+++ 奇跡国 - Miracle Country +++

[Things have been pretty calm recently, with time to relax at new places and everything... Which means that when you get ready to sleep tonight, and find yourselves completely unable to, it might feel strange to many who don't currently feel stressed out or worried about anything in particular. As the minutes turn into hours, it's clear any attempts to relax and get some sleep are pointless - no warm beverages or sheep counting will do the trick.



So perhaps you'll opt for embracing the sleeplessness and staying up in your rooms, alone or with whomever shares it. Perhaps you feel like heading down to the common rooms under the hotels and watch a movie, or hang out with others who might've had the same idea. Perhaps you feel like going outside for a walk - it's a good night to do that, with a bright full moon to light your way.

In any case, the following day will be declared a holiday, to account for those who might be exhausted after staying up all night. Never say Miracle Country isn't fair.]

[The first, most obviously noticeable thing: all the lights have gone out. Not only are the buildings and other spaces not illuminated any longer, but the sky is completely dark as well, no sun, moon or stars to light up anything. No matter the hour, the whole of Miracle Country looks this way, swallowed up in darkness that doesn't change.

The second thing to notice: it's not easy to create new sources of light. Are you grabbing some candles? Perhaps want to attempt building a bonfire of sorts? Using your own magic? All new sources of light created, even large ones, will glow very faintly, dimly, in a blueish light. Like they're struggling to stay there at all. So while they might be better than sitting around in full darkness, they won't fix the issue that much.





The third thing to... possibly be alarmed by: there are certain sources of light. Unpredictable, creepy and changing around, there're phrases and words written in different ways across walls, on tree trunks, on the surface of the caves, anywhere you look at. They glow brighter than fire or magic lights, shining for a while before it stops, and another phrase somewhere else lights up. Not only that, but the words they show might appear... relevant? Accusing? Sad, even? Confessions, bold statements, secrets, it'll be soon noticeable that these aren't random phrasings, but things that those here might think, even if they might not ever wish to say them out loud. Once that much is clear, it's likely easy to have misunderstandings. What if you think a certain phrase is something you believe your friend thinks, deep down? How can you know for sure? Nothing in the words shows who they truly belongs to. Perhaps it's a relief, if your own secrets are something you cannot afford to have out in the open...

In any case, it'll all be over after the weekend. Try to manage in the dark until then.]

🌸

[[Secrets in the dark~ event! Secrets list is here, remember you can ask here about anything concerning the event.]]

[Were the recent outfits fluffy enough? If your answer is a resounding yes, clearly you don't know this world well. Today it looks like Miracle Country is feeling like adding to the general cuddliness again... Or maybe there're other reasons? In any case, the result is the same. Teddy bears.

Lots of them, all over the place. In your rooms, on the hallways, at school (with proper little toy glasses, of course), laying around on the park, the bridges, even on the train seats... You get the idea. Some big, some small, there's even a really big blue penguin toy somewhere. What can you do with them? You could keep some, if you'd like. Or make a teddy bear fort. Or use them for shooting target practice. Make a teddy bear bonfire. Have a tea party. No one's judging. The bears that don't get claimed will simply disappear eventually.

Of course, if you're paying attention to the ridiculous bears scattered around, you might notice that the path leading to the Cherry Blossom Café & Candy Shop combo seems to have a whole lot more of them than any other place. If you get closer to them, it's easy to see the CBC in particular has so many of them that several are sitting on the café's available chairs, a few even on the counter. Maybe there's a point to that?]

[[Tiniest dumb mingle for Sakura & Syaoran's intro! Sakura be here, Syaoran be here]]

[So. What do you do when you're tricked into believing you should hide your powers again, and pretend the idea of having magic is laughable? You say 'fuck it' and make a bit of a statement as to how much of a sorcerer you really are.

And this is precisely what Merlin is doing. He's taken over one of the huts deeper into the forest, set out a couple of tables outside of it, and carried about every book of magic he owns over there, along with notebooks and other things. Under the curious gaze of some of the dragons that lurk in the forests, the point is to gather there and talk about magic with others. Or practice it, given it's safer to dick around with it further from where they all usually live. Or argue endlessly about magic versus bending. He's not picky.

Merlin'll have let people know of it, so you'll know in advance if you're interested in coming over to this magical meeting of sorts. There's no need to have magic skills of your own to attend, either - maybe you're just curious about the subject, or you want to watch what they'll all get up to.]

[Or maybe you still have vivid memories of Merlin setting fire to the forests out of anger before, and you want to make sure he won't be getting new ideas. Either way.]

[[Magic club/society/pick a name for it meeting! Merlin is here, otherwise mingle as you'd like.]]

[With people's memories (hopefully) back to normal, it's time for something different. This time, it's no blood ritual nor messing up with your heads that Kiseki has planned for everyone, no. Instead, it's something more relaxing this time. Fluffy, you could call it...



Everyone will be temporarily getting kigurumi, or animal-themed onesies for the non-weeaboo. That's right, you can fulfill your life-long dream of running around dressed as a kitty, or a mouse, or whatever else. Embrace Miracle Country and be an Usyagi, even!

What is the idea behind these cuddly shenanigans? Well, nothing too terrible. Hopefully you'll have fun with it. Or you'll loathe it and end up hiding in your room for the rest of the day. Perhaps you'll simply continue your usual routine while ignoring the change. Of course, should you want to get rid of them, you'll be able to, but any normal clothes will be temporarily gone from the world. But no worries! It'll all be replaced by... other kigurumis. You really can choose to be an Usyagi, if you'd like. You're welcome.]

[Things seem more settled now – the last few days peaceful enough, save for the monsters on the other side of the barrier. It’s a peaceful enough night now, the stars out, the moon shining low over the sakura.

Except, something feels off. Maybe you’ve felt it the last few days: the monsters are stronger. Or, the barrier is weaker. Or maybe it’s a mixture of both. Those monsters that have broken past the barrier don’t seem to be aiming for you – but then what are they aiming for?

In the meantime, the sakuras are fading away. Perhaps it’s subtle enough to miss at first, but some of the smaller ones nearer the barrier are fading out, the petals turning bone-white. The largest sakura at the center of the city is still pink, but it’s clearly fading in color.

And all around you, things are crumbling. The river is flowing a little sluggishly, with less fish than before. The crops in the field are starting to rot from the roots outward. The buildings around you are starting to crumble.

It’s not an entire disaster, though. Those basic weapons you had at the start? They’re evolving, too – and at least they aren’t crumbling around you like everything else. No, the more monsters you destroy, the sturdier your weapons are.

But what about those who weren’t given a weapon? Now that the monster attacks are growing stronger, the barrier growing weaker, it might become clear to you that your skills are – not helpful against fighting the monsters. In fact, anything you try to do is just useless against them.

But those without weapons – perhaps you’re starting to feel what your place in all this is. As a priest or priestess to the sakura, you’re responsible for protecting them – so even if you don’t have the sword, you can always be the shield: protect the trees, at all costs, or else all is lost. The sakura need to be protected.

The monster attacks are increasing, the sakura are losing their color, the world around you is crumbling, and the clear, calm nights are slowly slipping away – are those thunderclouds in the distance? Whatever’s happening, might be best to figure it out quickly.]

[At first, the change might not seem as immediate – there is, after all, the giant Sakura in the center of the park, still visible and still large and blooming. But today, all the trees seem to be sakura, surrounding the area and everywhere you look. It’ll soon be clear that you are no longer in the Miracle Country you know and love.

The city isn’t as you know it. Gone are the more modern-style houses and replaced with an ancient Japanese aesthetic. The sakura curve around the paths, made of stone, little streams of water and sakura blossoms falling to line the way.

And for those sensitive to magic, you’ll notice the giant barrier right away. It branches out from the giant sakura in the center of the town. Even those who can’t sense magic will be able to tell this is an old and powerful tree – it emanates its aura, the barrier strong and expansive. Seems simple enough, right?

In fact, this new ‘world’ seems idyllic in many ways. There are fields to plant crops, some vegetables already ready to harvest. The river remains, full of fish just waiting to be caught. The houses are in good repair and there’s enough supplies for everyone. The sun is shining, and it’s a warm spring day. Maybe despite yourself, you have to feel cheerful – it’s hard to see something so peaceful and lovely and not feel a simple joy with it, after all.

Well, except for the part where if you step out beyond the barriers held up by the sakura trees, you’ll find monsters lurking, just waiting to attack. And if they get past the barrier – which is known to happen – they’re aiming for one thing: sakura. They’ll do everything they can to get to them – destroying them or consuming them.

Thankfully for right now, these monsters are weak – and don’t show up that often. The barrier is strong enough to keep them out, after all, and they’re easily dispatched. And you aren’t going to necessarily know the connection between the trees and the monsters. It’s still too early to tell – if anything, it’s easy to mistake the monster’s intent: surely they’d be after the people, right? You should protect them. You'll find some basic weaponry in the houses around you - just basic-level swords or bows, nothing too fancy but it'll get the job done.

How do you fit into this, then? Characters are sorted as warriors or as priests/priestesses. The warriors are in charge of fighting the monsters that come through and the priest/priestesses are responsible for keeping the barriers strong. Warriors are unable to affect the barriers on their own just as priest/priestesses are unable to fight against the monsters with any sort of success. You’ll know which one you’ve been sorted into based on the outfits you’ll suddenly find yourself in – appropriately, the warriors will have more samurai-like garb while the priest/priestesses have outfits inspired by traditional miko.

For now, your purpose isn’t entirely clear. It seems you should be making the best of the situation you’re in: if anything, it’s like a mini-vacation. So long as you stay inside the barrier, you should be perfectly safe.]


[[ooc: our sacred sakura event begins! The event plotting post is here if you need a refresher. Other logs will be up during the timeline to show the advancement of the event. Keep in mind that things are relatively calm and peaceful at this point and the character would not know their role in everything just yet.]]

a.
[ With the sense that there are plenty of mysteries about the forests in Miracle Country to investigate, the three make their way through them first, initially actually passing the areas full of welcoming paths and flowers, seeing the ponds and all the different (for now still normal) animals. It’s a pretty sight, that much can’t be denied and they walk casually along. ]

[ Alisha can be seen walking behind Mikleo and Sorey both, hands tucked behind her back as she looks around with a soft smile. ]

It’s been a rather long time since we’ve explored like this, hasn’t it?

[That gains a quick smile from Sorey as he nods in agreement, a bounce in his step. ] It has… I’m really glad we decided to do this! Think of all the things we might find!

[ It really has been a while. Mikleo, ever the practical one, looks around beside Alisha and Sorey and firstly thinks of the things they've heard about this place until now. ] It's not what one might expect of a forest that holds dangerous creatures in it if you wander too far. We should stay alert.

[ The deeper they go, past the barrier and the pretty pathways that are already becoming more rough nature and earth, the look of the surroundings does start to match better. They might even start to encounter the different monsters within. Will there really dragons here? Beyond the caves that follows one of the deeper paths, the skeletal remains of one single massive, unmistakable dragon certainly shows some proof. ]


b.
[ Every bridge that connects to the other islands is so unique and specific to the locations beyond that they can't help but stop and look at them before going forward. They see the bridge to the garden and zoo islands that is made up for roots, wondering what tree these came from or how old it is. There's the museum islands bridge lined up with bookshelves, fossils and stones that they just can't pass up. Even the light up metal bridge leading to the amusement park gets their attention. Anyone passing by or simply trying to get past the bridge to the other side may very well be obstructed by the geeking out happening here. ]

[ It’s Alisha who stops by one of the fossils, eyes going wide at one of the especially larger ones. ] T-This one-- is rather large, isn’t it?

[ Sorey crouches down next to her, a contemplating look crossing over his features as he stares at the fossil. What secrets it must hold! ] Do you think… the bridge would miss that one? [ Provided they can actually remove it from the structure without damaging it. ]


c.
[ To get to the garden island first they pass the zoo and this is where the animals getstrange. You might see the three of them at a display of sparkling gemstone-looking birds. Or llamas made of literal cotton candy. Mikleo wants nothing to do with the exhibition of colorful felt fabric wolves, even if it looks perfectly safe (and despite Sorey’s numerous assurances that the wolves look really cute and harmless!!). Nope. ]

[ The walk around the gardens is much more calm in comparison. Even more than the start of the forests, the beautiful nature here is hard not to be awed by. And even more impressive is the hedge maze in the middle. Do others really challenge through a large maze like that? It does have the look of a main attraction. ]


d.
[ The final stop will be the winged island, a careful journey along the bridge of large stepping stones, and through the desert area that leads to the winged ruins. The reservoir might very well be the most impressive sight of all on this exploration.

Mikleo can't help but feel how the water holds a special sort of purity to it, different from any of the rivers or ponds around Miracle Country. The memories of the people they care for are strong here, for reasons they can't begin to understand just yet. ]

This is...

[ When faced with the best find they’ve had all day, the ruins that just call to be explored… even so, Sorey manages to stop for a moment, close his eyes and breathe in the air. ] Somehow… the whole atmosphere in these ruins is really calm!

[ Alisha smiles fondly at the river beneath them, stopping to take in how clear and pure the water actually looks. ]

This resembles Ladylake after we purified it, doesn’t it? The water looks much more clear here than it does in other areas.

[ Anyone that happens to come across them now may very well share in the nostalgia between the three of them here, as they stand together at the reservoir. At least... the calm feeling in the air is undeniable. A fitting end to their day of exploring. ]


[[ooc: Alisha, Sorey and Mikleo are on an expedition! Join them around, pick your flavor with any location prompt and feel free to specify which character(s) your tag is for. All three will be available.]]

[On this fine afternoon, the residents of the hotel will find a notice board right outside the hotel, and written in large block-letters, it reads the following:]



[Stiles has been hard at work -- there are many things he would love to learn about different places, especially everything he can use to add to the bestiary he has been compiling... and dragons seems like a good place to start.

So mark down your answer in the right column, read what others have already written down, maybe add in your own two cents about what you think of dragons or what their role is in your world, or just shake your head at this if you see no point to the whole thing. The word is, after all, free.]

( ooc: this is a mingle log so use it to your heart's content!! stiles will be hanging around and reading the responses every few hours, he has a top level HERE where you can approach him about this whole thing if you're so inclined. )

[Pink and fluff everywhere, that's the sight that might greet you today, as you find yourself in one of the many kiddy pool-like pits around Kiseki. Well, not just pink, but we like to shove pink at your faces. Yes, it could be full of marshmallows. But perhaps the little pool you're in has plastic balls in it, like the ballpit at the playground. Maybe it's full of mud. Or flowers. Or cupcakes. Or cottonballs. Or jell-o. Some actually have water in them!

But worry not! (You weren't worried? Even better) You're not alone in them. You'll end up with someone else, it's the whole point of them. You and your companion might notice, all the little pools have a sign saying:

"Find common ground."

What does that mean? Precisely that! You won't be able to leave the pool until you find something in common with the person you're sharing it with. Then, the contents will disappear, and once it's all gone, you'll be able to leave. Maybe you'll need to find more than one thing in common, if you're very similar people. These pools can be picky. And tricky, given that even if you've managed to get free, you might find yourself in yet another of those, with someone else...

In case you're growing bored in them, the content of the pool will change randomly every now and then - so maybe you're perfectly comfortable in a sea of nice cushions, only to then find yourself sitting in fresh paint. At least, Miracle Country will make sure to clean you up once you're out of it, or when the content of the pools changes... sometimes, that is. Enjoy!]