lostcarnival | ⇨ EDEN

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It would be a very cute pout.

He glances sideways when she starts to crawl down him again and his paw sets back down on the ground with an odd stillness. He understands though how hard it is to find someone here given usually one just had to follow the Tease. There just aren't any out but one and it is well hidden from everyone.

"I could make time. I don't mind taking a longer 'break'."

Oh-

"Y...You could?"

Eyes widening, Reira hurriedly puts her mind to work, scrambling across the ground to look over the 'junk' glass and lanterns she's been offered. She needs to make sure she knows exactly what to do with this, and where, and-

"O-Okay! I know where it has to go now!" she declares, nodding furiously.

He rises to his feet and stretches out casually to pop his back. There's a curve of his spin and a rotation of his head. He's not use to being so parallel to the ground and misses the height he usually gained from being so tall. Already he's nosing down and prodding at the lanterns to blow it out from within. Then he starts putting all the other pieces together. Hmm, note to self. Find something to carry all this in tomorrow.

"I don't see why not."

Well- the bat is elated, suffice to say, and she quickly nods. "Umn!! Okay! Then...this way- I can stay on the ground, if you want," she adds, hesitating before she takes off. She does have the capacity to run after all...

"I have no preference," which he does even if he understands he's making Reira make a choice. His stride is much longer than hers and her flight just might be better for her. Plus, he doesn't know if she can carry much of anything. It's a mouthful but he's setting them back in the cloth he had acquired in order to carry them.

After that he'll follow her closely, keeping mind of who is around and what they are doing.

Well, if that's the case, she'll go at a run to start- or more of a jog than anything; Reira managed to get about the only bat known for running and as it turns out it actually does make her fast enough to out pace a wolf walking.

He's certainly correct to assume she can't carry anything however- at all, really. A few yards out, and she'll use one of her running 'vaults' to take to the air and lead Tyki on that way though. The reason why will be clear soon enough- while she does fine on a relatively flat surface, they need to head up some sort of slope to get wherever she's leading him.

Honestly, she could've ridden him still and it wouldn't have made a difference. From his observation there were tons of smaller animals often perched on top of larger ones, being carted around or lost in conversation, and he never minded carrying her. It was also conflictingly nice to see her so independent as a young girl.

He won't admit out loud how much he misses taking to the skies as she can. Even with his power to choose available he kept it on the down low, only using it for his glass and not to actually skirt through walls or the ground. He'd only use that when he needed to. Yet Tyki was no stranger to a good climb and when the slope starts to incline, he follows without complaint. Not that he really has much of a choice with a mouthful as it is. Look at that. Something manages to shut Tyki up.

The spot they reach is....largely empty. There's a very small pile covered with a sheet that someone's penned a note reading 'Phanu's things' on, but that's about it. Otherwise however, it looks to be good for sunlight at particular moments of the day, which is exactly what Reira was after.

She soon lands, nods, and turns. "Ok! Here is where I need the things."

He looks around when they arrive and he'll pad over towards her pile of things to set down what he has in his mouth. He noses it open, letting the contents spill into the pile and then pulls the cover back around his neck. He'll need a moment to phase it together at the end like an odd scarf or other neck attire.

"A quaint little spot," is all he'll give for now.

"Mnh. It's a spot where the sun makes a really long shadow once it comes in," Reira explains, already starting to tug things toward the covered pile. Awkwardly, she pulls the sheet off, before slowly adding pieces to it. "So when that happens, and I have this part right, the shadow will look like another shape. A really tall one," she adds, nodding more to herself than anything.

There is a pause, and she looks to Tyki with a nod. "Um....thanks for bringing the things here."

"Hmm, now that's something I would want to see. Requires me to get up early somehow but I can manage that." Which means now there is some tiny bit of pressure to preform well on Reira's end. Or at least give him something to look at when the time comes. It'll keep her distracted in any case.

"Mmhmm, it was on my way." Towards somewhere. Really he wants to pat her on the head and tell her no problem but he has appearances to keep up with.

"...I guess..?" It doesn't feel like it was 'on the way' to anything at all, really.

"...Do you want to see what it looks like when I'm done?" she decides to ask, awkwardly tapping her foreclaws together. "...Once the sun hits it properly?"

One of these days he's really going to show her the art of 'playing along' even if it might feel like lying to her.

His brow raises, or it would, at the way she's tapping her foreclaws together like some child wanting approval and he'll nod at her questioning with ease. "Of course."

She will, predictably, just lie to make 'playing along' more along the lines of what she wants. She's like that after all, she got some random Honorable up here somehow.

The bat does seem rather thrilled about the idea of someone seeing her works however. "Okay..!! I'll tell you right away then!!"

Some people are just really bad at lying or really good at seeming suspicious. Not everyone in carnival was some sort of conman, thief, murderer, or saboteur.

He nods again at her excitement and tries not to appear all that thrilled himself, "Right, right. Just come find me, even if I'm sleeping, before it starts."

There is so much truth to those thoughts, and it's astounding they aren't all dead yet.

Then again that's why they all have eggs now. As it is, Reira nods eagerly. "Ok! I'll do that!"

And after a moment... "Thank you!"

Ugh, don't remind him about the eggs. He's not bothered but Tyki knows where those come from. In general, he'd rather just not die or think about it at all.

Sure thing, kiddo. But he doesn't mouth those words. Instead he just nods again a few times and turns to head back to where he was. There's always time for pleasantries later.

⇨ EDEN

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