lostcarnival | ⇨ THE WYLDLANDS

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⇨ THE WYLDLANDS

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I can't -- I can't fly!" Jasper snarls. Her eyes are darting around, trying to find the best direction to bolt in.

Instinctively, Rita's wings spring open and give a few heavy flaps, lifting her off the ground. Since she's been lingering near Yuya for the benefit of his shield, he's the one she makes a grab for, clutching his arm and taking off into the air. It'll start with a rough, potentially painful jerking motion, but soon she gets a moment to use her levitation magic to support both of them more comfortably as they float up above the approaching water.

"The hell is that!?" she hisses at the offending deluge as she stabilizes herself and Yuya.

Yuya's attention flickers to the water, but the real urgency is apparent when everyone else starts taking to the air immediately. He's completely distracted with that when Rita grabs him, letting out a yelp as his arm is pulled and sucking in a sharp breath until her levitation eases the strain.

"I don't know!" He straightens himself, looking down for someone else he knows has no ability to get in the air on his own. "Gongenzaka!"

"G-OOACK-" When the water begins to rush forward, Gongenzaka is rather out of luck. He's just a bit too big to be easily snatched off the ground, and in fact finds himself grimacing and bracing himself to prepare to use his steadfast belt instead. 'I shall be fine!' is what he shouts to Yuuya- and then the water rushes forward, and he closes his eyes.

Boy this is going to suck.

~~Well, not if Zangetsu has anything to say about it anyway.~~

Syrlya back away as the river starts to bubble up. He doesn't know if they have enough hands to hold everyone in the air, and it's a vulnerable position. He scans the landscape quickly, focusing on a high area of the mountain's ridges that give them more space and time to confront whatever's going out of the water--if it isn't just a simple flood (he's almost certain it isn't a simple flood). It won't put them completely out of harm's way, it isn't that far, but it's at least out of the pull of the river.

He teleports, steadying himself on the ground before leaving the exit to the portal and teleporting right back where he was to place the entrance.

"Come here! There is a portal to drier ground!"

~~Well, since no one was around to grab...~~

Zangetsu hears Yuya call to Gongenzaka, and sees the water rush over him, quickly coming up to his hips.

"I'm comin'!"

He cloaks himself in black and red flame, streaking like a comet down to Gongenzaka. He strikes him square in the chest and vanishes within.

'Nnnnrgh... just lemme have control this time, we don't have time fer ya to practice!' He gently shoves Gon's consciousness into the backseat of his own body.

Gon's body shudders oddly, his skin paling and his eyes turning dark with yellow irises.

Steering Gongenzaka's ungainly form is a bit like driving a large boat, but Zanzaka manages to get airborne with a few strong leaps.

"Phew..."

Steven's been, up till this point, using vines and his shields as best as he can to hold off the wylderkin. Once the water starts rising, though, he has to readjust his priorities. Most of his friends can fly or already have help... but then there's Jasper.

He can sense her fear immediately - more than what would be there from the threat of water alone. He only hesitates for a moment before leaping towards her and spreading his wings.

"Hang on," he gasps, getting beneath Jasper's horse body and grabbing hold with his arms. "We're going up!"

He pushes off the ground with all the force he can muster, launching the three of them into the air as he struggles beneath her probably kicking horse legs. His floating powers and strength enable him to lift her, but there's not so much room for carefully planning the trajectory. Also, he's never deadlifted a horse before.

"What do you MEAN you can't fly?!" complains Herbert. "You're made of light, I have watched all of the other gems achieve flight through some form of shapeshifting, there's absolutely no reason you--!"

He cuts off when Steven lunges suddenly at them and hoists Jasper up into the air. It's not particularly controlled: Herbert ends up falling forward again and flinging his wings out instinctively to balance himself.

Jasper is about to make an angry response when Steven grabs her from underneath.

"What--" she barks in baffled, panicked indignation. "Steven--? Graaagghh!" This latter is the sound she makes as he launches them upwards, because she's just that kind of person.

Ah shit. Ginko has been kind of struggling here already; without any real combat abilities of his own, he's mostly been trying to stay out of the way and use his spell to entangle the enemies, giving those who may be better-suited to combat a chance to get a hit in.

This is... absolutely not an improvement. Ginko swears under his breath and takes a step back, taking a quick look around for a possible way out. At least a lot of people seem to be getting out alright. "Might-- need some help here!"

Strange can indeed raise some ground. He nods at Lambert, bends down, and starts muttering a whole chain of spells under his breath. It's the same spell that he cast back in the Athenaeum: raise the earth under their feet as quickly as possible.

It takes him a few seconds to cast the spell, but it does. A large portion of ground shoots up in a pillar from underneath Strange's feet, boosting him, Lambert, and any other flightless carnival members near the two up from the ground, away from the water.

Yugo's only ever had one offensive power in his magic arsenal, it's boring but reliable and practical. Here and there he's been blasting his plasma breath at a Wilderkin whether or not it does much damage, slows them down a bit, or both.

But then the water is coming and that's not good. Not good at all.

"Clear Wing!" Yugo shouts as he calls upon his dragon again to become large and help. And the dragon effortlessly scoops their partner up and swivels their head for anyone else that needs help.

Priority goes toward the largest folks though, so while Yugo scrambles up to sit on the dragon's back, Clear Wing reaches over to scoop up Yusei- holding the man around his tauric middle like a football.

Yuusei's modus operandi with respect to Sudden Fae Attacks, based on previous experience, has proven itself to be "pick up a long sturdy thing and whack a motherfucker." For keeping lesser creatures away from him, it's been working to a degree, just as it had back during the last Hunt raid. One can't just hit water to make it go away, though.

When the urgency of the situation hits him, he freezes like a deer in headlights, suddenly very aware that his current body type is absolutely horrible for swimming but hardly heavy enough to remain anchored when the flood makes it to them. He doesn't have to worry about it for long, however, for he soon has the strong claws of Yuugo's dragon gripping his gut. He's frankly a little impressed Clear Wing can hoist his weight like this, but he's not going to complain.

"Can you keep this up for long enough?" he calls up to both the dragon and their rider. Clear Wing is probably good, but he doesn't want to be only a burden to the two if he can help it.

"He has long enough!" Carly will answer, flying up with relative ease herself. She has her own passenger as well, but even still searches the water below on her way to safety. Just in case-

Just in case they lose anyone... "We just need to get to dry ground! Over there!"

If anyone needs a last minute teleportion save, Sans is going for it. He sees where Syrlya is making his portal towards, and tries to coordinate. Getting out of this situation himself is hardly a problem, but there is a whole crew of people with varying priorities here - sometimes acting is a lot faster than talking.

Papyrus gets his most immediate attention, but once the bro is safe, Sans will be diving back in.

When the water comes, it comes so much more suddenly than could have been expected. Instead of a crashing wave, it comes as what is essentially a horizontal typhoon of water, barrelling over the mountain range. It twist and spirals like a river that has becoming a living thing, crashing through everything - but particularly through the Huntsman's servants.

Of course, it isn't capable of being that discriminating. The water levels rise, the pressure behind them enough to break bones and sunder stone. And that's before it reaches the Thunder Bird.

Lightning meets water. A ripple of thunder echoes through the entire valley, a jolt of brutal electricity radiating through the water. It kills most of the nearby wylderkin instantly, and most of the fighting Wyld Fae have to make an immediate retreat. The Hunt parties retreat back into the mountain, many significantly worse for wear.

As the water surges and the lightning ebbs away, an enormous serpentine figure emerges - made of the water itself, the River Dragon rises.

Zangetsu, still wearing Gon like an ill-fitting suit, makes it to higher ground, and seems relieved to put all four of Gon's feet on solid ground. Coordinating airsteps with four feet is harder than he expected. He isn't sure they're totally in the clear yet, so he holds on to the possession for now.

"Ehhh?! What tha heck is that?! That river's alive!" he says, in a heavily distorted and echoing version of Gongenzaka's voice. "... D'ya think it's friend, or foe...?"

Hoisting both Jasper and Herbert above his head, his legs dangling over the rising water, Steven screams a little when the lightning surges. He's technically above water level with them, but with the way it's moving, it's hard to guarantee they stay that way.

His wings flap and his legs kick as hard as they can, trying to gain more momentum upwards. Sadly, his wings are less willing to carry this weight than his floating powers are, and his floating powers require something to jump off of.

Jasper kicks out in alarm, only narrowly missing Steven.

"You! Steven! What are you doing?" she demands, furious with terror.

The clash of lighting and flood is such a fucking spectacle, Peridot zig-zags frantically in a panic, with no clear direction on where to go or what to do to avoid getting fried beyond 'don't touch the water'.

Steven screaming at least gives her something to focus on; attention drawn to the ridiculous grouping of him, Jasper and Herbert stacked on one another and descending painfully slowly (but inevitably) towards the danger zone, she zips forward just in the nick of time to... thrust herself nose-first under Steven's paws. She grunts and pushes upwards, letting him bounce directly off of her head. It's extremely undignified, and the kickback makes her wobble in the air.

When she reorients herself, she becomes aware of the fact that there's suddenly a fuckoff huge water dragon in their midst, and she simply just. Yells. In general dismay, and confusion. She's not sure what the actual proper reaction is here so she's just gonna go with what feels the most natural.

"Trying... to..." he grunts as he tries to gain altitude, Jasper almost kicking him in the face not help at all. He's losing some ground, when Peridot suddenly swoops in to the rescue, driving in to propel him right off her face.

"Save... your..."

He manages to get in one solid jump, and that's all it takes. His leaping powers magnify the effort, and all three of them go rocketing up into the air.

"Buuuuutt...!"

It's only as he reaches his peak that he, too, notices the dragon. It takes a bit of the wind out of his momentary victory.

"Oh boy," he says, softly.

Yuya will feel Rita's hand clench around his arm as that electric shock surges through the water and the smell of burnt flesh starts to fill the air.

"Wh-what's the big idea!?" she sputters in the dragon's direction. "That dragon freak... whose side is it even on!?" It's unclear if the dragon is close enough to clearly hear her complaints, but even if it is, Rita's evidently a little too rattled over nearly getting zapped to death to worry too much about being diplomatic about it.

As Lambert feels the stone begin to give way underfoot under the force of the water and he feels the balance under him shift, he makes the decision quickly.

“It won’t hold — time to go.” He grasps Strange’s arm before the magician can register protest, then in a surge of light — something that floods him with a sense of brief joy and warmth —and teleports them to higher ground, with the rest of the Carnival already there.

It turns out to be a pretty good view for what’s next. Lambert winces as the electricity crackles through, glad he’s not there, only to stare up at the dragon.

“Is that who I think it is?” he mutters.

Strange is so busy trying to hold the spell together and trying to keep them from drowning that he doesn't notice Lambert grab his arm until they're teleported away. As his feet touch solid ground, he blinks a little in surprise before dropping the spell.

"Thank you," he murmurs to Lambert, before looking up at the dragon...and quickly makes the same guess as Lambert about who this mystery dragon is.

"Considering our luck, it probably is," Strange continues, still quiet. There's a slightly teasing tone in his voice as Strange starts crafting his Silver Mirrorish shield spell again. "Hopefully her relationship with him is better than us with our fathers."

Joking is a perfect way to hide your slight terror!

Meanwhile, Gild has teleported over to the mountain ridge where carnival members are gathering, and Ignatius is just kind of floating around in the air above the water, looking for signs of distress. He really hopes that nobody got caught up in that. A strike from the combined force of two ancient Wyld Fae would be hard for any fae to take, let alone changelings.

He honestly shares Rita's sentiment, though he's not the sort to just straight up yell that. After being sure that Rita, Strange, and a few others are alive, he looks towards the dragon.

"They forced the hunting parties to retreat..." he observes. "It's a move in our favour... more or less..."

You know, minus the almost killing a bunch of them thing, but that's pretty par for the course with Wyld Fae in his experience.

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