hadriel_logs | Event Log: A Hope for the Future

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Event Log: A Hope for the Future

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the A Hope for the Future event
Where: All over the city!
When: April 15th-April 19th
Warnings: Stealth Rock

It's finally time to reap the rewards you've earned from all that hard work collecting and returning the Hope orbs! Be careful walking the streets during the small earthquakes, but feel free to admire the scenery as your beautiful city reassembles its way back into its former glory.

There are new houses where the destroyed buildings once were, and they're perfect for a single person or pair of lovebirds. In addition, you'll find that the electricity to these new houses, and all other homes and shops in the city is restored. The food is better, the monsters are gone- hey, this city might be livable again!

To cap it all off, we've got a feast waiting for you on the 19th! Come one, come all, and enjoy all of your favorite foods, drinks, and party games. It's been awhile since we've all gotten together to celebrate something good, so get your party on and toss all your troubles away!

► This log covers April 14th-April 19th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you get hit by levitating rubble or eat a food that wasn't meant for you, please let us know here.

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[oh it's not at all like that...the real story is much more horrifying. Child pirates, terminal illness, fratricide, etc.

He shakes it off and comes back to himself with another good gulp of coffee]

Adventure, huh? Yeah, more or less. Looting civilians is so unprofitable, though. It's much more exciting and pays out more to go after other, more powerful pirates. [dryly] The New World is rife with danger, it's ruled by pirates and Marine presence is a joke. I've been a pirate since I was a child, captain for ten years, and I'm barely strong enough to stand on my own in that sea.

[She nods, a lot of this sounding very familiar to her - just without the ships and seas part. A lawless world where might makes right, where if you're not the strongest then you had at least better be fast or smart to hold your own? Well or be in the good favor of someone who can do all of that for you. Yeah. Sounds like home.]

Ten years! That's a long time for a human. Especially in such a vicious-sounding place. So what's your secret, how do you guys manage to bring down other pirates if everyone's so tough?

You just have to be tougher. [okay, that came off pretty smug] Some simply push themselves to be strong fighters, some seek Devil Fruit to give them a leg up, others make all the right alliances. The ability I used to examine you - that's my Devil Fruit ability, and yes, I do use it to fight as much as for medicine.

[he came to the party unarmed against his better judgment, considering that going out unarmed was how he got himself obliterated and missed out on Caedra's demon fun. So right now, he may not look the part of a fighter.]

[She's okay with smug, so long as it's backed up with real ability. And he may not be armed with that sword she saw in the clinic, but he does still have the build of a man who can throw a solid punch. So many of her own kind prefer combat so close they forego weapons entirely to instead sink claws and teeth into their enemies. Most are intimately familiar with the taste of fresh blood.]

Tell me about the Devil Fruit, then, because as far as I know we have nothing like it where I come from. You insisted at one point that it isn't magic?

[It also doesn't bother her one bit that he seems to say outright that his abilities come from an external source, rather than something he earned through hard work. How could that bother her, when that's exactly what she did for herself? The resulting power and how effectively it is wielded are far more important.]

[Since most of what he could explain was, at least where he came from, common knowledge, Law had no problem satisfying her curiosity. He'd told several people about his abilities, though naturally he hadn't yet shared with them his weaknesses. That would just be dumb.]

It isn't. Once you eat a fruit, it becomes a part of you. The superstitious claim a devil comes to live inside you and gives you that power, but I've been reading up on government research so I know it's...well. As far as has been discovered, an actual physiological change. [scoffs] It's not devils. Each one is unique, so no one else can do what I do, no more than I can create fire or ice.

Devils! [she laughs] Of course not, though I know how superstitious people can be. Even if a devil was somehow bound to such a fruit, you would know it the instant it started trying to bargain with you for the terms of its release. Obnoxious creatures. No creativity.

[Not that she's met many, but it's an instinctual sort of hatred by now. When you're born into a race of people formed from the darkest core of the universe's sentient heart, and when those people have been at war with another race for tens of thousands of years, that hatred gets propagated rampantly. Although her reponse keeps a lot of her previous lighthearted tone, there's a certain intense acidity to her words.]

And so yours gave you the ability to look inside a person and ... manipulate, right? Something like that.

[that does amuse him slightly. Apparently myths about devils cross universes.]

True. The only condition you have to deal with is that the fruit tastes like shit. [a taste he won't forget, even after thirteen years] I'm a free-manipulation human. Inside my operating room, I can do anything. Both cut and heal, repair and destroy. Everything inside it, down to the smallest particle, is subject to my whim.

[that does make it sound pretty impressive, doesn't it?]

[In all the possible drawbacks she's heard of - and experienced - in borrowing power from other sources, a fruit tasting badly has to be one of the lightest. You got off easy, Law. But she smiles over her coffee, nods a little at his explanation, recalling what he had said before as well.]

That's a lot of power over a person if you can keep them contained. You've - you learned I can teleport, clearly, but I imagine otherwise it's the sort of thing a person can't just walk out of, once they're in it?

[there is one significant drawback but not telling her isn't the same as lying, is it?]

Oh, no, they can. [with a sly twitch of the eyebrow. Yes, he won't forget her ability to teleport, they could play a fun game of tag with that] But most people don't think of it. The mere presence of the Room sends them into a panic. They don't stop to think about how easy it could be to slip out of my grasp, and fall victim all the same.

[you want adventure, Caedra? He's got a quick related story.] I fought a Vice-Admiral, once, who wasn't stupid. He understood the range and potential of my power, and warned his men to get out of the circle. They all stood there gaping at him like fish, allowing me the moment needed to cut them all down. So, yeah. You can teleport, you could probably get out of the Room in a blink. I'd have to make it large enough that you couldn't get out before I could reach you.

[Mm, yes, that's more like it. That's the sort of tale that captures her attention, that causes her lips to quirk upward in amusement and hunger. Some day she will find these gods and eviscerate them herself, quickly and mercilessly, robbing them of any opportunity to protect themselves and each other -

She catches herself fantasizing and cuts it off. Focuses back on Law and nods.]

How big could you make it? How many could you kill all at once?

[if only he knew he was playing with fire, here...]

It has a limit, but I can make it large enough that the people in it can't see the edges, and therefore don't know they're in it. If I wanted, a good portion of this city could be inside it.

[not addressing the body count because most of the time, he doesn't kill unless necessary. Torture is more effective.]

It's all in how skillful I am with the ability. Raw power can be overcome by good tactics.

[Wow this is unfair because Law talking about how he could probably kill off most of an entire city of people at once absolutely makes her want to slide back over there and steal him for the night. Curse her everlasting attraction to power and murder.]

That's - fascinating. And you're right, of course, tactics are important. Necessary. But it sounds like you have plenty of both, which is even better.

[OH BOY...]

Yeah, well. What about you? I expect...one of those magic types, can do a lot more than just teleport yourself?

[fair's fair...]

[She's being good. She's staying put. He said no, and she has the common sense not to push. Some of her kin absolutely are not that merciful.

But this question, how do we answer this question. She's proud and tipsy and tempted to just tell him too much, but there's value in being hard to predict. Most of the people here have only the faintest idea of what she's capable of. Even those who know she can summon weaker tanar'ri, those who walked through ink-black clouds of pure madness, even those she has personally killed here know only a fraction of her abilities and she would prefer to keep it that way for now. The things people have seen already, though - word spreads fast. And she is proud.]

You don't spend much time on the network, do you? Here, come with me. I don't mind explaining a few things, but I'd rather not do it in so open and - populated a location. Some people here have decided they are my enemies, evidently.

[Wonder why?? Mortals take things so personally sometimes. She reaches out a hand for him to take, needing contact in order to teleport them both.]

[he eyes that hand for a moment, but he's pretty sure this isn't to get into his pants so. Yeah, sure. Let him put down his coffee cup, first.]

Ah. Yeah, I gathered that. You're the one the elves are pissed about, aren't you?

[no judgment, but only because he hasn't really faced up to all the shit he missed, including Margaery's death. Later. He'll deal later. Right now he's got a far worse enemy to watch for. So, sure, he'll learn more if she wants to share, so here's his hand.]

They have their alliances to maintain. Had to put on a show of force to avoid looking powerless. I don't blame them.

[No she totally does blame them and hates them lots, but she also thinks she understands why they sought vengeance for something that didn't involve them. All part of that strange social order they maintain, with rules of conduct and etiquette. It's awful. How can someone willingly live like that?

She sets her empty cup down as well and takes his hand. Envisions an area she's familiar with as far from here as she can safely accomplish, and in an instant they're at the edge of the city, away from the feast. It's open here, which has its downsides, but at least she can't see anyone lurking about trying to listen in. The cold and the darkness should keep most people indoors anyway, if they're not still enjoying the food. She releases his hand and walks through the strange invisible boundary between the city and the desert.]

Understand that I'm only showing you some of what I can do as a gesture of goodwill. Some with the power to heal do everything in their power to save everyone they can. You are not one of them, if you've killed as many as you say you have. But for all the hatred people have for me, it's probably worth knowing that I haven't killed everyone here, and I don't intend to, even though I could.

[Could she, really? Maybe. If she struck fast enough, now knowing there are people hiding among these humans who do have power that at least approaches hers. But if her little test demonstrated anything, it's that her usual connection to the Abyss is weak here, and the so-called gods do have some bite to them. She just had to push hard enough to find that out for herself.

Somewhere out in the deserts here, there are monsters she can demonstrate with. There's a cave entrance not far off, a jagged crack in the landscape where a pack of doglike beasts were keeping a den last time she was out exploring. She summons her rapier to her hand and as it materializes, she points it at the cave entrance. With a wave of her wrist, an image appears there, that of a small human child standing still, peering into the cave.]

Hello? [She calls out as if mimicking the lost creature, using its image as a lure, then turns to motion to Law, whispering now.] Back up. Over there somewhere.

[fortunately, he's used to his own method of teleporting, so there is absolutely no twitch in his demeanor at their movement. Not so much as a blink. He takes her explanation with a silent nod and watches, a bit disturbed by the bait but aware that it's only an illusion. So far, lots of new and different powers. Fascinating.

But he doesn't obey the directive. At least, not right away.]

There's no need to be concerned for my safety.

[even without his sword, he can manage more than a few surprises. But, if it's to keep the demonstration effective rather than protect him, he'll edge to the side to watch.]

Suit yourself.

[Note that she backs up as soon as she sees one of the Varren approach the lure. Caedra knows the exact radius of the explosion she intends to set off and given her recently-obtained vulnerability to all sorts of things she's fairly sure the fire could kill her just as easily as anyone else here. If Law wants to get himself vaporized then that's on him.

How dumb are these things anyway? She's not sure so she recasts the child's image, now just out of reach of the creature. And while it sits there stationary - animation is just too much work - she gestures again with her rapier and mutters a phrase quietly in her proper tongue, replicating a scent these creatures are likely familiar with, one she knows all too well even though most humans can't even detect it. Fear.

It drives the alien dog wild, as it snarls and growls, and out from the cave pour another six of the things as the first one dives toward the illusion and gets a mouthful of soil. Caedra laughs at its blunder and waves, and the whole pack rears their heads, drooling with anticipation. They charge forward. She waits a few seconds to make sure they've all emerged from the cave.

Before they can split up and try to flank her, she whips her rapier straight up into the air and traces symbols that light up with green flame in its wake. The Varren stop dead in their tracks, transfixed by the light, watching Caedra's every movement as if they had suddenly become a trained army waiting on a command, unaware they're only waiting on execution.]

Nice, got them all! Did you see how hard that one hit the ground? It probably broke a tooth.

[Her repositioning makes him decide it might be wiser to pick a new watching spot, yep. He can be taught! He's seen the Varrens before, they're something he's fought more than once because they are pretty easy to kill, compared to some of the monsters.

Faceplanting aside, he nods his approval.]

Not bad. What was that last bit, do you have them under some kind of hypnotic control?

Yeah. It'll break eventually though, I can't hold them like this forever. Not that I need to.

[She stands up on her tiptoes for a couple extra inches of height as she triple-checks the distance. Yes. Safe enough.

She abruptly whips up her left hand and fires a bolt of crackling, twisting blackness at the Varren closest to the center of the pack. Immobile as the creature is, it has no way to escape the blast, and its packmates barely react as it cries out in pain while raw power burns into its body.

Caedra grins and twists her hand, brushing the thorned ring on her fourth finger with her thumb and before that black bolt fully disperses it erupts as if a bomb had gone off. The fire explodes in a sphere of awful radiance, enveloping the whole pack and much of the ground around them. And as it burns itself out over a few seconds' time, the remaining sparks of flame shed light on piles of ashes where the Varren once stood. Above Caedra, the eerie green light fades, leaving everything dark once again.

Idly she wonders how far the gods' power extends outside the city. Those dog things might not have had souls, but Law should. If she kills him out here, will his essence escape her grasp?]

Well, that was fun!

[Now that he feels...magic people have a strange way of registering with his haki, he knows there's power but it doesn't feel the same as a Devil Fruit user or mere strong fighter. Something like that pulses against his inner sense like a blast of Conqueror's haki.

Just. Damn.]

...I see. That's. Extremely effective. A bit flashy, though.

[that's right he's judging your magic]

Of course it's flashy, it's a demonstration. I can't really show you the subtler stuff, can I?

[She's just going to take it as a compliment even if he didn't mean it that way. A lot of what she does - what so many of the tanar'ri do - is flashy because it's frightening. The succubi and incubi are their manipulators, they're the ones who can sit quietly in disguise and turn a town inside-out without looking like they ever lifted a finger. Caedra likes flashy better. It's exciting.]

Besides, I never said I'd show or tell you everything. It's just a taste. You have to give me something if you want to know more.

[point well taken. Law nods, and then allows himself a smirk.]

Fair enough. I'll save that for when I have a need to know. [right now all he can do is either shock her or take her heart and neither would end well] But if you'll allow me...Room.

[it's enormous, maybe not city-covering but it does at least encompass their previous destination. Law reaches to grasp Caedra's wrist the same as she had done to him, and then flicks his fingers in a gesture. Back at the feast. There you go.]

[She does allow him. She had saved herself enough reserve power in case he had tried anything, so there's no need to be overly paranoid. His method of teleportation isn't one she's accustomed to, but she's pleased nonetheless and flashes a smile at him after the shift in surroundings.]

How kind of you to save me the effort.

[and all it took was trading places with two objects at the feast. He couldn't see what he shifted for them, hoping it wasn't something good. It's actually a napkin and a half-full plate. Maybe nobody will miss it.]

I do like to pay my debts. It leaves me with the potential to call in favors later.

[no cute talk about fairness and helping, nope. It's all about forging alliances.]

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