[ Prince ] Rhy Maresh (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
londonbound) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
abraxaslogs2022-11-27 01:09 pm
londonbound) wrote in abraxaslogs2022-11-27 01:09 pm
OPEN MINGLE: Welcome to Thorne
WHO: OPEN to all Summoned in Thorne
WHAT: A party, info dump, and magic study session all rolled into one! Eat, drink, mingle -- make some friends!
WHEN: a couple days after the newest Summoned start appearing
WHERE: a ballroom in Castle Thorne
NOTES: This is an open mingle log where everyone can tag one another!
Rhy will have sent a written invitation to all Thornean newcomers within a couple days of their arrival, inviting them to meet their fellow Summoned. Otherwise, there will be fliers posted in the dining area that anyone can see. If your character has CR with Rhy (or Kell), you can assume they were told and got an in-person invite -- and you can even assume your character helped with setup if desired (decorations, helping set out food, etc.), since he definitely needed the assistance. Up to you!
Istredd will also be hosting a group meditation to allow newcomers to access to the Horizon (and network). New Summoned who wish to learn how to step into the Horizon have an opportunity to have their connections to the Singularity activated. If preferred, they can also get one on one help from those who've been around for a bit.
Banquet.
Magic Studies.
(( ooc: Feel free to make your own top levels and tag around! This is meant to be an open mingle, with the above as mostly setting and flavor, so don't feel limited if you want your character to do their own magic demonstrations, for example, or even if your thread ends up moving outside the ballroom. Have fun!
If you have any questions, please PM this journal or catch me @ belleteyn on plurk! ))
WHAT: A party, info dump, and magic study session all rolled into one! Eat, drink, mingle -- make some friends!
WHEN: a couple days after the newest Summoned start appearing
WHERE: a ballroom in Castle Thorne
NOTES: This is an open mingle log where everyone can tag one another!
Rhy will have sent a written invitation to all Thornean newcomers within a couple days of their arrival, inviting them to meet their fellow Summoned. Otherwise, there will be fliers posted in the dining area that anyone can see. If your character has CR with Rhy (or Kell), you can assume they were told and got an in-person invite -- and you can even assume your character helped with setup if desired (decorations, helping set out food, etc.), since he definitely needed the assistance. Up to you!
Istredd will also be hosting a group meditation to allow newcomers to access to the Horizon (and network). New Summoned who wish to learn how to step into the Horizon have an opportunity to have their connections to the Singularity activated. If preferred, they can also get one on one help from those who've been around for a bit.
Banquet.
The large ballroom is bathed in warm, golden light from dozens of chandeliers above, reflecting off the gleaming inlaid floors and brass light fixtures along the walls. It is at once neatly sectioned, yet naturally open, allowing the length of the room to flow from one potential activity to another with ease.
In the center, a circular area has been left clear, and every half hour or so during the first half of the evening, two native Thornean (apprentice) mages come up to offer magic demonstrations -- mostly flashy elemental magic, adding sparks and atmosphere. If any of the Summoned who've been around longer wish to show off as well, they are welcome to do so.
Along the walls stand narrow refreshment tables, where one can serve oneself with wine from large glass carafes. Hot tea is also available in a few flavors. (Though those who have been here a while may notice there are fewer carafes, and more expensive options for alcohol and refreshments are missing this time.) For those looking to eat, a large dining table has been set out toward the center of the room, with plates and utensils and large platters of food in the center -- nothing fancy, but perfectly serviceable, and arranged to look good even if the ingredients themselves aren't nearly as lavish as they have been in the past. Still, despite the impending war and tightened purse strings in the face of shortages, the kitchen has agreed to help welcome the newly Summoned as best as they can.
Both the handful of large tables and the smattering of small, taller tables for standing at are in full view of the demonstrations so the show can be enjoyed with food and drink, whatever your desire. Bright summer flowers garnish every table, freshening up the space.
Of course, there's plenty of space to stand and mingle, walk around and see what everyone else is up to. In the back of the room, the folding screens offer a quieter area, for more private conversation and meditation as desired.
Magic Studies.
Behind the folding screens made of tall, carved wood in intricate patters, there are a handful of low sofas and chaise lounges around a fireplace at the far side of the hall. This sectioned-off area has been enchanted to provide some insultation from the sound of the banquet beyond, and once you step inside, the quiet is like a gentle blanket settling over everyone who chooses to spend some time here.
This is the best place to ask questions in some semblance of privacy, to learn about your new home, and to receive guidance on entering the Horizon and using the so-called network of telepathic notes only the Summoned can send one another.
A mage named Istredd seems to be the one 'in charge' of this particular endeavor, but others who have been in Abraxas a while are likely also about, lending their assistance to those who are newly arrived and sharing thoughts on their experiences so far.
Just be careful -- even if the insulating enchantment is sturdy, there are still Thornean natives around, refilling refreshments outside and demonstrating their magic. You may want to be careful how candidly you discuss any displeasure toward Thorne or its crown, considering the Queen's notoriously explosive temper, and the rumors of the dungeons deep beneath the castle. It's hardly a secret, at this point: a conflict has been sparked, and the mood around the castle is a tense one, even amidst a celebration such as this.
(( ooc: Feel free to make your own top levels and tag around! This is meant to be an open mingle, with the above as mostly setting and flavor, so don't feel limited if you want your character to do their own magic demonstrations, for example, or even if your thread ends up moving outside the ballroom. Have fun!
If you have any questions, please PM this journal or catch me @ belleteyn on plurk! ))
no subject
My home was at not-quite-war for a long while, until it was. [ Even though he remembers some parts of that war in ways that make no sense. ] Watching from what feels like the sidelines is... difficult.
[ An understatement. ]
no subject
[Kell looks around. He should leave the topic at that. But can't. Against his better judgement, he continues. Lucifer would most likely have berated him for not keeping his mouth shut.]
I can't help to feel that I should be doing something. Something more substantial than what I've already done. [He is echoing here what Rhy had told him back there. Sitting on a stupid crate, on the back of a tavern-turned-makeshift hospital.] It does feel as if no matter how much I do, it's not enough. It's never enough. [The scale of tragedy is crushing. And it was just the first blow. And he didn't even see Libertas. Only collateral damage from the retaliation strike.] Coming back here feels like I'm abandoning them... and those people don't even like me.
no subject
You're only one man, Kell.
[ He feels like someone has said that to him once before, a long time ago, or something like it. Or maybe it's how strongly he empathizes with the feeling, and is only now for the first time seeing it from the opposite side. ]
You're right, though. It will never feel like enough.
[ He wishes he had better advice, or something more profound to say. But that's the truth, isn't it? ]
no subject
[Kell drags hands down his face with a groan. His outburst is completely unwarranted. Those are the expectation that he wanted to leave behind, and yet here he is. Declaring that he should be able to do more than everyone else. His frustration is only partially with himself. It is mostly with the situation.]
No, you're right. It's just... awful.
no subject
It's lucky that the mingle hasn't begun yet. There aren't many here to witness Kell's outburst and wonder, for whatever that's worth. He's not sure Kell really cares right now. Kahlil probably wouldn't, if it were him hitting his limit. ]
If you ever need a break from this place, we can always take a walk around the docks again. [ It's a small thing, but beating up some muggers felt like a good way to vent frustrations.
He tips his head to one side, then ventures: ]
What is Antari?
no subject
I might take you on that offer some day.
[Kell lets out a sigh. How can he even start to explain it to someone who doesn't already know... What it means to be one. All the implications of it.]
A very rare type of magician. Most powerful that exists. The only type that is able to use blood magic or travel between worlds. Back home, I was the only one left.
kill bill sirens going off
And then he explains what an Antari is - ]
Oh.
[ His expression goes oddly blank, and he almost just laughs. He feels it building in his chest, a kind of involuntarily, mostly humorless reaction that he manages to stifle before it makes it to his features let alone out of his mouth. Instead he pulls in a breath, staring up at the ceiling. ]
... I take it you've found some parts of your magic frustratingly blocked here?
[ Specifically the part that helps him travel through worlds. Or maybe his abilities are like Kahlil's, and require a gate. ]
uh-oh...
It's a very telling oh. The question that follows drains all colour from Kell's face. As if he wasn't pale enough already. It steals breath from his lungs, leaving him staring speechless at Kyle. How in the bloody ... would he know...]
I did.
[It takes him a while to shake off the shock.]
Some blocked completely, some weakened to the point of barely useful. [He takes a deep breath before continuing. The reality is much weirder now that he's forced to think about it.] Only blood magic. My elemental magic seems unaffected, but it's the weaker one.
no subject
He pulls in a deep breath, glancing around the room. More people are starting to file in. As much as he wants to start a metaphorical measuring contest, this is probably not the smartest place too do it. ]
I think we should compare some more notes later. Your domain, or mine?
no subject
Either, is fine.
[Kell looks around. Seeing nobody in their direct vicinity, he risks a crooked smile.]
It seems we have more in common than you'd expect for people from different places. I've never asked, how it's like? That place you come from?
[There has never been a reason to ask, but now Kell is itching to ask a lot more. Question that can't be asked here. A story about one's home seems harmless enough.]
no subject
But Kell means the place his powers come from. Basawar. ]
It's... been through upheaval for many years now. Magic isn't common there. Most of the teachings have been lost or destroyed. [ A pause. ] There's much, much less of everything there, compared to places like Abraxas.
[ He doesn't know how to describe it to someone else, a world where even the air feels thinner, where animals considered pets in other worlds are a main source of food because most larger farm animals are near extinct. ]
no subject
Must be difficult growing up with magic there. What happened?
[Kell can imagine. He knows a world mostly devoid of magic. World without colour. Like a pale dessicated leaf. A shade of what it once was. Its people, like ghosts with hollow eyes, willing to maim and kill for the smallest drop of magic. World that envied the vibrancy of his own, with cold and vicious hunger. A terrifying place.]
no subject
I was found as a child and given training - this was before everything was completely lost. My people were... complicated.
[ It's the sanitized explanation. He's only admitted to a handful of other Summoned his thoughts on the Payshmura and what they did. Whether they may have deserved their own destruction. His lips purse for a second, then he turns the question around. ]
Rhy hasn't told me much about his upbringing, or your world.
[ In spite of the other ways they've been intimate. He's curious. ]
no subject
[Kell isn't always so cagey about details. Most of the people won't care than back home they're royalty. Here, it doesn't matter. It shouldn't matter. But he can feel there's much hidden behind that carefully phrased statement. Complicated. He could say the same about himself.]
Not that it means a lot here. Our world is one where magic is abundant. It's not available to everyone. So there are similarities. As are differences. I find many things here odd.