Intro Log: Eat Your Veggies

[hadrielmods]

Who: New arrivals and everyone else!
What: The intro log for January
Where: The colosseum and all around the city.
When: January 10th-16th
Warnings: Luscious greenery and confused newbies

As has become tradition within the good (well, okay) city of Hadriel, new arrivals will awake on the floor of the half-destroyed colosseum. Confused and disoriented, you may be wondering where you are and what you're doing there. Don't worry! Someone will probably tell you sooner or later, as long as you get out of the colosseum alive.

Oh, right. About that. Along with the poor, innocent, vulnerable new arrivals are a number of other new friends! Well, maybe less 'friends' than 'horrifying monsters', but are you really going to be picky? Wandering the arena are Shambling Mounds. These creatures are large, unattractive piles of vaguely humanoid-shaped vegetation. They hit hard, they can take a lot of damage, and if you're really unlucky they might manage to engulf you with their weird plant bodies. If that happens, you'd better try to get free fast - otherwise they'll just walk off with you stuck inside and kill you later at their leisure.

The Door appears to have cast a wide net for 'plant monsters', and while Shambling Mounds are the only ones that can actually hurt you, it's managed to pull in a number of smaller, less dangerous carnivorous plants. Some of them are even kind of cute! So if you were looking for a pet venus flytrap or a new pitcher plant, you're in luck. Scattered around the colosseum are carnivorous potted plants, just waiting to find a new home.

Make a new plant friend, or get eaten by one, or run screaming! Whatever you choose to do, once you find your way out of the colosseum there's plenty of other distractions. Feel free to go explore the rest of the city! Find a house, a new monster, a project to help with, or simply scavenge for supplies. Good luck, and enjoy your stay in Hadriel!

► This log covers January 10th-16th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well!
► All characters arrive with phones that have network communication and the newbie guide installed.
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!

Comments

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin gazes down at this exhausted but regal-looking warrior with the graying hair and beard. He's obviously been struggling alone for a bit, but if he's alive and outside the Colosseum, he probably defended himself well from whatever was in there this time. ]

[ Small laugh. ] 'Devilry' seems an apt enough word for it. But yes, it is called Hadriel, a very small city bounded and domed by rock walls. Very strange place. But a person can live here, without much effort. [ The only effort involved is that required to respond to the bizarre events, and to fight the strange creatures that pop up every now and then. ]

My name is Curufin, by the way. Son of Fëanor.

[ Still with a very gentle touch, he indicates to this newcomer than he should not try to sit up just yet. He takes a look at the knee and then reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out his version of a first aid kit. It's modeled after the one his friend Yukari has taken to carrying around. ]

Let's get that knee re-wrapped, and then we'll get you to the medical clinic. It's not all that far, but you shouldn't try to walk. I'm strong; I'll carry you.

[ And he sets about removing the old bandages and replacing them with gauze pads tied neatly with gauze stripping from his kit. His actual profession is smithing, but he has worked with a variety of materials. Jewel-smithing, in particular, requires a delicate, precise touch. Once he gets the old bandages off, he presses a sterile pad to the wound carefully, and then ties it on in such a way that it does not chafe the injury further. His swift, unerring fingers finish the task in just minutes. ]

[kingslight]

Well met, Curufin. [A pause.] Or rather let us hope this inauspicious day allows us to be well. I am Regis Lucis Caelum, the One-Hundred and Thirteenth of my name.

[He hails from a rather long and ancient line that is still not half as old as any Elven lineage.]

You much too kind towards an suspicious old man but I accept your aid humbly.

[Regis says with a hint of mirth in his tone in hopes to offset the foul mood in the air. Hadriel is already proving to be quite a fiendish place but he refuses to be scared. A king must always hold his head up high and stand tall. Too bad the standing part is going to be near impossible now.]

You have a healer's touch, friend. [He mutters in slight awe.] You barely agitated the wound at all. Is it safe to assume you to be such?

[Color this old king impressed.]

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin smiles. It is a great virtue to be able to joke when in a bad situation, and he admires the spirit. This "suspicious old man" is endeavoring to be polite as well, and that too is worthy of respect. ]

Well met indeed, Regis Lucis Caelum! Clearly, your name is a lucky one, if one hundred and twelve members of your line have successfully passed it along. [ His own line was cut short when he and his son died. And if he ever felt superior to mortals on account of long life and long lineage, he doesn't any longer. ]

Thank you, that is high praise. I am not a professional healer, but I have had a fair amount of experience patching up my relatives on the battlefield. [ Humorous. ] Practice counts for a lot.

Were you wounded before you arrived in Hadriel?

[kingslight]

[If Regis honestly didn't possess some humor, he would've died from stress years ago. The crown often wears heavily upon the head of a king.]

You honor the Line of Lucis with such praise but I certainly don't feel quite lucky. [His amiable mood remains even though that nagging gash upon his leg is bothering him ever so slightly. He feels dreadfully stiff now. Almost like a plank of solid wood.]

It seems you and I share a similar tale when it comes to war. Though, I do believe you've surpassed my humble skills. [It's much easier for him to work on aiding others than it is to work upon himself. It just feels odd.] I had ample enough practice in my youth but that was many years ago.

[He answers Curufin with a nod.]

My right leg has given me trouble since forever. The gash upon it is a result of Hadriel's less than warm welcome. Combine the two and I need a chirurgeon.

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin was never a king, and would never have been one even had he lived, due to being a fifth son. And then his older brother yielded the kingship to their uncle, and that was that. But he knows well that along with the title comes crushing responsibility. Regis must have great stamina to have survived the state of kingship long enough to have gray hair. ]

[ He smiles. ] If you are alive, then you are lucky. And your forefathers and you must deserve the honor.

You have the experience of fighting a war with your family at your side? Then you know well how much anxiety goes along with the privilege! [ And Curufin can agree with him on how much easier it is to slap a bandage on someone else than on oneself! ]

The leg shall receive the best care available in this city. I myself have had to visit the clinic, and can vouch for the quality of care.

Ready? [ And he scoops the King up in his arms and stands up, smoothly and gracefully, taking care to support Regis' right leg. He's very strong, what with all the smithing and the fighting and the mountaineering in his past. ] Are you comfortable?

[ And he sets off down the street. ]

[kingslight]

[Such strength! Curufin actually caught the King of Light off guard with that. Regis didn't truly expect the young man to lift him up with such ease but he did. An appreciative chuckle escapes Regis as he thanks Curufin profusely. There's not many people who would go out of their way to aid their fellow man. Not at all.]

I'm quite well. [He manages to reply after the initial surprise.] Though, I cannot help but feel somewhat ashamed of my own frality. When I was a younger man, I would've never let such a wound slow me.

[A sigh passes through his lips as he thinks about his lost youth. The Crystal stolen it. That accursed stone stolen everything he once cherished for the sake of a grim prophecy. It's enough to make even the strongest of men weep.]

I never thought I would be pining for my youth at the age of fifty. I still feel so young.

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin chuckles, too. ] My brothers and I would call this the "East Beleriand ambulance." Usually that meant a stretcher made of somebody's cloak, with four tall Elves to grip its edges and carry the injured one off the battlefield. But sometimes, it was just one person's strong pair of arms.

[ And he speaks softly, for he remembers how he and his brothers carried their own father over a mountain pass, after their first great battle. Their father died before they could reach a healer. ] We all receive a wound that slows us, sooner or later. Fragility is the nature of the human body, no matter our age.

[ Curufin would have understood that sorrow. He had given everything he had, including his life -- and a few things other people had, including their lives -- for the sake of a sworn oath. And the Oath had to do with three supernaturally beautiful gemstones and a prophesy. "That accursed stone" would resonate with Curufin! ]

Fifty years. . . that's not such a long time, but it's long time when considered as life lived. You are still young, sir! There will be many more years to strive and to seek whatever is worth the seeking.

Speaking of which, what are you seeking? [ A question he would never have asked when he was younger. But he is asking it of others, now, and listening to the answers. ]

[kingslight]

Elves? [The surprise in his tone is muted but Regis certainly looks intrigued with this notion of Elves.] Only legends older than my royal line ever spoke of the Elves. As gentle as they were famed to be, the Elves were known to be quite fierce. It's thought that such a race has since faded into myth once the Dawn of the Six.

[The Six are the Gods of his realm or messengers of the Gods. They're a testament of the powers that be, an example of divine might and fury. Regis knows of them quite well.]

Careful, Curufin. [There's mirh within those green eyes.] We might become good friends now that you consider me young.

[A chuckle escapes him momentarily before the question is asked. It's then that Regis grows a had silent.]

In years past, I've had both glory and power but now all I want is to be with my son again.

[so_dark_a_road]

Then it seems my kind once inhabited your world, too? [ The idea pleases him. ] But if we are gone now, that does not surprise me. We are old in the history of worlds, but we do not seem to have longevity after a certain point. Too much ferocity. [ A little bit of bitter humor. ]

Who are the Six? [ Curufin's world has a pantheon of gods as well. ]

[ Mirth in Curufin's dark gray eyes also. ] I do not think I could object to friendship!

[ And those eyes grow compassionate. ] I have a son, too. Tell me about yours?

[kingslight]

[A quiet chuckle escapes Regis once he caught onto that slightly morbid joke. Honestly, not much is known about Elvenkind other than what little the fables mention. It's a shame really since in his youth, Regis once found great enjoyment in reading fairy tales. Of course, he since then grew out of such a hobby but he still remembers.]

Such tenacity is better left to us humans for we die so young. [He sighs somewhat.] Humanity is too ferocious for its own good. We are young but we are so brutal. Perhaps its our youth that makes us so but I digress.

[A smile graces his face once Curufin questions about the Six. It's a somber smile, one hintng at remorse or worry.]

The Six are the Gods that bestow us with the Crystal's grace. Both malevolent and merciful, they have since guided humanity through the darkness once the Infernian betrayed humankind. The Starscourge, a deadly disease, plagues my realm of Eos changing even the most mundane of men into wild beasts under the guise of darkness.

[His smile changes into more of a frown now as he thinks of the prophecy. Poor Noctis. His dear son...he'll never get the chance to grow old, will he? Just the thought alone pains Regis worse than any sword.

There's muted sorrow in those bright green eyes.]

By the Crystal's grace and by the powers of the Oracle, do we fight it. It's a battle that has long haunted my forebesrers, a long war that I inherited long ago.

[A war he now passes onto his son.]

Ah, Curufin. You know of how we fathers feel about our sons. I'm proud of Noctis, proud and scared for him in the same breath. He's a sweet boy, almost too pure and naive for the grim fate that awaits but deep within him there's a strength that rivals my own.

[He chuckles.]

No, his...his strength shall surpass mine. My dear son is all grown now. He's no longer the prince I once held in my arms all those years ago. He's a man grown.

[so_dark_a_road]

[ Curufin smiles. He finds it odd and interesting to be thought of as a survivor of a fairytale world. And he understands well those remarks about the fierceness of one's own people. ]

Elves and mortals are well-matched for ferocity, I guess. It was so in my world, too. Perhaps it is not your youth as a people that causes you to be so brutal -- maybe there is another explanation. Maybe. . . [ A wistful expression crosses his face. He's a pragmatic man, but behind the intense focus on the immediate, his mind and imagination range far, into stranger worlds even than the ones he has lived in. He has thoughts that are not easily put into words, and some of them are about this problem of the violence of his race and other races. But he will not talk philosophy unless invited. ]

You have gods to guide you through the maelstrom of existence? Was this Infernian by any chance one of the gods, or something of that nature, before the betrayal? If so, our worlds have something in common! And tell me, do they really help? Or do they become part of the problem, even if unwittingly? They have not been able to protect you from this plague, the Starscourge? And what is this Crystal you speak of? -- it sounds like a holy object or concept. And the Oracle?

The battle goes on, and you must fight it, generation after generation. [ How similar are the universes! Curufin has talked to few people who do not tell the same story or a variation of it. ] And your son must fight it in his turn. [ He smiles, and it is a smile as sad as Regis's. ]

I know well how you must feel. Your Noctis and my Celebrimbor are of the same temperament. And you must have faith in Noctis, no matter how difficult is the future to which he must go. That is all that a loving father can do, once he has nurtured his child and educated him for the world he must live and strive in.

We do hope that, don't we -- that they may surpass us in strength, and in wisdom?

Is your son here with you, in Hadriel?

[kingslight]

[Regis takes a moment to catch his breath here. While the pain is minor at best, it still hurts. Talking with Curufin is a blessing, a welcomed one. He's able to ignore most of what ills him but still, this is a grievous wound.]

T'was the Infernian who betrayed humanity and poisoned our world with a blight so terrible that none could cure it. Not even the Gods. [A deep sigh follows as he takes his time to answer. Curufin's interest in his realm is quite refreshing.] The Infernian or better known as 'Ifrit', was one of the Six. When the other deities saw potential in us, Ifrit only saw arrogance. He thought to purge our world of humanity and restart anew by using the Starscourge to kill us.

[Regis pauses momentarily as he tries to mull through his hazy thoughts.]

The Gods, thankfully, didn't share his low opinion of us. Therefore, we were spared by their charity but the royal line of Lucis was forever cursed to walk a bloody path in the name of the Gods. For centuries, my house has...served them. Our Crystal is indeed a holy relic bestowed us by the Gods. It is a physical representation of their power.

[He falters some when Curufin mentions the Oracle. He suddenly feels the need to be a tad tight lipped about Lunafreya and his son both. However, he does answer the man's next question with a smile.]

Indeed, he is. My dear son is amongst us but...we were separated in the colisuem.

[Regis turns to eye Curufin with some wonder once the other mention their son's name.]

Celebrimbor? Goodness, what name! May I ask what it means? It sounds as if it holds meaning.

[so_dark_a_road]

What an ungenerous god, this Infernian! -- he could be brother to Melkor, the rebel god in my world. I don't know what goes through their heads, these destroyers of humanity. It seems your Ifrit had it in for you, from the first.

[ He nods, as Regis tells him of the quest the gods sent his house to fulfill. ] And you and your descendants must walk this path until the end. I wish you success, and I wish your people life and happiness. [ And he hopes that in Regis' world, such things are possible for those who take on the gods' mission, although of course it is their own as well -- their very survival as a species depends on it! ]

[ He notices that slight faltering. He will not press the man to answer any question he does not feel comfortable about. After all, Regis has just met Curufin, and he has no way of knowing whether or not he can trust him. A kindness is not a guarantee of trustworthiness. Curufin could certainly vouch for the truth of that. ]

That is good, that your son is here with you. If he is a warrior of your calibre -- and I do not doubt he is! -- then I am sure he is safe. [ And furthermore, Curufin will go back later to look for Noctis. Probably he has managed perfectly well, but Curufin would like to verify that, since this kindly king has touched his heart. ]

[ He chuckles a little. ] It's the name I gave him, and yes, it's a mouthful, even as Elvish names go! Actually, it's a translation into the Sindarin language, of the name I gave him in the Quenya tongue when he was born. Quenya is our first language, Sindarin, our second. His Quenya name is Telperinquar -- which is even worse than Celebrimbor! They both mean "silver fist." It's a way of saying that he has an extraordinarily creative mind and hand when it comes to smithing. He's really the flower of our line, in that respect. [ Another chuckle. ] But don't ask me what possessed me to give him such a name! Normally I just call him Telpë, or Celë, or just Cel -- all of which mean "silver." That suits him, too. He has the most extraordinary light gray eyes, and they look silver in a direct light, and they are full of feeling, always.

[ And he gives Regis a glance of gratitude for giving him a chance to speak of his son. ]