Nile made a soft noise in lieu of greeting, tilting his hooded head so that it gently bumped against Lyonnese's. His gaze swept over the crowd for a moment, and he managed to catch an awkward wave from across the room. So Necro was here too. That was good to know. He hoped the other was doing well. They'd have to get together some time.
He blinked, when Lyon spoke, dragging himself from his thoughts. "Oh my god, no." Nile said when Aventine removed her hand. "I mean it, seriously. Go crazy. Please fuel his damn ego about his arms." The taller knight untangled himself, waving a hand at her, an albiet, botched attempt to get her to resume her earlier activities. "Do you know how many times I've watched little old ladies stop him and try to set him up with their grand daughters? My god, I live for it. It's great." Nile slid to his husband's free side and linking their arms together. "Look, see. You can have that arm, I got this one."
Nile grinned at the pair. He might be in for it later, but it was worth it in the moment.
"I haven't either, if that makes you feel any better." He said then, settling down some. There were, of course, more factors that saw to that then just whatever was currently ******** with their ability to access things. "Though I do know that the blades on my weapon completely shattered... So its just the chains." Slightly awkward, but still usable in a pinch he supposed. "My magic messes with the wind on a good day... I decided it was probably better not to test how botched that option was."
Spotting his older brother Yomi silently made his way over to the elder Saturn knight and an unknown squire of Saturn. "Aniki I'm glad to see you!" He said by way of greeting before turning to the other squire. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Yomi-no-kuni though you can just call me Yomi." He introduced himself with a slight bow.
He turned back to his brother. "A friend of yours?" He inquired before turning his attention to the Code as it spoke. "Ah well that at least partially explains the weird issues I've been having with my magic." the young man muttered. He turned to the other two there "You've both had issues as well?" He asked the other Saturn knights.
"I've only had a few interactions with the Code, Aniki you've been a knight for longer, is this sort of situation common?" He asked as he listened to others responding to the Code. "I wonder what sort of 'unnatural force' is causing this?"
Kaifeng, Squire of Saturn Listening to the Code, and offering what he can about his Wonder/difficulty traveling there.
Having never been to the moon or met the Code before, Kaifeng felt the full force of awe when the Code started speaking, just as he’d felt awed to even be on the moon for the first time. He couldn’t compare to any previous experience to judge whether or not the Code seemed under the weather. Kaifeng could only stare in wonder at the glowing orb of the Code and take in what it had to say.
That he could still pay attention to the new knight gege he was meeting—Aokigahara, a very strong-sounding name—felt like a bit of a minor miracle. Still, Kaifeng heard everything he’d said and met it with a pleasant smile. “No apologies necessary, gege,” Kaifeng said about calling over Aokigahara’s younger brother, and raised a hand to wave at the other Saturn Knight. “And yeah, I’d like to be a friend. Or I come in friendship, anyway. I’m Kaifeng, pleasure to meet you, Yomi.
“But yes, the name ‘Rin’—I’ve heard it in some memories recovered up at my Wonder before. Not quite recently,” he said with a morose sigh, “since I can’t get to it right now—but a few times before. Whenever Xingyi-ge—the Knight of Kaifeng who came before me? Whenever he mentions Rin, they seem to have been sort of like friends who worked together? He’s mentioned solving cases offworld, and that sort of makes sense. Kaifeng the Wonder is a graveyard, primarily, and I’ve gathered that a lot of people who wound up buried there didn’t have anywhere else to go, so to speak. ‘People who others wanted to forget’ seems to be a common thing. If they came to be buried at Kaifeng under violent, dark, or unpleasant circumstances, then they might’ve had murders to solve or other unfinished business.”
He hummed, regarding Aokigahara curiously. “I take it the name ‘Rin’ means something to you, then?”
The young page watched fascinated by what was going on. The light on the pedestal began to speak. It spoke of things she didn't quiet understand, apparently it was connected to her powers and really everyone in the room's power as well. It was good to know she was not alone in experiencing the issues with her magic but she wondered what this force was that was causing the problems.
She had so many questions for the glowing mist entity, not just abou8t the current situation but about her powers as a whole. She wanted to ask why was given these powers and what she was suppose to do with them, assuming she was 'meant' to do anything beside fight monsters. But she knew now was not the time. So she remained quiet and listened as other spoke to the weird 'Code' trying to do her best to understand the situation.
“Oh, um. Right,” Dering murmured, and clutched his lute tight to himself for a few seconds longer before he reluctantly dismissed it. He wished it had been stronger, or that in its unstable state it might have shrunk down a bit. He wanted to hold it, it brought him comfort.
…But, Stirling was right. There were too many people here. It wasn’t fair to take up more space when everyone probably wanted a little breathing room.
He dismissed his weapon to subspace but awkwardly crossed his arms over his chest afterwards. Stirling seemed like she was uncomfortable. Maybe she wasn’t used to seeing so many people or feeling so many auras, or maybe she was just feeling crowded, too.x
He didn’t quite understand what she was saying, about not seeing the Moon, but he trusted her. It didn’t feel like they were in danger here, and there were others that were much stronger than him even if there was a problem. He couldn’t even figure out his magic and he wouldn’t be much use here. What was he going to do in a fight, swing his lute and clobber a handful of Knights along the way? No, thank you.
“...Are you doing okay?” he asked quietly. He was listening to the other Knights and their experiences, but he couldn’t miss how uncomfortable she looked.
Orangeish Sherbert
Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2024 3:10 pm
The Code snorted at Xibalba’s suggestion. “The Negaverse wishes it had the power to affect me so. But, no. This is not their doing. There are greater things in the Universe. Be glad they have not set their eyes on Earth or any of your Wonders.”
Lanting, Halle, and Havasu were stuck on their Wonders. Nothing had seemed disrupted, they had only been temporarily trapped there. Messages were unreliably sent or received. They were alone, without access to the Code. The Cornerstone piece shifted warily.
Sumner said that things were fine on his Wonder before, but now felt oddly absent. Pendour, Hy-Brasil, Erytheia, Camelot, and Delphi had been blocked from their Wonders. Meditating didn’t help.
Powering up was difficult. Even with rank, or being Transcended, had not aided anyone. This problem was universally shared by all.
Shangri-La and Venice added that it wasn’t only their Wonders blocking them out, but their weapons were malfunctioning, too. Hyperborea hadn't been able to call upon her summon, either.
Pharos, Cynthus, and Sigiriya had tried other means to access Wonders. They could see the shielding bubble from the outside, but it had prevented them from entering. On the Surrounding, the Moon, Ida–all things were the same. Wonders were there, but bubbled and inaccessible.
“I did not hear you, no. It takes energy to focus consciousness into one specific point of the cosmos. I didn’t have the means at the time.” It would have spoken if it could. It did no favors to itself or others to have kept silent otherwise. “The shields were for your protection, and mine. It is not always voluntary. It prevents corruption or destruction when there are unprecedented interferences. It is not always a bad thing. If it works.”
In this case, it seemed to have. They were all alive and well, if not just a little worse for wear.
Of course, Valhalla’s suggestion to offer energy was considered briefly but the Code had no manners or need for proprietary. There was no need to deny what might have helped.
“If you have energy in surplus to give, I will take it. It will not resolve things in the long run, but it will help me here, and now. Do not give more than you need for yourself. You’ll have work to do after this.”
If the Code could be stabilized, if it could have the strength to guide them and ensure their success–then, of course it would accept any help it could get.
Erytheia and Hawara’s offers were similarly appreciated, and the Code was ready to accept anything they could give. Especially if they were feeling sick or struggling.
“You’ll be back on your Wonders soon enough. I think, with a bit more time and focus, I’ll be able to remove the last of the barriers for you. I don’t think your Wonders are in danger anymore, but the Code’s connection has been jostled. You can fix it, but you’ll have to do it in person.”
Spei asked if things would get back to normal, and the Code was quick to reassure again, “This is correctable. With a bit of effort, yes. Things will return to normal. For all of us. But it requires everyone to pull their weight.”
Tortuga had a good question, but the Code refrained from answering. For now. “I will explain what I know in due time. But that answer might inspire more questions. Let me tell you how to fix this, first, and then I will answer those questions.”
The Code was a little bigger now–still not quite the shining ball of light it had been before, but it had more of a presence. It took a moment to focus itself before speaking again. “For now, your arrival here has helped stabilize me. I’ll need you to stay for a bit longer, but by the end of our meeting you should be able to access your Wonders again, and the Code piece there. Your Wonders will remain shielded until you do this. I will loan you my strength so you can pass through the barrier, but I will give you full warning–I will be very weak until you resonate with your Code piece again. If you haven’t found it before, you need to find it now. When you have synchronized with the Code piece at your Wonder, your powers–and Wonder–should stabilize. And, in turn, me. The energy is not flowing freely as it should, and the longer this problem persists, the worse it will get.”
The weaker the Code would get.
“I am sure you understand the importance of this. I need everyone to help.”
Quote:
The next update will be at about 6PM EST on Sunday the 7th.
You do not need to participate in this ORP to participate in the following prompt, but you must participate in the following prompt to acquire reduced requirements for your character to unlock perks in the upcoming release. Participating in the previous prompt and this ORP may further reduce unlock requirements for your character. Players can join the ORP at any point in time and can handwave that they have been here from the beginning or arrive late depending on preference. There are no repercussions for missing a prompt.
If you are interacting with the Code, please quote The Space Cauldron! Please PM any questions to The Space Cauldron.
(If you spoke to the Code but your comment was missed, please PM so we can edit this post to include your character!)
The mention of the others summon had Delphi nodding slowly, that was something she'd not managed with her own planet. She had found her code piece, had other thigns working on her planet, and had even transcended but she knew ntohing of summons. She was certain she had one though, perhaps something she would ask the other about in private. The wintery knight was not one for talking about such things in a public area, where others were, and these matters seemed far more important.
"Outside forces....things which are potential threats but are not the Negaverse." Trailing off she raised ehr voice then, to question the code. "These other, greater, threats out in space...do you know what they are and why they have not looked to Earth yet? Or is it something we should figure is only a matter of time?" Should it be something to prepare themselves for, as an inevitable thing? Things other than the Negaverse, more threats to them and to Earth, was not something she fancied the idea of but at least if they knew about it they could possibly prepare for it.
When the code mentioned it would take energy, if they had extra to give, Delphi looked over to Hyperborea. "I think we can both offer up some energy, don't you? If it helps the code it'll help us." Because she wanted to help her wonder and herself, it was all about her wonder and herself, she would do whatever her wonder needed of her and if this would help - she was all for it. "I can give energy." Speaking up for the code to hear her. She had, upon transcending, gained the ability to give energy to others and while it wasn't something she'd normally do she would here. Looking over Hyperborea's girlfriend for a moment, a bit of a smile ghosting across her features, it had been awhile since she'd seen the other knigbt but it was good to see her. She made Hyperborea happy and Delphi appreciated the white haired Cosmos knight and so she accepted the other knight.
Aurelius0815
Let's donate energy?
genovianprince
Laeradr, cause part of the group and here.
Noir Songbird
Hi, you are accepted because Hyperborea is and she knows you.
The Space Cauldron
Concerns and energy offering.
Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2024 6:19 pm
Ngome listened as the other knights asked the Code questions, eager to understand the situation better. The feeling of urgency hung heavy in the air, driving them to find a solution swiftly.
She nodded along with the others, her mind racing to piece together the fragments of information they had been given. The revelation that their connection to their Wonders had been severed filled her with a deep sense of unease. Their powers were an extension of themselves, intricately linked to the essence of who they were as knights. Without access to their Wonders, they were vulnerable in a way they had never experienced before.
As the Code outlined the steps they needed to take to restore balance, Ngome felt a surge of determination course through her.
Even though she hadn’t visited her wonder yet she had visited other wonders and she can sense the immense power that resided within them. The thought of losing that connection was unbearable. Ngome knew she had to act swiftly and decisively to reunite with her Wonder and restore the flow of energy.
(Giving energy to the Code. Offering assistance to anyone in need of energy once they return to Earth.)
Valhalla nodded gratefully to Erytheia and Hawara when they offered their energy as well, and he showed Bilskirnir and Aragon an encouraging smile and thumb’s up.
“I’ll be right back. Gonna see if this can help any. Oh, I’ve got some extra energy that gets kind of… a lot if I can’t get to my Wonder. I’ll explain more later,” he added quickly, before joining the group of Knights who had approached the Code with similar offers of energy.
“Don’t worry about us,” Valhalla said to the Code with a smile, the tone of his voice hinting that he was intentionally repeating the same sentiment that the Code said to them about not being concerned for it. He held out his hand to start transferring energy.
“We’re pretty strong, especially when we all team up together. Besides, if you have to give us your strength again so we can get through whatever barriers remain, wouldn’t it make sense for us to help you now?” Valhalla asked, and then glanced to the Knights around him who joined. To Delphi and possibly Hyperborea, and any other transcended knights.
“If you’re in need of energy after this, I know Ganymede can help. Others too, of course, but it’s easiest for me to get in contact with my wife.”
It was no heavily guarded secret that he and Ganymede were married, although perhaps it was best that those who saw them reveal their civilian identities on the Moon after they all tried getting into Negaspace with Caedus’s help so many years ago have forgotten. Not so much for their own safety, but for their childrens’ and family and friends’ safety.
Reims was relieved that the topic about his bruise was dropped. He wished he was holding Yvoire’s hand with his other hand, but it was either this, or let Yvoire have a chance to look more closely at the bruise on his face, so he would take a little pain to his hand without complaint.
“Damn, even Ganymede couldn’t do it? That makes sense since she doesn’t have any authority over our Wonders,” he huffed. Not that he had anything particularly against Ganymede, and he knew that Evie liked her so he glanced down at him with a small wince and added, “No offense.”
He didn’t want to upset Evie. Not now, especially.
“It’s good that you have Ganymede, though. Someone you can get answers from when you don’t know what to do,” he said quietly as the Code spoke again. At least this way, if he did end up following through with Zinkenite’s offer, Evie wouldn’t be alone.
“Do you think Ganymede would know where the Code pieces are at our Wonders? Maybe not her, but you said she has memories of the past, yeah?” he asked and shrugged. It was their responsibility to take care of their wonders, but a little help wouldn’t hurt, especially if they needed to find their Code pieces fast.
“Have you found your piece yet? Ah… I really hope mine isn’t somewhere creepy…”
(Making plans with Amarynthos to help their Code pieces.)
Okay, so they just needed to help stabilize the Code? That seemed reasonable. He wasn’t sure what it entailed, but he was certain he could figure it out. He and Amarynthos. And if any of their friends were having trouble, he was sure they could help them figure it out, too. And if they couldn’t, then surely Sessrumnir and Palatine and Paradise and all of the other knights they knew would help them figure things out.
Ephesus was just happy that he’d be able to get to his Wonder again. He hadn’t had too much difficulty powering up, but his staff had been reverted back to a little honey dipper, and he was pretty sure he couldn’t summon his tiger.
“We should try doing that right away,” Ephesus suggested to Amarynthos, still feeling more relaxed around the people he knew would keep them safe. Not that they were in danger there, but if the Negaverse tried hurting them, they’d all look out for each other.
But if they could stabilize their Code piece, it would help the Code do more later, right?
(Talking to Palatine with Paradise, Amarynthos, and Ephesus.)
Sessrumnir snorted at Amarynthos’s request, but he couldn’t deny him anything, so of course he would send a message to Devyn that they said hello. He wasn’t sure if he wanted Asher and Oliver even more involved in this magical war than they already were, so… maybe he wouldn’t put in too good of a word. As if his word held much weight anyway.
It was bad enough that his uncle was now involved too. He was surprised the man actually powered up. He seemed a bit of a shut in, if anyone asked Sessrumnir for his opinion of his uncle.
“After last time? The Code at Olympus probably doesn’t want to deal with everyone’s nonsense again,” Sessrumnir shook his head with exasperation.
Maybe things were better now that they did have more young Knights growing up into this, rather than coming into it with opinions and ambitions.
But if Sessrumnir had to guess, it was likely less energy to bring them to the Moon than to Mars.
The idea of other adversarial forces besides the Negaverse lurking in the darkness of space did not shock the young woman, she had seen for herself on numerous occasions extraterrestrial threats. She thought of the many unaligned beings of Chaos she had seen, of the Mad King, and the Vanguard. She didn't know if the current force was anything like any of the alien threats she had seen before but at the very least the idea of a new threat in this war was not new to her. But what did disturb her was the thought that such a threat could affect the Code so thoroughly.
Hyperborea nodded to Delphi's offer of energy after a familiar Transcended Knight of Jupiter suggested the idea to the Code. She didn't know the Jupiter Knight well but he had been around at least since she was a young knight and every time she had seen him at a gathering or battle he seemed an honorable sort. She looked at Delphi and the older Knight and then around at other knights marked by the glowing lines of transcendence she hoped they would also see the wisdom in providing aid here. "I'll also give my energy! We can help ease your burden, like we've done in the past. I've got energy to spare and if it will help stabilize you until this is fixed then its a worthy sacrifice." She spoke up stepping forward to give her energy to the Code.
The solution the Code spoke of was easy enough for her, she knew exactly where her piece was and she had connected with multiple times before but she imagined for newer knights or ones who were not so connected to their Wonder it would be a difficult task and if they could buy a bit more time for those knights by empowering the Code then all the better. She also wanted to know what had caused these issues, stemming the bleed was important yes but they also needed to find what had caused the wound so to speak.
“I think it has something to do with the glowing,” Bilskirnir told Aragon, pointing to his own left palm to draw attention to the silvery glow on Valhalla’s. “The giving energy thing. Looks like a few people can do it, actually,” he added, glancing around. “Don’t ask me how. I have no idea. Or I do, but not really. Pretty sure Val or Ganymede told me at some point, but hell if I can keep track of everything.”
Bilskirnir brought a hand to his chin, falling into deep thought. (Deep for him, anyway.) He tapped a foot absentmindedly, considering what the Code was telling them.
“Guess you’ll be checking out your Wonder sooner than later,” he continued. Then he winced. “Not gonna lie, I have no idea where the piece of the Code is at mine. Oh, you’ll have to look for your ring too, while you're there. Might as well kill two birds with one stone. That’s so you can communicate. Did I tell you that yesterday? I’m s**t at mentoring. We’ll get Val to go over the basics again once we’re done here, make sure I didn’t miss anything important.”
Yvoire could tell that Reims wasn’t all that impressed with Ganymede, and while he couldn’t really blame Reims for having so little interest in someone he probably didn’t know, Yvoire still felt awkward. He lowered his gaze and tried not to squirm.
“No, but… I can ask,” he mumbled.
He’d been far more focused on cleaning and fixing what he could at his Wonder. Yvoire had figured the Code piece there was safe where it was without any interference from him; before now, there hadn’t been any sense of urgency on his part to find it. He tried to imagine where it might be, but the castle of Yvoire was so huge he hadn’t even been able to explore all of it yet. Maybe there were dungeons? Or an important room most people wouldn’t be able to access?
“Maybe there’s a crypt at yours,” Yvoire suggested. “Or a sanctuary. Or there could be more to that secret room where you found your ring.”
Of course, Reims had taken his ring off of a skeleton, which had been creepy in and of itself. Yvoire couldn’t help but cringe.
“Oh my God, stoooooop,” Cynthus whined, turning from the Code to her dad, who continued to be embarrassing. “Literally all of my guy friends are gay, Daddy. I didn’t become a knight because of boys, I became a knight because the Code thought I was special and said it needed help. I was being generous. And responsible. Protecting a Wonder and saving the world’s a good deed.”
Cynthus said this like she expected praise for it, head tipped in such a way that she could sort of look down her nose—proud and smug, but also visibly immature (which she would deny).
The approach of Valhalla made her nose wrinkle. Cynthus stuck out her tongue in an exaggerated show of disgust (not for him, necessary, more so the knowledge that her family was very well represented here). She hadn’t really seen much of Chris as Valhalla since he was normally so busy (what with having kids and a wife and a whole job), but she’d been told who to look out for if she needed help, so she was certain it was him.
She stepped back to take herself out of the way since there were so many people offering the Code their energy, and she didn’t want to be stuck around more of her family if she could help it. That would be deeply uncool.
“Pretty sure that guy’s you-know-who,” she told Poe. “You know, second son of Paradise. Can’t say their real names, that would be dumb.”
“You could put in a good word for them,” Palatine told Amarynthos, voice a bit flat—half serious, half joking. “Go up to the Code and let it know. That’s what it does these days, right? Plucks people up here and makes Wonders on the moon? They might not thank you for it, though.”
Then again, not everyone was as tired and bitter as she was. Some of them were still so idealistic.
Palatine folded her arms over his chest. She wasn’t a fan of how this war tended to make its way through families. She flicked her gaze over to Cynthus and Poe, then looked toward Paradise with a frown concealing her concern. Paradise had already lost Empyrean. All of her children were involved. Each new awakening presented an increased opportunity to lose someone else.
It made Palatine antsy. She shifted from foot to foot. When it seemed they would have to go to their Wonders, Palatine scowled further.
You are weak willed, the ghost (her ancestor???) had told her last time. What do you know of love?
“Great,” Palatine grumbled without a trace of enthusiasm. “This sounds like it’ll be a blast.”
Almere continued to stare at her melting spoon, but she decided that she wasn't going to let that deter her! If another Chaos filled robot busted out of the walls, she could probably try hitting it with her bare hands. She'd been sparring with Mechelen, that had to count for something, right?
For some reason it still seemed really scary. Not that she was going to say that. She was supposed to be brave.
When the Code said they had to find something on their Wonders, she gave a mini sigh of relief.
"A Code piece at our Wonders, huh?" she asked. "That's an excuse to finish looking around on mine! Have either of you two ever seen something like that before?"
Was it just a smaller glowing ball, or something else?
![[Mistress Morbid]'s avatar](https://a1cdn.gaiaonline.com/dress-up/avatar/ava/3e/dd/5052589139dd3e_flip.png?t=1545372613_6.00_11)
