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

[onemind]

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 )

Comments

[redheadcarrier]

[ 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. ]

[ryohji]

As much as I should.

[ beneath the veil he wears a frown as though he were addressing an intelligent, but inexperienced grandchild. old lang syne are the days where asuka would simply take a level of care for granted, against all signals (and his categorical rebuffs) indicating otherwise, and behave accordingly. as if she could not conceive of a world where he didn't care for her the way she imagined, a world where he didn't locate her at the center of his sprawling universe, no matter how many missed calls he collected on his phone. exaggeration was easy to ignore. he'd built his entire career off it. but this, this admission of (defeat? uncertainty?) could not be ignored so easily. if only she'd realized this sooner. ]

I won't explain myself again, Asuka. The preoccupation, it hurts you more than it hurts me.

[redheadcarrier]

[ Before she used to believe and lie to herelf because it was better than thinking that her doorway to the world of adulthood wanted nothing to do with her. Lying to herself made her feel better. It kept up the self-inflicted illusion that she was fine, that everything was fine, as long as she just did what was asked of her. Now it's all different and her insecurity is on display, now more than ever. She knows about it. Wants to fix it.

But it's not that easy.

Her shoulders tighten at the reprimand and she glances away, her veiled and cloaked head turning sharply. ]

I just-

[ The words catch in her throat. Is she considering apologizing to him? She shouldn't focus on him. He's supposed to be dead. And trying to rekindle some sort of spark when it was never there in the first place is ridiculous. Besides. He'd held her. He'd done more for her since his arrival than he ever had at home. "Home". ]

...I keep talking to Misato. She doesn't want anything to do with me.

[ She sounds bitter. And there's the implied apology. I think you're the same and I'm frightened. ]

[ryohji]

Forget about her.

[ his voice isn't raised, but it carries just as much severity.

this sounds easy in theory. at first glance, there was nothing particularly spectacular about misato. she was possessed of a handful of remarkable character traits, sure, but nothing to suggest she was anyone demanding special treatment. at the end of the day she passed as an average japanese women, no better or worse than the rest of them. men, women, and children were largely indifferent when she walked down the street. she didn't have a pack of men, woman, and children vying for her attention whenever she entered a convenience store.

but he knew, one did not just 'forget' katsuragi misato so easily, try as they might. and he tried, for eight years he tried. he can only hope asuka has better luck. it's not as if she was weighed down by the cumber of love. ]

Katsuragi's no longer your commanding officer. And she's not capable of being anyone else, as far as her relationship with you is concerned. So there's no need for you to suffer under her anymore.

[redheadcarrier]

[ A part of her wants to retort that he hasn't forgotten about Misato, but another, quieter part of her knows that would be cruel. Very cruel. She's not sure she wants to go that far yet. That's a step down a road that could end badly - even if she might get momentary satisfaction from seeing him react. He's echoing other advice she's heard, though. Forget Misato. Disregard her. She should, honestly, but it's hard to think of her as being out of her life.

Maybe it would be better if she forgot about Misato. ]

I... know that.

[ Which doesn't make it easy. ]

I just... I just want her to acknowledge what she did.

[ She leaves whatever it is that Misato did unsaid. They both know. ]

[ryohji]

[ ah. she's fallen into that trap. the thought that somehow, she can obtain misato's penance by emphasizing all the ways misato has wronged her. her miscalculation coheres well. it's only reasonable to expect someone to apologize once their mistakes have been exposed in such a way as to remove any avenue for plausible deniability. and it works, for some people.

for most people. but, there was always a but, where misato is concerned. ]

You want to make her do something she isn't ready to do. Something she may never do. Because wanting, and trying the way you are, will only hurt you the longer you keep this up.

[ wait for me.

that's what she said to him. the memory still fresh, the disappointment that accompanies so hot off the oven as to easily blister unprotected hands. his unguarded heart. in some areas, psychopaths had it made. ]

Asuka, take it from someone who knows. It's useless.

[redheadcarrier]

[ It's an easy trap to fall into, to be fair. Especially for a girl who's still young, who's still struggling with her own sense of worth and self-identity. Who has her share of righteous anger. Why shouldn't she be forced to apologize if her crimes are laid bare? Isn't that how things are supposed to work?

Kaji's words aren't exactly what she wants to hear, but it's the same thing she's heard from other people. It's the same thing she should be learning. But moving on is never easy, especially when the unknown is so terrifying. What happens if she lets go? Without that part of her to hold onto, will she lose the footing she's struggled to scrape out for herself here?

Does she prefer the pain she knows and can rely on to an uncertain future? ]

That's not fair.

[ She says that like life was ever fair. She knows it isn't and never will be, but a part of her still wants to believe in the idea that if she does the right things, says the right words, she'll unlock the code that will give her some sort of closure.

She can feel the pain that rolls off of him when they talk about Misato. And she has some of her own to give back. There's a twinge of sympathy for him underneath her own tangled mess of emotions. She does care about him. Even if she does tend to be a selfish girl. ]

I mean-

[ She glances away, veil shifting and she resists the urge to draw a hand across her eyes. ]

I guess I'll deal with it. I don't really have a choice, huh?

[ But the pain is there. The hurt. But maybe she will stop. Should stop. ]

[ryohji]

[ life isn't fair. that's not something that bears verbalizing, though. if asuka had been paying any attention to the last year she'd have come to the same conclusion, as much as she likes to pretend otherwise. a more illuminating statement, not quite a far cry from the original but mattering much for one detail: ]

That's the life we choose every day.

[ because she did have a choice. it's a choice they both choose to renew on a per diem basis, though their reasons differ drastically. but he knows when to retire a point of contention before it mushrooms out of control. similar conversations with asuka have never ended well for the both of them. ]

What you need is a few friends your own age or a little older. When I was your age, my interactions with adults were limited to me cursing them or ignoring them outright. That's healthy, I think, especially here. [ dr. ryohji kaji, md, dispensing with sage medicinal advice. ] They don't need to be... well, people you've known from home.

[ the elephant in the room. ]

[redheadcarrier]

[ It is the life they choose. It hurts. It hurts every stupid day, even on the good days, when she actually believes she might have a shot, because she'll see something or think of something and suddenly she'll be that scared, frightened, worthless little girl all over again and she doesn't know if it'll ever change, if she'll ever manage to be anything else. The alternative is to just give up, though. She already did that once and she doesn't think she wants to do it again. Not now. Not yet. She hasn't burned out a second time. ]

I'm never going to be friends with Ikari, if that's what you mean.

[ Her tone is flat. ]

Not like there's that many people "my age" around, right? [ Her look is a touch withering. ]

I have Shepard. And Seviilla.

[ Neither of which are anywhere close to her age. ]

...and maybe Aloy and Annie. [ Who are closer, but still older. ]