⇨ EDEN

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 79 - Day 85
Where: Eden
What: Everyone arrives in Eden with their new animals forms - unfortunately, the welcoming party is a bit more intense than expected, with a ritual called 'The Anointment.' Better get this place figured out before anything gets any crazier.
Warnings: Hopefully no ritual sacrifice!

FLAME OF INSPIRATION↴ So it begins. After everyone has been given their new animal form and have had about an hour to readjust to it, the Ringmaster begins the infiltration. You don't see a lot of the specifics of the magic - all you know is that Pru's sword, the Hand of God, is somehow involved. It alone can tear through the wardings of Eden's realm, and once that entrance is made, the teleportation is instant. Everyone will find themselves in an open grassland overlooking a dense forest, with buildings and lights poking up out of the leaves. Behind you, there is a darker place - the barrens, the Ringmaster has explained. It's were the Outcasts are sent after they're banished. You are scattered across the area as if you've been dropped in with nothing. You've been given specific instructions - act as if you have no memory besides the vague life of being an animal. None of you know each other. You don't know how you got here, you've just been suddenly found yourself enlightened. Hopefully feigning ignorance will be what the residents are expecting, as what information the Ringmaster could find suggests it should be. Before the beasts of Eden come to claim you, you'll see the Ringmaster once last time, in the form of a giant serpent. With a nod of her head, she slithers away towards the barrens - she'll be in touch. ► THE WELCOMING: It's not long until you're discovered. The first to find you is a pigeon, who seems rather surprised. She'll ask the first few new arrivals she sees a couple questions - 'did you just get here?' 'did you meet the great Lilith?' Regardless of your answers, she'll hurriedly say she's going to go get help, and will fly away back into the forest. A short while later, an entire welcoming party of different animals will have come to greet you, sweeping out to find every straggler and explaining that you are the newest of the chosen. After they are sure that nobody is being left behind, they will invite you into Eden. ► THE GARDEN: Eden is a beautiful place. Every street, every structure, is surrounded by flowers and vibrant plant life - every bit as idyllic as its mythos would imply. The architecture is ambitious and creative, as if the residents have been perfecting the art for thousands of years, which they almost certainly have. There is the sweet smell of perfumes and incense on the other animals are you are led into the city. This is your home now, the locals will explain. You have been chosen by the Creator to serve Her cause. You will become one of the Honorable, one of Her artisans working towards the Divine Clarity. But first, of course, you must be sanctified. ► THE ANOINTMENT: On that first night, everyone is brought to a vast cathedral, covered in unknowable writings in a shining script. You are brought in through several gorgeous hallways lit with shining crystals and blue flame torches, only to emerge in a great hall built around a circular, sparkling pool of water. There are several braziers around its circumference blazing with fire, with sets of tools hanging out of them, like iron pokers. All of the new arrivals are gathered into the grand hall, and scriptures are read in the background that you can't really make out the specifics of. You will all be made to stand around the outside of the pool, and the local animals will gently explain to you what needs to be done. To become a new Honorable, you must be Anointed with the Flame of Inspiration - that is, they are going to brand you with the metal pokers they have heating up. If you go along with it, they will burn the mark into a highly visible part of your person (they have smaller brands for smaller animals), and then cool it off in the pool of water, where you are encouraged to bask until you are comfortable again. There are obviously a couple concerns with this. The biggest one is that it's sketchy as hell. The second one is that the brand is definitely made of medium grade iron. While the painful difference it makes won't be super obvious from the outside, long-term veterans and those with superlative fae qualities will find it very uncomfortable, and it will blister for a fair while afterward, which is seen as unusual. If your character refuses, or tries to get around it somehow, please explain in reply to the post down below. ► THE DAYS AFTER: After everyone is branded (or isn't, as the case may be), you'll be given the opportunity to dry off and head back into town. All of the fancy structures here are communal, they will explain, and you can choose wherever you'd like to sleep. There are a few buildings that are mostly empty that newbies seem welcome to hole up in, though the locals assure everyone they will be nearby in case they need help. In the days that follow, everyone will be welcome to explore Eden and find their bearings, and begin to discover what gifts the Anointment has bestowed on them. Whether or not you were good at a creative pursuit before, you will find yourself filled with inspiration for something - any artistic talent will do. It's like a creative talent will have been born in you overnight, or like an existing talent of yours has been boosted to near perfection. This effect will last as long as the characters are in Eden unless you are told otherwise. You won't feel the need to eat, but there is breakfast available, if you'd like it. The locals are very courteous, though they seem a bit confused. Something about your entry seems to strike them as different than usual.

Comments

[osteothropy]

"Extremely cool," Sans says, not bothering to conceal how impressed he is. He's glad Rita is part of the team he and Lambert are running, now. "Sounds way better than paper. As much as info needs to get around, I had my doubts about that."

He thinks for a moment, and then:

"Just to know for sure, there's no way to restrict who can access it once active, huh? If there isn't, I'll just have to be careful about who I let touch it."

[anti_nonsense]

It's cool, huh... Rita tries not to show much of a reaction to that praise.

She nods, confirming the risk. "If it looks like it'll get intercepted, your best bet is getting an ally to swallow it... or throwing it away and hoping no one finds it before it expires."

She'd suggest Sans swallow it himself, but... can he, in that body? Seems like a bad idea.

[osteothropy]

All he can fit in his mouth right now is tiny bits of fruit and jelly. He's sure not fitting a beat in there. Thankfully, he has other options.

"If I have the opportunity I can probably just pop it into my hammerspace dimension. Otherwise, I'll try to get somebody to take the bead for the team."

Conveniently, he can Pretty much just slip his leg through the bead hole.

[anti_nonsense]

"Into your what?" Look, Sans, Rita doesn't know your weird terminology.

But it sounds like he has some way of handling that hypothetical situation, so she's more or less satisfied with that. There is the worry that anything that gets intercepted might get traced back to her... but that's just a risk she has to deal with.

"I don't have much to share right now, but there's one thing, I guess..." Sans is technically her supervisor now, so she supposes she might as well fill him in on goings-on that she's observed... She places another paw on the bead, overwriting its message with a detailed description of what happened after she followed Ignatius away from the branding ritual, his status at the time, and the fact that they got shooed out. Also, it now looks like Ignatius isn't at the temple anymore, and Rita has no clue where he is. She'd really like to know. End report.

[osteothropy]

"Uh... hammerspace. Y'know, like, in cartoons...?" She probably doesn't know, like, in cartoons. "Nevermind. It's basically just a portable dimensional pocket I can keep stuff in."

But, then they are moving on to more information transfers. Sans touches the bead, absorbing the data within.

"Oof," he says, pulling away. "That was fast. Here I thought we'd keep track of him for at least a day."

[anti_nonsense]

"Bringing him was a mistake," Rita grumbles bitterly. Strange, she expects that kind of stupidity from, but the Ringmaster? Why would she give him the chance?

"Now that birdbrain's all worked up in a panic... If the situation doesn't improve soon, he'll probably do something stupid." Rita has basically no faith in Strange when it comes to Ignatius.

[osteothropy]

"Sounds about right," Sans admits. Strange isn't really renowned for his self control. "But the real question is if the risk is worth it, to get said birdbrain out of his cage."

Sans isn't sure. He'd like to believe this will all go off without a hitch, but... well. That's not how things have historically gone, in the carnival.