⇨ THE SUMMER COURT

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone in the Summer Maiden's entourage.
When: Day 129 - Day 131 (Subjectively experienced as only one day.)
Where: The Summer Court
What: The Summer Maiden returns to the Summer Court for the first time in eons, leading a posse of carnival workers and Summer Fae. The Summer Queen has initiated a peaceful Elysium for discussions to take place, with dozens of the Court in attendance, but the true tone of the negotiations has yet to be unearthed.
Warnings: Fae being bitches.

SUNSET OF AN ERA↴ The phase shift takes few minutes to complete, when it's time. The Summer Maiden gathers everyone together - her guard of Summerland Fae, and her carnival wards - and activates the spell to bring them to the Summer Court. It's been planned with the Summer Queen, she says, and they should have her cooperation. Nothing has been settled in terms of negotiations, but at the very least, the Queen was not willing to shut down the opportunity to see her daughter for the first time eons, along with her lesser children, Ignatius and Gild. The Summer Maiden has recommended that everyone dress formally and conduct themselves with respect, but she is not forcing anyone to do so. It simply seems like the best way to make an impression. When they arrive in the Summer Court, they are in a courtyard. The Maiden's light magic fades and they will see themselves in a garden of alien trees, with golden towers rising up around them in all directions. Two Summer Court fae are waiting for them at an ornate gate, but it isn't until the Summer Maiden has claimed her role as an adjudicator or the present Elysium that she breaks the barrier surrounding her party. She tells everyone that it is safe to go forth but to be cautious. There is no way of knowing what direction negotiations will take. The guard leads them in, and they will find themselves in a spacious and life-filled throne room, with massive trees that function and supporting pillars and the throne itself. A variety of True Fae that the carnival has never seen before are scattered around the room, waiting with a thick air of tension. As the Summer Maiden leads them in, she will announce herself to the Queen, and claim all those present as under her protection. The introductions are brief, and after the Maiden is done, the Queen will ask to speak with her privately. There is a clear nervousness beneath the Queen's veneer of control. As the Maiden joins her at the throne to speak about personal matters, everyone else is free to explore the throne room and mingle - if they dare. ► STICKING OUT: There are some notable reactions going on as the Maiden's entourage arrives. In general, the Court Fae respond strongly to Ignatius's presence - both the fact that he's turned up as an ally to the Maiden, and his curious magical transformation. Ignatius, for his part, holds back and tries to keep to himself, looking like he's trying to hide a significant amount of stress. To the Gilded Mark, there is a particular note of resentment, which she mostly seems to ignore and focuses on staying close to the carnival folk. The Starlight, the Whirling Rainbow, and a few other Summerland Fae have come along, and they all hold back as the Summer Maiden discusses things with the Queen privately. In general, the Court Fae eye the carnival with a mixture of curiousity and disgust. ► TOUGH CROWD: There are dozens of Summer Court Fae here that no one will have seen before. They mill about the room as if this is an uncomfortable formal engagement, eyeing up the Maiden's entourage an gossiping with one another. The opinions they hold of the situation vary wildly - some seem more of the attitude that the Court would be better off if the Summer Maiden were to die and be replaced, where others are openly optimistic and excited about the potential of reparations being made. You are free to make up/NPC any of these fae as long as they aren't doing anything radical, like trying to break the Elysium. Some of them will treat the visitors as threats, while others may even attempt to ask them questions about the situation. ► ACCOMMODATIONS: There is food and drink provided while negotiations endure. Normally you may want to be cautious about accepting this kind of thing, but given that it's part of Elysium, they are obligated to not harm any of those present. So, if you want, you will be able to enjoy faerie ales and other luxury foods that have the capability of being distractingly tantalizing to mortals with low self control. If you need some space, you are free to go back out to the courtyard where you arrived. There are few fae out there, but it is still covered by the Elysium. Take some time to settle in - this could take a while, and there's sure to be drama before it's over. Later on, there will be public discussion.

Comments

[lmpatientdefense]

"Yeah, like you said," Beau says, gesturing to Syrlya, and glancing off towards the fae monarchs.

"The Summer Queen might not care about us lowly mortals, fair enough, whatever, but... she's got to care about protecting her own back, right? And she shouldn't have the same hangups about wanting to trust the Winter Queen. That news might make more of an impact, with her."

[periphrasing]

Steven's also here, looking just about as mopey as one might expect, which means Peridot is also there. Still a bat, still perched on the boy's head, which works out well for the limited space that they're dealing with.

"Rita, Syr and I all got a good up-close look at the horror show the Mother of Invention inflicted on one of Summer's own," Peridot adds, pinning her ears back and grimacing at the memory of that horrible device they were keeping him in. She glances around awkwardly at the group before continuing: "I... Actually happen to have physical proof of it as well. I can't take it out right this second because uh. I'd have to change out of this form, and it's cramped enough in here as is, but. He let me keep one of the power cells that creep was using to drain his destructive essence."

[flashover]

Rin makes a face. "Ugh, right. They were planning on using Ignatius like some sort of living battery, right?" he says with a shudder. "I think the Summer Queen will definitely want to know what was going on with that... I just worry that she'll say that the Winter court, like, gave up on the Mother of Invention ages ago, so whatever that crazy old robot did doesn't reflect on them, or something..."

"But... whatever the Huntsman used to take out the Ringmaster had to have come from Winter, like the Maiden said! Who had the best view of it? Uh... front row seats? I was inside the fortress, so I only heard about it later... but I think it's important to show them as many views of it as possible! I'm not too sure we can prove that the robot lady was using iron, though... I mean, we have some pieces of it in storage, but there's no way to prove it came from her, right?"

[anti_nonsense]

"I was out in front during the fight," Rita says. "Aside from when some bird-freak was attacking me, I had a clear view of everything that happened."

Glancing around, there's another question on Rita's mind. "Does anyone have something I can enchant, if we go that route?"

Sure, Rita can use the spell on any old piece of garbage, but when looking to present something to a queen in front of her court, it'd probably look better if they had something more... presentable, at a glance.

[betheman]

There is a pause- and Marishi nods. "...if a piece of jewelry from one of us will not do, perhaps a braided piece of vine. It is simple, but at the least presentable," she offers. It is at least something that Gongenzaka can provide in any case.

And it isn't as if those vines don't look nice- he braids them for gifts on the regular.

[chronosynthesis]

Syrlya nods. "I saw much of it myself, including what was done to Ignatius and the Ringmaster. The weapon he used was unlikely to have come from the Mother of Invention, though... his willingness to give Ignatius to her after his own hunters tore him apart is telling on its own."

"I do think jewelry would be most presentable." And he looks to Lambert and Rita at that. They're the jewelry wearers, right?

[whattaprick]

Lambert pauses, considering, then shakes his head

“We’re asking them to fight, aren’t we?” he asks, looking around at the other Carnival members. “These memories aren’t a gift. They’re a warning. So why dress it up? Why not use a weapon?” With a soft hiss of leather, he frees his sword belt, holding it out hilt first to Rita. It’s been for ceremonial frippery until now, and he keeps it sheathed.

“I got this sword on our last stop in the Summerlands. It’s faerie-crafted silver.” He pauses. “Just don’t aim it point-first at the Queen when you hand it over. I don’t think they’d like that.”

[atouts]

"I'm not sure a weapon is the best choice," Childermass finally speaks up. He's been quiet since the Summer Queen put a stop to the upset with Rose Queen, seemingly willing to just let other people figure out the next step for now. Here, though, maybe he can help.

"I can see what I have in my shadow, if you'd like. I tend to keep a few odds and ends in there."

[chronosynthesis]

"I have to agree it may be... too dramatic a point." Especially when they have to specify not to point the sword at the Summer Queen when the spell requires touching the object.

He gestures openly. "We should use these captured memories to emphasize our point, and make the warning clear with our words."

Yes, someone is still going to have to talk to the monarchs. Don't be rude.

[periphrasing]

"I have a bunch of stuff in my gauntlet too," Peridot supplies. Then a thought: "Maybe we could enchant the power cell...?"

If that would even work.

[whattaprick]

Lambert shrugs, lowering the sword.

“I don’t have any jewelry on me that isn’t enchanted ... and we probably shouldn’t use anything that has anything else magical about it. Also,” he adds dryly, “If that thing is full of Ignatius’ power, isn’t that basically a bomb?”

He looks down at the top of Childermass’s head, frowning thoughtfully.

“Maybe the ring from Eden...?” It’s supposed to be for the magician alone, but given the limited space and half the audience having sharper ears, it’s audible anyway.

[chronosynthesis]

Syrlya waves his hands quickly. "Yes, it is, and we do not want to give them a catastrophic weapon made out of Ignatius. It... might be fine just to show them."

But there are ethical and logical concerns to having a bunch of people actively handling the power core.

[periphrasing]

"Ignatius gave it to me. I wasn't intending on letting them keep it," Peridot mutters indignantly, looking kind of embarrassed. Lambert's ring comment doesn't slip by her, though, triangle ears pricking up.

"A ring from Eden?" she asks. "What kind of ring?"

[atouts]

Yeah, just mentioning the ring has Childermass moving his hand so no one even gets to see the damn thing. He looks up, unamused.

"On the off-chance of this item not being returned, no. Not the ring," he answers. He's just shutting down all of your ideas today, Lambert. "I should still have some gold coins from Atlantis on hand." Or... in shadow. Whatever. "Ribbons, gemstones, maybe a hand mirror or two... I should have some jewelry laying about in there, though I would not exactly call it quality."

Aside from the gold coins, none of it is going to be particularly rare or fae-made. Just stuff he's lifted at random across the different worlds.

[osteothropy]

Sans has apparently shown up within the bubble at some point, and he's holding a bakery item. Don't worry everyone, he's here to help.

"You could imprint it on a dinner roll...?" he suggests airily, lifting it up the bun to be inspected. "No way anybody could misinterpret that."

[anti_nonsense]

Rita watches that back and forth, raising an eyebrow in curiosity at the discussion of a 'ring'... but if that's off the table, then there's no point in discussing it further.

"Let's go with one of Childermass's trinkets," she decides. "Should have enough decorum for a court, without any unfortunate implications."

[atouts]

"I don't think Her Majesty wants to eat our despair, Sans," Childermass says idly as he reaches up a sleeve and produces what seems the most suitable option. It's an Atlantean gold piece and gold rather fits the court they're currently in. He'll offer that to Rita.

[osteothropy]

"Then keeping it simple is probably the way to go," Sans agrees, getting ready to watch Rita work. Her magic is just so neat. Meanwhile, he takes a bite out of the dinner roll. "They always say not to send in your manuscripts on fancy paper. It's the words that are important."

[anti_nonsense]

Rita takes the gold piece from Childermass, examines it for a moment, then closes her eyes, focusing on the specific memories she intends to imbue it with. Though the magic doesn't involve any visual effects, there's a small grimace on her face as she briefly relives those terrifying, hopeless moments. The sight of Ignatius, ripped apart by Wyld Fae, the demise of the Ringmaster, and the nonchalant Mother of Invention swooping in at the end of it all... She makes sure to include every awful detail still present in her memory.

"... There. I've enchanted it with everything I witnessed during the fight with the Huntsman. Anyone have anything else they'd like to add?"

There's nothing stopping any of them from offering a spoken testimony, of course, and she can always make new enchantments at a moment's notice, but it can't hurt for them to be as organized as possible before the talks resume.

[osteothropy]

"...I've got memories of all those test logs I looked through," he says, more soberly. He reaches into his hoodie and pulls out what is obviously his visor from Polaris. "I've also got a bunch of it stored on this thing, but I dunno if I want to try to explain to the Summer Queen how Polaris tech works."

In fact, he's trying to keep the device mostly out of sight. He's not sure how unholy something like this would look to the Summer Court crowd. He's still got the implant in the back of his head, though.