become familiar, but the decor has changed- as have the the teachers. Unlike the previous riding and herding lessons which featured ropes and hooks, today's syllabus includes a series of more dangerous tools. The short spears that line the racks may be dulled but they still look painful, and the speed at which they're hurled from the intricately carved Sarvat - the traditional spear throwers - is intimidating.

At first glance, the slings of woven and stained Gryer leather are less impressive-- but the different ammo that can be loaded in them proves interesting: a bio-luminescent tagging liquid that stains the targets that it hits and leaves distinct trails, hard metal weights, and carefully handled poison globes.

Over the next day the envoys are are trained to use the weapons from Elinback in addition to being schooled in a number of simple traps and snares that leave little confusion as to the nature of the next challenge events...

THE GRAZE &
THE MINIATURE FINGER MAZE
DAY :016

I. THE CHASE
THE HERD of technomanced automaton Gryer sits idle in the knee-high silvery grass of the Graze. They're nothing like the Elin (who exhibit all the traits of live animals); these automatons seem to know only two basic concepts: don't run, and run. Right now they're practicing the former as the competing riders are divided into large, mixed hunting parties. Once the parties have been formed, they take turns taking their runs at the herd. Among the herd of thirty, four Gryer have been painted a brilliant sapphire. To strike one down requires either two metal weights to the head, a spear to the neck piece, or two spears to its midsection.

When the hunting parties take off so do the automaton Gryer. And they're fast, moving as of one mind - a school of mechanical fish through a sea of silver grass. It'll take cleverness, skill and a bit of daring riding to either cut the targets free of the herd or go crashing through among the running Gryer to strike a target down among its brainless brothers and sisters. Once struck enough times or in the right place, the sapphire Gryer will lose power and drive spectacularly into the earth.

The attentive audience (many of them armed with an array of binoculars from their personal belongings) might cheer when appropriate, but due to the distance at which much of the action takes place most of the observation is spent eating, drinking, and enjoying the shockingly pleasant weather.

II. THE ~~75th HUNGER GAMES~~ PURSUIT
THE BREEZE GROANS through the shadowy pocket of the canyon system, whistling tiredly through the coral structures - along narrow bridges and between tight passages. Familiar to anyone who competed in the individual race on Day :013, this shadowy miniature canyon is crawling with automated creatures to 'kill.' The only problem? Beating everyone else to one of them. With the blare of that now-familiar horn, the hunters mounted on their Elin take off into the canyon and rapidly splinter into disparate groups or simply go off on their own into the tangle. It doesn't take long at all to lose sight of other riders, to begin to feel completely alone in the low light of early evening. Mist rises from the canyon floor and the breeze moans ominously through the pockmarked coral structures.

It'll take more cleverness and accuracy than high speed riding skill to claim a prize here. But best work quickly and quietly to avoid having your target poached out from under your nose…

III. THE AFTERMATH
THE SECOND CHALLENGE ENDS with a long, mournful cry of the now-familiar horn. All of the possible targets have been captured and to the victors go the spoils in the form of the accumulated scores, carefully kept by the judges. The losers are left empty handed-- at least until the spectators and competitors alike have made it back to the tent encampment. Then their hands are filled with the same liquor and a new spread of simple, filling, and delicious dishes expertly prepared by the servants of the manor.

There’s some ceremony to it - the meat they are eating is the same that they would have served if their hunt had been for something more than machines. However, mostly this seems to be a chance to relax sore muscles. That's aided by the addition of several leather-enclosed tents raised earlier in the day. Once the sun sets, these tents are filled with hot, relaxing steam and lined with benches: saunas! ...which might provide some comfort for anyone not stuck wearing a heavy robe. :(

((OOC Notes: This log covers the two days of mounted combat/hunting skills training and the competition which follows. You can find a full breakdown of the events/a place for mini-event specific questions HERE. Sign-ups will remain open until the next event log for the finale goes live, however going forward please make sure to either join the individual event or have a full team selected for the team events. Please be aware that signing up late won't give you extra time to finish your thread to qualify for the finale event.

Have more generalized questions? Drop them on the MISSION: HYRYPIA OOC POST or get in touch with us on the Mod Contact page.))

NAVIGATION • GAME CALENDAR • MISSION: HYRYPIA • FAQ • MOD CONTACT • GLOSSARY

( CODE BY WHAMBAM )

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( Flatterer! Does that work on everyone? )

[ She bets it does, when it works like a charm on her. Hoods and blindness notwithstanding, her delight is palpable. Out of all things, she prefers to be praised for her strength and bravery, because compliments on beauty is cheap. ]

( It's Katsuragi. )

[ It is the name she has used for all her dealings with the Rabadoceans. Distant enough to keep her aware of the pretense, familiar enough that she won't forget. It is the name that echoes in her head like a feral memory. It is the name that hangs around her neck. A yoke. When he links their arms together, she holds him most firmly, as if he has now become the treasure she would most hate to see slip through her fingers. ]

( But you should call me Misato. Everyone does. And who are you, priest? )

[ Aloy takes her time once she's mounted, checking that her spears are secure, but someplace that she can retrieve them without much trouble. That she's firmly in the saddle, that the Elin isn't going anywhere without her say so. Then she finally looks at Asuka. ]

You're right on that one. Let's go.

[ She spurs her Elin into a trot out towards the practice area, Aloy looks comfortable and casual astride her mount. ]

It's going to be fast and confusing. You're going to be excited. And it won't be easy. You're going to have to control the Elin at a gallop and still be able to launch a spear into your target.

[ She's getting used to the presence of Gil in her mind, in a way she very much isn't with either of their other broodmates. Perhaps it's because he's the only one who she's at all friendly with, the only one who has made any sort of effort to see her as anything but a monster or an unwanted burden of these circumstances they've found themselves in. ]

( Gil, I'm sorry. I don't-- Is it really bothering you that much? )

[ Her instinct is to decline his offer and leave no room to argue, but... If he's being affected by her cravings, how can she say no and continue to put him through this? How is that in any way fair to him? ]

[ At first, Bellamy attributes the gnawing hunger to Seviilia. This would not be the first time her craving for sustenance boiled over and leaked along the links binding each person in the Nest to each other. But the accompanying chill doesn't follow, and as the night wears on, Bellamy can recognize the difference. It's not Seviilia.

Elena's new. She's miserable, and she's attached to Damon in some way. Her entry into the Nest had been heralded by squalor. Bellamy's dislike of Damon doesn't quite extend to Elena. It's hard to hold the same mistrust when she's sitting alone, radiating misery and the sting of blood. In Bellamy's mind, the taste of blood in the back of his mouth is a punctuation at the end of a memory: fists cracking against his face, pain blurring one strike into another, blood streaming down his face. The impression of the beating lingers around the edge of his consciousness as he takes the seat across from her. ]

( Is this the best place for you to be? )

[ Miserable is putting it lightly. She's grieving the life she's lost, quite literally, and struggling with both becoming a vampire and everything to do with the Nest and this complex mission. It's the perfect storm to turn her life completely on end -- if Damon weren't here, she would certainly have tried to end this sham of a life by now. But he is here, he's doing his best to help her, and she can't let him down. ]

( Maybe not, but I have to get used to this. I need to learn control or I'll kill someone. )

[ And then all their lives would be in jeopardy. It's the other piece of the puzzle keeping her together, forcing her to get out of bed each day and keep trying despite how much it hurts. A pain deeper than the impression she receives from her connection to Bellamy, and she almost wishes someone would strike her like that. At least then she'd have something to focus on besides the need to sink her teeth into someone's skin. ]

(Let's just say my old habits and your new ones aren't a good mix.)

[ Blood and alcohol, not a good mix at all. If he were in the dining tent still, he wouldn't have been able to stay like she does. Not with her there and adding to his own cravings, especially while she sips on what he cannot allow himself to have again. Even from where he lays in the sleeping tents, he can feel a cold sweat beginning to form at the edges of his brows. It's distracting him from practicing and keeping him from sleep, and it isn't all because of her. He's actually willing to shoulder more of the blame. ]

(Though it's not your fault, my dear. It is what I get for wasting half a century of life deep in the bottle.)

[ There's a bitter tang of self loathing with the thought - a side he's not proud to show her, but it has to be done. They have to understand their mutual cravings and natures. ]

[ Oh. A deep sense of guilt settles in Elena's chest, heavy and cloying and making it difficult to breathe. While she's trying to overcome her cravings, she's only fueling his own with her coping mechanism and making things so much worse. But what else is she supposed to do? ]

( I'm so sorry. You wouldn't be dealing with this right now if it weren't for me. )

[ Because of course it's her fault. Everything is her fault, it always is, regardless of what Damon says. If she'd just let herself die instead of choosing to transition, then she wouldn't be burdening the brood, the entire Nest like this. ]

[ That sense of guilt is what he was hoping to avoid, and he sighs from where he is as it weighs on her as heavily as it does him. Still he remains patient, that sigh shifting into a deep and grounding breath - in, out. ]

(Yes, I would be. I've been like this since they started pouring wine to toast the victors hours ago.)

[ He did just say it's not her fault - he knows his weakness by now. Facing it again while the other hosts drink is a new and cruel temptation to add, but he's managed to stay away by banishing himself from dining tent with the help a few sympathetic hosts. He won't deny that her craving for blood is making it worse, but isn't it the same for her? His craving for alcohol is surely playing a part in making her miserable too. ]

(Please, just... come here when you are finished. Take your time, don't rush yourself or worry. I've handled this before.)

[ Poorly and with help, but there is nothing around but water. He'll be alright waiting. ]

Edited 2017-09-12 18:22 (UTC)

[ His craving for alcohol is something she's hardly noticed, truthfully, because it's one that she's able to easily sate. Alcohol has very little effect on her now, her body processing the drink faster than she's imbibing, though she knows that if she put effort into it she could get drunk for a while. It's not something she's keen to do though; letting go of what control she has is a very bad idea right now.

She pushes aside her guilt and tries to see things from his perspective. He's suffering enough from all the alcohol around him, shouldn't she give in and do what she has to in order to provide a little relief from her own issues? ]

( Alright. I'll... be there soon. Can I bring you anything? Have you had anything to eat? )

[ If he is going to donate his blood, he'll need something to help replenish what's lost. ]

[ Beneath the layers of his veil, Bellamy's lips twitch in a wry smile. Do or die. That's not a particularly new concept either, though Elena's admission is another wrinkle of worry in an already fraught mission. ]

( We wouldn't let you kill someone. )

[ It is still difficult for Bellamy to frame the idea of being so connected to the other members of the Nest as a positive, but the benefit can't be denied after two missions where it had saved his life. The bonds are useful. They could be useful for Elena, if she were afraid of what could happened.

Unacknowledged is the truth that Lakshmi would probably incapacitate Elena and herself in the process, trying to kill her before she could harm someone else. ]

( How did you handle it before? )

[ The concept of being so newly turned doesn't register to Bellamy. Maybe if he were still newly plunged into the Nest, he'd have tripped over that knowledge accidentally. But a few months later, and he's made some headway in keeping his mind contained. His emotions still burn too strongly, but at the least he can keep from tripping his way into Elena's mind on top of subjecting her to everything he's feeling. ]

[ Would they really be able to stop her? It's a hopeful thought, but she's seen vampires kill in seconds, snapping necks and draining their victims dry with little to no regard for anyone who stood in their way. If they can stop her, though... well, she'd have a little comfort in her misery, at least. She wouldn't be able to survive it if she hurt someone like that.

The fact that Bellamy doesn't know that she's a only recently turned takes her by surprise, and does a good job of getting her a few inches out of her hole of despair. There's more to all of this than her wallowing; he has his own things he's dealing with. ]

( I didn't. I'd only just finished my transition when I was-- brought here. It hadn't even been an hour. )

[ Elena's been doing her best to work with Sam every chance she gets, keeping her thoughts and emotions as contained as she's able with the help of the techniques and training he teaches her. Everything is buried at the bottom of the ocean of her mind, an ocean that becomes the lake she drowned in whenever her thoughts turn darkest. The last thing the rest of them need is to be haunted by the memories of her deaths, or the deaths of nearly every member of her family. They don't need to know how desperately she misses her little brother, or how worried she is for him now that Jer's all alone. But sometimes she can't help it and those things drift up to the surface, caught in the currents of the storms of her nightmares. ]

There's more?!

[ His exclamation can't be helped, even when he knows there are more colors to come and knows other envoys could be around and watching. From an outsider's perspective, it must look like gravity is increasing on him as he leans more and more on his staff and poor Pidge to remain upright.

Internally, he's suffering in the best way he ever could've imagined. If he were coherent enough to remember it, this is better than combining drugs and music. The stunning green shifts to blue, and it's easy blend confronts him with a whole new set of emotions. He's calm, he's wild, he's at peace, he wants to leap with happiness and dive deep into this all encompassing color. The mixture of blue and green calls the sea and all her contradictions to mind, and again music swells within him like high tide. ]

(Blue!! It's incredible! It's so like the other, yet so different! It's... how do you find words that adequately describe these?!)

Edited 2017-09-12 21:05 (UTC)

[ He understands, and that surprises and comforts her now just as much as it did that day on the trail. Of all the things to happen here, finding someone who truly understands the struggle she's going through... isn't something she'd ever expected. Elena's quiet for a moment, thinking over the offer and the options laid out before her, and then she nods to herself. ]

( Thank you, Shiro. I'd appreciate that. )

[ Because no, she won't hurt him. She'd never let herself. ]

[ Trauma plays out differently over each connection. Bellamy picks up the flickers of pain skipping along the surface of her mind as she speaks, feels them snagging against his own. Bellamy has never fallen into deep water. He has nothing comparable to the sense of drowning that lurks in the gaps between her words. But the way she misses her brother—

Jeremy hooks into Bellamy's memories of Octavia and tangles. She is never far from Bellamy's mind. He turns his head, looking at the throng of celebrating factions before he answers her. ]

( So you're learning everything here, in the middle of this mission. )

[ Maybe drowning was apt. This is essentially being chucked into the deep end in every sense of the word.

He thinks again about what Murphy had said, about how Cathaway and Prince should have kept the four new hatchlings on the ship rather than toss them into the mission. Bellamy can't say that idea is wrong, really. ]

( Did you want this? )

[ To wake here, to become a vampire, the questions may as well be interchangeable. ]

[ The urge to reach for him again presents itself. As Gildor staggers, Bellamy's immediate thought is to worry about him falling. But he doesn't. Bellamy has the sense that he should keep him talking, distract him and allow him to put some distance between himself and the revelry sealed away behind the walls of the tent. ]

You aren't troubling me.

[ And it was impossible not to be troubled by other members of the Nest. Bellamy's walls are far from impermeable. He is bothered, whether he wants to be or not. ]

Is it always like that, when someone hands you a drink?

[ At least half the purpose of this pilgrimage seemed to be about eating and drinking together. It might pose a problem, if Gildor was tormented by it each time. ]

[ His question is a loaded one, whether he realizes it or not. How many hours has she spent already agonizing over the decisions she'd made, analyzing the reasons behind every word and action that had brought her to this point in her life. The things she'd wanted a year ago are so different from the things she'd wanted two weeks ago, and miles away from what she wants now. What that is... is hard to tell, but she knows it's different. That she is different. ]

( I didn't want to be a vampire. I never did, even though I was in love with one. I wanted to grow up, have a family, live my life. And when I died, I-- I was ready to die. I'd accepted it. And then I woke up in transition, and I had to live. So I made a choice. And then I made another and now I'm here. I just wanted to keep the people I love safe. I couldn't bear to lose anyone else. )

[ So no, she didn't want this. Any of it. To be a vampire, to be connected to someone who despises her for what she is instead of who. To be so far away from Jeremy and Stefan and Bonnie and Caroline, to not know if she'll ever see them again. She doesn't want this, but there's no way to stop it except for the one that Damon would never let her take. She's still not sure whether she's grateful to him for that. ]

[To be honest, it's the last thing he expected, too. There are people here he's resonated with. Like Bucky. And it occurs to him maybe Elena would benefit from meeting him too. Just... to know she's really not alone.]

[He pauses where he was walking, waiting for her to join him.]

(No problem. I'm not a fan of crowded parties, either.)

[Even if she does lose herself, he's confident nothing would go wrong. He may have one good arm, but -- it tends to pack a mean right hook.]

[ It's like that with Kaji and Misato both, although at least Kaji has the kindness (or foolishness, maybe) to not completely dismiss her out of her hand and treat her as little more than a fixture in the room. Better than being treated as nothing. Better than apathy. She takes a breath, gaze dropping away. How does she deal with this? He won't take the bait and he won't answer the question. She wants to be happy he's here, but it feels hollow. Like there's another shoe waiting to drop. She can't ever be quite comfortable around him, because there's the chance that this is going to end up as nothing or just another distraction. ]

Do you care?

[ It's quiet and it's direct. She wants to believe. She desperately, horribly wants him to actually care. She knows that he's never going to love her, there's never going to be a romance. But she still craves his approval. ]

It wasn't me.

[ It sounds selfish and it really is. It's the cry of someone who wants attention, who wants respect, who wants so much and a part of her still sees stacking up victories as the way to do that, even if she knows deep down that the only way to climb out of the hole she's in is to drag herself. ]

I failed.

[ She could make excuses or push the blame on someone else and she'd like to, but it was an individual competition. And she knows that ultimately it does come down to her performance. ]

I shouldn't have.

[ She dodges a few celebrating dignitaries and is palpably relieved when she reaches Shiro's side, letting loose a heavy sigh. ]

( I was used to crowded parties at home. But now... It's just too much. )

[ It's so strange to think back to all the town functions she used to participate in. The Miss Mystic Falls pageant, the founding families parties, the dances at school. Just thinking about them now makes her weary, and she's glad that this is at least offering her a reprieve from those social engagements. ]

[When she appears, he reaches out to try and steady her with his good hand. Slowly, though, so she can read the intent in the gesture. So she can move if she wants, or needs to.]

[There's a faint, sympathetic smile, under his disguise.]

(The last few parties I've been to haven't ended well. Kind of makes me gunshy anymore.)

[The one at the castle, and the one here, on Concordia. At least no one had died in the second one.]

( Ugh then what's the pooooint? )

(Of... what, exactly?)

(Not always.)

[ There are a few here he doubt it would work on. Rust, Rust, and... alright maybe just one. ]

(Gildor Helyanwe. And I'm not a priest, but I did spend the last half-decade living with a group of them in a temple. You could say I'm overly prepared to play the part.

I'm actually a bard. Sort of a warlock-musician.)

[ He taps knocks a rock away from their path before she can step on it, as they make their way back to towards the Elin's paddock. If Misato is competing, she'll need to select her mount and ride off soon. ]

(Oh don't worry, I'll be... actually... no I didn't have much.)

[ He won't fall into the trap of 'I'm fine' to keep others from worrying when it's a lie. Technically, the cravings aside, he is fine for now. Considering he'll be losing some blood soon, a proper dinner would be best. ]

(If you don't mind bringing something back, I'll eat anything that doesn't contain meat or dairy. Those make me quite ill.)

[ Fortunately their hosts have been providing plenty he can eat, which isn't common for him back home. He'd be gaining weight if he could only handle being in the dining tents for longer. ]

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[mission: hyrypia] then the holy paths we'll travel strew'd with rubies thick as gravel

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