⇨ THE WYLDLANDS

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone pursuing the Huntsman.
When: Day 134 - Day 140
Where: The Wyldlands
What: Working as scouts from the Summer armies, the carnival makes a dangerous trek into the Wyldlands to find the Huntsman, defeat him, and save the Ringmaster from the Hunt. The day descriptions below are an outline, and details may change based on actions earlier in the week. Overall, though, it will keep the same general locations. You can make up encounters with Wylderkin at any time.
Warnings: Probably violence and gross Huntsman stuff.

HUNTING THE HUNTER↴ Upon first arriving in the Wyldlands, the carnival will find themselves in a scene much like the picture above - strange mountain ranges rise up around them, while thick forest cling to the land between. Every so often, giant silhouettes of Wyld Fae will fly overhead. Thankfully, the Summer Fae have picked an area with plenty of cover to hide in to begin their infiltration, and as the carnival is arriving via teleporation, there will be squadrons of Summerland and Summer Court Fae spreading out and concealing themselves within the trees. They will be following the carnival's trail as they move deeper into the Wyldlands, looking for their guidance to avoid the maw of the Hunt. The carnival Supervisors will be given several golden scrolls that unfurl into small light elementals. These will transmit information between the Summer armies and the carnival at speeds similar to sending a text message. They takes various forms, but most of them are abstract motes of light with wings and tails. When delivering messages, they take the form and voice of whoever gave the message, like a custom hologram that disappears immediately after finishing. After the carnival has been debriefed one more time, they will be sent off ahead to begin their scouting duties. Through a mixture of augury and expertise, the Summer Fae have narrowed down an area the Huntsman should be, as well as designated a general route that will mostly have ground cover. Who knows if it will stay that way, though, with how quickly the Wyldlands change. Much like in the Summer Court, time here is subjective - all sense of time varies between individuals, and the only solid way of knowing when a day is over is to have the light from the sky disappear. All time pieces will perform erratically while here. The carnival will still need to eat and rest, as well, which means that they will have to figure out the best times to set up camp. They have sufficient rations, at least. ► DAY 134: The carnival heads deeper into the forest on the first day of their scouting mission, told to head for a giant tree that they can see on the horizon. Apparently, this tree is a landmark that will remain consistent for the time being. Someone will have to check above the canopy every so often to keep everyone on target, which risks gaining the attention of flying Wyld Fae. There are plenty of Wylderkin around (lesser Wyld Fae that behave more like standard fantasy animals) but overall the journey through this section will not be hugely perilous, as long as they remain cautious and hidden. There will be a Megathread on this day, dealing with some optional and only mildly important Summer Court NPC interactions. ► DAY 135: Early during the next day of travelling, the forest will begin to fill with more and more magical fungi until giant shrooms have almost completely replaced the trees. At first they will seem innocuous, but as their presence becomes more inescapable, it will gradually become apparent than many of the mushrooms are poisonous to the touch - and eating them will be far worse! Those with empathetic connections to plants may be able to determine which are poisonous and which aren't, while some fungi may even have beneficial effects, if they get lucky enough to find and identify them. Generally speaking, though, there are few non-plant creatures around here, due to the fact that everything is toxic, including the swampy water that covers large sections of the ground. There will be no mod directed interactions during this period, besides handling general investigations. ► DAY 136: During the middle of this day, the carnival will finally reach the giant tree. On one hand, the plant-life has become relatively safe again. On the other, the giant tree is the lair of several neutral Wyld Fae who probably won't like the carnival's presence. On the other other hand, maybe those Wyld Fae might be willing to help or offer them directions? It's up to the group to decide if they want to attempt diplomacy, or to stealth past the tree and find their own way. There will be a Megathread on this day, based on however the team decides to handle it. ► DAY 137: Past the area surrounding the big tree, the lush foliage of the forest will begin degrading until nothing is left but dark naked trunks filled with glowing pods of various sizes. It's here that those with a connection to the Hunt will start to get a sense of the Huntsman's presence, and will be drawn in a vague direction. Unfortunately, this will also be their first major brush with the Hunt itself. Hunt patrols skirmish with neutral Wyld Fae in this forest, and the collateral damage of their warfare can be seen all over. The carnival will want to either map out a path through the trees that the fighting can be avoided for the sake of the Summer troops, or give them enough data to be able to handle the threat. How this portion goes will partly depend on the outcome of the previous day's Megathread. ► DAY 138: The forest will open up into the beginnings of a mountain range, with flowing water, luminescent plant life, and the occasional cluster of crystals sprouting from the earth. There are large parties of Hunt controlled Wyld Fae patrolling this area, and so making it through will require careful navigation. As the path becomes more and more mountainous, it will be possible to find routes that mostly avoid the patrols - this information will need to be communicated back to the Summer troops. There will be a Megathread here dealing with a Hunt patrol encounter. ► DAY 139: The mountains will continue to steepen, and the crystal formations will grow more huge and consistent. The air is always cloudy, and the air condition is bad, making it harder to breathe. Weather will become more and more unfavorable the higher into the mountains the carnival gets, with cold winds and lightning that frequently strikes the crystals and causes them to send out bursts of destructive energy. Paths will occasionally crumble. There is still a heavy Hunt presence, here, though they keep to safer trails - the best way to avoid them may indeed be taking the most dangerous routes. It's probably better than being mauled to death by beasts, though. Some distant mountain tops look like the might be volcanoes. There is almost no plant-life here, besides the most stubborn of brambles. By this point, the pull of the Huntsman has grown much stronger. ► DAY 140: The sky clears enough to show a deep red skyline. Barren cliffs are punctuated with rivers of lava, and paradoxically vibrant trees and foliage in erratic spurts. The those in the carnival with a connection to the Hunt will find themselves drawn to a valley in the center of the rocks, absolutely filled with Wyld Fae and other slaves gathered from around the multiverse. This will be the final encounter, and the carnival may have to trust in their Wyld Fae disguises to make it through. There will be multiple Megathreads here, detailing the encounter with the Huntsman and bringing this log to an end.

Comments

[flashover]

Rin peeks out from under Steven's shield, cupping his hands around his mouth too.

"BY ANY CHANCE, DO YOU HATE THE HUNTSMAN?"

[atouts]

Why does this always happen, Childermass could ask, but honestly, he already knows the answer. He moves to leave Lambert's side, moving towards the front of the group. He does not have any kind of shield or anything here but... He's not sure how well one would hold against a magical storm bird, so.

It also feels ridiculous to follow suit and shout through his hands but he sure doesn't have voice projection magic over here.

"If you wish for us to go, we shall! But we must pass by your tree and did not want to intrude upon your territory unwittingly! Our fight is with the Huntsman, not you or those who dwell within these branches!"

[npcarnival]

Thunder cracks, striking one of the nearby trees, but not close enough to risk hurting anyone. It just seems to be something that happens when the Thunder Bird is out like this.

"WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE US DO?" it asks, raising its wings. "DO YOU THINK WE HAVE NOT FOUGHT?"

Its voice echoes through the forest.

[whattaprick]

Lambert glances at Childermass -- as far as shields go, he can probably provide, though he's hoping the magician also brought his magic-absorbing bracer just in case -- but he's going to mutter lowly for the benefit of assembled Carnival members. Hopefully, the thunder is a loud enough distraction.

"Give us directions, maybe? The Wyldlands aren't exactly easy to navigate."

Though that's more an aside than a serious suggestion, at least it's sort of a realistic request.

[hippocarnival]

"And you could fight with us, and everyone we've brought with us!" He hopes normal yelling is getting through. "We're going to fight the Huntsman anyway! If you come, you'll have that much more help this time!"

He looks back at Lambert's muttering, then turns to the thunder bird again. "Directions on getting there would be great, too!"

[npcarnival]

The Thunder Bird looks towards the horizon, where an expanse of darkened mountains rises into the distance.

"WHERE THE HUNTSMAN GOES, DESTRUCTION WILL FOLLOW," it says. "HE HAS TORN THE ELEMENTS ASUNDER AND CORRUPTED THE MEANING OF LIFE AND DEATH."

[whattaprick]

The witcher wrinkles his nose ever so slightly. Is that new? That sounds new. Or at the very least, whatever information they found on the Beast beating the Huntsman conveniently left out anything about tearing elements asunder and all the rest of that.

Still, whatever power he has now, he'd been beaten once. And if all the Wyld Fae were fine with rolling over and accepting the rule of something like the Huntsman, they wouldn't be standing here yelling at a bunch of them up in a tree not running around at the Huntsman's whim, so there's got to be something here to work with.

"Well, he obviously hasn't corrupted them," he offers unhelpfully. "Maybe that's as much as they can do right now."

[betheman]

There is something gnawing at Gongenzaka's thoughts as the Thunder Bird speaks of Life and Death- and despite himself, and despite intending to allow the others to handle the discussion, he calls up-

"WHEN YOU SPEAK OF SUCH CORRUPTION HOWEVER...WHAT DO YOU MEAN? HOW IS IT THAT HE HAS DONE SO?"

[periphrasing]

The lightning striking that close gives Peridot a bit of a start; the tuft on her tail is all fluffed out as she turns back to the bird uneasily.

"How can someone tear the elements asunder?" she shouts up quizzically. "Just, in general, any information you can provide to us about him would be really helpful!"

[npcarnival]

"THE SAME WAY THAT YOU WOULD," the Thunder Bird says, leaning down towards the group so that its massive head looms over them. "DOES YOU OWN MAGIC NOT CORRUPT THE MEANING OF NATURE? TO ROB IT OF ALL MEANING?"

[bananaspeedrider]

"Uh... no?" Being one soul piece of dude that turned themselves into a dragon abomination doesn't count hopefully.

[chronosynthesis]

"Does yours?" Syrlya squints, not sure if the bird is going with equating them to the Huntsman or has some sort of terrible impression of the existence of fae.

"Our magic comes from many places, but none of it is a corruption. For many of us, the magic of our homes is its nature."

[kingsroads]

There's like fifty billion ways that their magic corrupts the meaning of nature, what with how everybody's been magically changed by the Mother of Invention, a few of their number are aokay with raising the dead, they've got an artificial faeblood and two faebloods who got their status by being retconned in, a few of their number have also been touched by Miracles, and some of their number are Void touched. Pretty much all of them corrupt the meaning of nature.

So Strange, at least, is wisely deciding not to press the point and ask for specifics and is instead speaking broadly.

"Some of this magic was forced upon us. Most of our number did not choose it, but it was thrust upon us by forces beyond our control. I know that doesn't change our magic, but it should clarify some things."

He's still got his shield up, pointed towards the Thunder Bird. It's small enough that it would protect him, but not much anyone else.

[npcarnival]

"I CARE NOT," the Thunder Bird says. "YOU HAVE ASKED HOW THE ELEMENTS COULD BE TORN ASUNDER - AND FOR YOUR ANSWERS YOU CAN ONLY LOOK TO YOURSELVES. HOW IS IT THAT YOU FIND YOURSELF ABLE TO DISRUPT THE DUALITY?"

"AND SO, HOW WOULD THE HUNTSMAN DO THE SAME?"

[chronosynthesis]

Syrlya rakes a hand back through his bangs.

"I don't believe we quite understand. Are you referring to the magic of the miracles, specifically?"

He pauses. "Does the Huntsman have some association with one?"

[betheman]

Oh. Gongenzaka blinks, feeling he might understand this bird somewhat more now. His voice nonetheless unsure, he looks first to Syrlya, and then to the Thunder Bird.

"We know that the Huntsman wields magic from the Winter Queen- power he utilized to strike the R- the 'Great Beast'," he continues, frowning. "But is that the same power you yourself then refer to?" Or is it as Syrlya said- and that final miracle is unfortunately closer than they anticipated.

[kingsroads]

"I suspect he's referring to Creation. And the Void. And all of the other ways we've been changed and mutilated by forces beyond our control," grumbles the man who's still radiating some noticeable Miracle energy at the moment.

"The Huntsman has aligned himself with forces who seek to disrupt the duality. Until recently, he was aligned with a faerie called the Mother of Invention, who conducted experiments on forces like the Void and the Miracles, enhancing their presence in changelings. Associating with her tells you just how much the Huntsman cared for the 'duality of nature.'"

[npcarnival]

"IT IS ONLY THE MAGIC OF THE FIRST QUEENS THAT COULD BE EVERYTHING AND NOTHING, ALL AT ONCE," the Thunder Bird says. "TO BE BOTH LIGHT AND DARKNESS, LIFE AND DEATH, HEAT AND COLD IS TO BE NOTHING, IN A WORLD DEFINED BY OPPOSITES. A BEING WHOSE VERY NATURE IS OPPOSITION. CREATION AND VOID COULD NEVER BE AS ONE."

"AND YET THAT POWER IS NOW HERE, IN THE HANDS OF THE HUNTSMAN, IN THE HANDS OF YOU. IT IS STRANGE TO BEHOLD."

[flashover]

“What?! Since when does the Huntsman have Void and Creation hanging around?!”

That’s news to Rin.

[periphrasing]

The Thunder Bird's manner of speaking is just. Completely over Peridot's head. She looks up at Ignatius.

"Do you understand what this thing is saying?"

[betheman]

"...The void, or yet another miracle..?" Gongenzaka murmurs at Rin's question, blinking rapidly.

"WHAT POWER?" he shouts to the Thunder Bird. Maybe they can tell them that much, after all. "LIFE AND DEATH? OR IS IT THE VOID, THAT THE HUNTSMAN CARRIES?"

...And, after a moment, he adds- "....I, THE MAN GONGENZAKA, MUST ADMIT...IT IS STRANGE FOR US, AS WELL..." More for some than others, suffice to say.

[kingsroads]

Light and darkness, heat and cold...ah. Strange thinks he gets it now. With a wave of his hand, Strange dispels the shield magic, as his mirror fades back into his arm. He can't help but give the bird a wry little smile as he looks up at it.

"If I'm not mistaken, we might be looking for the same thing. If the Huntsman has the power of a being who's nature is pure opposition like a few of our number have, then we will strive to rid him of it. After all," and he looks over at Lambert, "might as well complete the full set."

[starseedling]

I guess we're all yelling now so Steven is going to join in. He thinks he's starting to understand.

"If we don't do something now, the Huntsman could get his hands on the kinds of Miracles he doesn't already have! If he has Life and Death now, he would end up with all three any time now! Please! If you don't want that to happen, you could help us!"

[npcarnival]

Ignatius is rubbing his chin, watching this all go down.

"Uhm... hmm," he says. "I gather it's something to do with the Miracles, only in Wyld Fae terms."

[npcarnival]

The Thunder Bird rotates its head to the side, its vibrant eyes widening.

"WHAT HAS BROUGHT THIS POWER TO OUR LANDS ONCE MORE?" it asks. "HOW DID SUCH INSIGNIFICANT BEINGS COME TO BE THE HOLDERS OF THIS ANCIENT POWER?"