⇨ THE SUMMERLANDS

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 138 - Day 152
Where: The Summerlands
What: The Ringmaster brings the carnival to the Summerlands immediately after being freed from Portland so that everyone can take a fucking nap. Her included.
Warnings: Individually marked! Most likely discussion of torture and trauma in here.

DAYS OF SUMMER↴ You made it! And things are back to normal... more or less. Upon waking, you will be greeted with a clear blue sky and gentle breeze – the carnival has found itself situated between a pair of mountain peaks, with great fields of flowers extending in the distance. In the other direction, you’ll see mountain-top cities and tall waterfalls accenting vast swaths of forest. Some of you will already know this place. It’s the Summerlands. You game here once to rest in safety nearly a year ago, and now you’ve come to rest once again. ► WAKING UP: Shortly after the carnival arrives, the Ringmaster will send out a somewhat cryptic radio message - but her immediate location won't be clear. Whatever items you had on your person at the time the Severing was broken will still be on your person, including whatever clothing. All of the animals and pets of the carnival will have returned to the grounds as well, though they are currently free from their designated living spaces. Things in the carnival will appeared to have naturally aged a month, as if the carnival was been sitting here empty and waiting while everyone was in Portland. The lawn needs mowing. ► SUMMER CITY: After the Summer Fae become aware of everyone's presence, they will welcome you into their city. There are stairs that lead up the sides of the mountains, but thankfully there are also magical means of getting up there as well. The Summer Fae will be willing to help workers with the injured as needed, offering herbal remedies and healing magic to those that want it. You'll also be invited to join them for dinner, but they will not be particularly offended if they are turned down, for now. ► SUMMER PEOPLE: The fae here will mostly enjoy the company of any carnival members that offer it - it doesn't seem that much happens here besides day after day of peaceful meditation and relaxation. It is not uncommon to see Summer Fae spent days doing exactly the same thing, whether that be enjoying the weather, listening to music, or dancing - the day and night periods may be similar to earth, but when you don't need rest it can all blur together just the same. Some of the fae work on feats of agriculture or craftsmanship, and while there is no particularly need to work in this place, they take pride in the fact that they do. ► NEW ARRIVALS: Though the Ringmaster will not be offering much guidance for the first week or so, eventually the carnival will begin running for a few small performance sessions, off and on, as a thank you to their fae hosts. The carnival will also be open to receiving new arrivals during that period, and so there will likely be some newbies to train and get orientated as well.

Comments

[hippocarnival]

... You can tell?! [Yuya looks visibly startled at that. Not because it's surprising his pendant has magic. It's from the same source as Yuzu's bracelet and what separated his soul.

But Lambert just called out his weird pendant and now his story sounds weird.] Of course I do! I take it off when I sleep and take a bath.

[Otherwise, though, he tries not to.]

[whattaprick]

[ That somewhat reduces the chance of it being a cursed item or something, at least, which was Lambert's first thought. But to answer Yuya's question ... ]

Yeah, I can tell. [ He raises his brows. ] That much of a surprise to you?

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya gives his pendant a look of mild betrayal. Way to out him like that.]

... Not really. I guess there's a little magic in Maiami. But it's not common! Nobody else would even hear about it.

[whattaprick]

Hm. [ Lambert considers that, stretching out his legs gingerly and crossing one ankle over the other. ]

We didn't originally have magic where I come from, either. Sorcerers claim magic only appeared after the Conjunction of the Spheres ... which might've been another world bumping into ours.

[hippocarnival]

Bumping into it? You mean... literally? [Would that not just destroy both planets? That can't be right.] Or did people just figure out how to cross dimensions?

[whattaprick]

[ Lambert wrinkles his nose. This is hard for him to explain because if he ever had a lesson on this, it was a long damn time ago, so Yuya's really making him dredge up the memories. Fortunately, he explained the same thing to Strange not that long ago. ]

It was fifteen centuries ago, so we don't know exactly what happened or what caused it. But people did cross dimensions then... and so did monsters.

[hippocarnival]

Oh. [And crossing dimensions broight magic, probably in the same way Leo brought solid vision to Academia.] Are they nice monsters?

[Hoping for too much?]

[whattaprick]

They're what I kill for a living.

[ No use mincing words about it, those are just the facts. ]

[hippocarnival]

Because they're not nice monsters, or because people just don't like them?

[This seems like an important distinction to make.]

[whattaprick]

Because I'm paid to.

[ Lambert shrugs, leaning back against the basket. ]

And because it's what I was raised for. Peasants need someone to take care of what's eating their sheep and neighbors, or a lord needs the wraiths in the family crypt put to rest ... that kind of thing.

[hippocarnival]

So it's more like wild animals...? [Not that he cares much for killing those, either, but he supposes that's a different matter than sapient monsters coming into conflict with humans over their differing values. Not that he knows anything about that.]

[whattaprick]

It's like pest control.

[ Now that Lambert actually has the cultural reference to grasp that, he smirks. ]

Including the part where people try not to call us unless they absolutely have to.

[hippocarnival]

Huh. [That doesn't sound like a fun job at all, honestly. He glances back down as the clouds disperse and he can see the ground again...

--he leans over, pointing at the ground.] Hey, look at that.

[Why, that's a herd of unicorns again. Happily grazing.]

[whattaprick]

[ Lambert leans over to look in the direction Yuya's pointing out, huffing faintly. ]

Guess they aren't as easy to spook as the ones back home.

[hippocarnival]

We're pretty high up, they probably haven't even noticed us. [He folds his arms over the edge of the basket.] Can we get closer?

[whattaprick]

Probably. Should try not to get too close to the trees, though, I don't know if we'd be able to get this up again from the ground...

[ Famous last words. Whoops. At any rate, Lambert's fiddling with the controls now, pulling on the valve that lets the balloon release some of the hot air it's holding, and they begin to very gently descend. ]

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya nods absently.] Yeah, but I just want to get a little closer. It's pretty cool, right?

[Yuya, frankly, is glad for this impromptu air balloon trip. It's some well deserved fun.

Too bad the large tree they're drifting a little closer to has other plans.]

[whattaprick]

They usually hide themselves better. [ Lambert can agree with that, at least.

He sees the tree coming up all right, and he reaches up absently to adjust the flow of air and the direction they're going in to avoid it --

And then the tree abruptly stretches, in a way that no tree ever should, to grab the basket out of the air, the same way a child might grab for a pillow in its sleep. ]

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya wouldn't know, unicorns definitely don't exist in Maiami. But before he can follow up he feels the basket jerk as it's grabbed and stumbles, falling over into the basket with a holler.] W-What's going on?!

[That tree forcefully dragging the basket into its branches is what's going on.]

[whattaprick]

I don't know, hold on!

[ The consequences of bad decisions, that's what. Lambert reaches a hand out to grab but has to yank his fingers off the edge of the basket a heartbeat later, as the branches wrapping around them tighter. The canvas of the balloon gets torn off as they dip down, with a sickening feeling of vertigo in their stomachs, and Lambert summons a shield more out of instinct than any real idea whether it's going to protect them or not, pulling Yuya to him.

The branches curl around them like a hand squeezing around a ball in its grip, the wood creaking and groaning cacophonously until ... suddenly, it's quiet. Lambert doesn't quite trust it, so he keeps the shield up for a few more seconds before lifting his head, warily. The branches are wrapped tight, but not so tight there isn't space between them to let the light through and see exactly the nature of the predicament they're in. ]

[hippocarnival]

[He doesn't have to tell Yuya twice, he's not looking to tumble out of a basket at elevation today. When Lambert pulls him closer his grip just shifts to grab hold of him instead, his gaze jerking around rapidly as he watches the branches enclose around them.

As the silence draws on his shoulders slowly lose their tension.] Uh...

[He leans forward, trying to peer out between the branches from a secure distance.] We're in a tree. [Obviously.]

[whattaprick]

No shit. [ Lambert says, reluctantly letting Yuya go. ] Stand back, I'll try to burn us out of here.

[ He's already raising a hand. ]

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya tumbles forward a bit, but with that release he's able to peer through the branches and see just how high up they are.

Which is very high.] W-what?! Wait! We're hundreds of feet in the air and you're going to burn the tree that we're stuck in?!

[Okay, hundreds is an exaggeration. He turns around and waves his hands quickly.] Let's just call for help!

[whattaprick]

There is no way we're hundreds of feet in the air. [ Lambert just gives Yuya a look as he speaks, flatly. ]

And I never said anything about burning the whole thing.

[ He gestures at part of the branches surrounding them ... and thus this radio post ends up happening. ]

1/2

[hippocarnival]

Well it's definitely too high to be a safe fall. [He's already pulling out his radio, because fire and tree and heights do not mix well in his book. How are they supposed to climb down faster than the flames?]