starsand | 【OPEN FALLEN STARS MEETING】

【OPEN FALLEN STARS MEETING】

It had been less than twenty-four hours since the cherry blossom's tree became even more unstable, spewing out dangerous goo that frightened many of those who lived in the lower level.

...However, if now wasn't the time to hold a gathering, then when?🗈

Hence why Hanyuu puts up the big sign at the bakery - it may be devoid of the owner, but that doesn't mean that she won't take care of things there as well as using her powers as a kami to have her voice reverberate throughout the upper levels.

There is no sign of the childish tones that those may be familiar with as she speaks.

Instead, it is replaced with clear power, and a serious edge to them, booming like a broadcast through a megaphone:

"Fellow Fallen Stars, citizens of Starsand, if you can hear my voice, then I implore you to help. I wish to find a solution to our current issue, so I would like to work together with all of you.

We shall meet at the bakery to discuss the more intricate details of the current situation; there will be food provided to everyone. I will also offer my personal protection here as well.

There is no need for those of you to get involved if you do not wish for it. However, I would like for you all to listen, at the very least."

That is all she can ask for, really.

And of course, her words ring true: the bakery is open for this purpose as Hanyuu stands tall in her miko garb with serious, but determined eyes, feet several inches off the ground.

But as promised, there is a variety of food as well, stemming from actual meals that could be found for a picnic to cute desserts such as creampuffs.

OOC: This is an open mingle meeting log to discuss the current rumor and is open to all characters involved. As this is a mingle log, please do not hesitate to threadjack or tag around as needed.

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[ To anyone that manages to arrive, Hanyuu bows politely before ushering them all in. She'll let people gather and mingle for a good short few minutes, keeping an eye on the doors.

When it seems that people have stopped gathering, Hanyuu clears her throat to call for attention before speaking up. Her voice isn't reverberating as it was before, but it is no less serious, not to mention that she doesn't seem to be hiding her appearance for once. ]

Thank you everyone that has shown up. And... I apologize for calling this at such short notice.

I wanted to discuss our options regarding the tree down below before we made any rash decisions, and having all the knowledge when it comes to the situation would be in everyone's best interest, too.

As far as I am aware, this is what I know of our situation. I speak of the events that led up to this point so that those of you who are unaware may have some further context on the matter.

I do not know if any of my other fellow Fallen Stars have the same experience, so please speak up if you do. Prior to arriving in this city, I was in a mysterious space with what seemed to be another person in between worlds. We spoke for a bit, but then they were gone, and I was here.

The natives of this land then noticed that many of the Fallen Stars had received markings after arriving, which I can only assume came from that encounter. They then started speaking about how it may have been a kami who marked the Fallen Stars, which soon, in turn, led to rumors about Fallen Stars potentially replacing the natives. People began to see illusions of other Fallen Stars doing such a thing, but upon approaching those illusions, they soon turned into the goo that we are all familiar with.

It is only my assumption, but most likely much of this has to do with the currently empty Spacetime shrine, given the shrine's state as well as the liquid that spewed out from it.

[ She pauses momentarily, shutting her eyes to mull things over before continuing. ]

... during Maid Week, I had learned that the konpeito, the currency in this land can be eaten. It is 'faith' made form, if I am understanding correctly. And it gives me a temporary boost in my abilities.

[ There's implications here about that which she isn't saying, though. ]

It was when I had done this that I heard the sound of a spirit crying out. That spirit was of the cherry blossom tree in the lower levels. That child, as I found out was rather lonely--and envious of the trees that had reblossomed in the upper levels.

That is why I chose to grant the wish of that child for a short time. I turned back the hands of time for that tree and made it reblossom. Of course, it was only a temporary measure. I knew that eventually its blossoms would die out again; thus is the natural course of things.

It is very likely that something happened after I had completely finished my work and left that tree.

Which leads us up to now. I have heard from another that there definitely seems to be something tied to a wish here. I do not know if the spirit is trying to grant its own wish or someone else's.

When I had returned to the tree, it was in excruciating pain. I heard their voice, screaming that it did not wish to be forgotten.

And... that's all I know. If there is something that you would like to add to this, the floor is all yours.

In terms of "what to do", I personally would like to save that child. However, time is of the essence. There is someone there currently halting the spread of the dangerous liquid that is spewing out of the tree. However, they can only do it for one day [ IC, not OOC ] so let us do this promptly.

Worst case scenario, however, is destroying the tree itself. I plan on taking responsibility for this course of action if we need it, so that you all may not be concerned with the consequences; I wish for my fellow Fallen Stars to be able to live relatively normal lives, especially since the situation escalating may have been because I reblossomed the tree.

Thank you for listening.

[Fauna is... not her normal self today. Rather than her usual anger and bravado, today she just seems... cold.]

I've been here longer, but I met that spirit too. Touched the space-time shrine and it sent me there. Met the spirit. The spirit didn't exist before our conversation, and died when it ended, seemed like. All they knew was that someone was angry at them, about not having a shrine.

[Fauna takes a pause here to take a bite of some bread.]

... As for the rest. We kill the tree, or grant its wish. Will either course bring back the people who vanished?

I cannot guarantee that either course of action will bring back everybody, as much as I would like to hope for the best.

[ There is no hesitation in her words there, as unfortunate as they are.

But then she goes ahead to circles back around to the first thing that Fauna brought up. ]

If touching the shrine sent you there... I do not believe they are simply a normal spirit. I wholeheartedly believe that they are meant to be another kami.

I'd like to avoid killing the tree as much as possible, but it's not like I have much in the way of ideas at the moment, myself.

[ At least, not right now, anyway. ]

But I'd like to at least put it out there that the shit that's been showing up? You know, the goo? Yeah, I took a look at it under a microscope. It's fucking blood. Magical blood, but still blood.

If it's coming out of the tree, I'd say that "putting a bandage on it" would be the best idea, hypothetically, but I have absolutely zero supernatural healing abilities.

... "Meant to be". As in something's stopping them, or that they're just not there yet?

[Fauna can feel her old self coming back to the surface. She hates it? but... right now, this is what they need, isn't it?]

... Now that you mention it, it would have been the only tree that didn't rebloom throughout the month. And it's not like it could uproot itself to get out of the lower level.

... What if it could?

I'm not sure.

[ Actually, she probably should elaborate. ]

They did not speak of themselves as if they were human--no, rather. When they spoke to me, they didn't know what they are. Not to mention that someone had told them that the space I was in when I met them...

That nothing was supposed to exist there, and that people should not be pulled there.

Another thing that they said was that I was chosen --

[...]

However, I am to believe that 'I' is more 'we'. That everyone here was chosen by both the light and the darkness, and that someone [ a mysterious 'they' ] doesn't wish for me to know this information.

That might be related to our purpose of being here, that there is some sort of third party involved. But for now, I'd rather leave that aside as it is less pressing and there is not much in the way of information that I know about it.

In any case. [ ... ] Perhaps we should add 'the creation of a shrine' on our to do list.

[Other than a few words here and there, Dimitri initially stays quiet. He doesn't want to interfere too much with the initial proceedings. Violet eyes observe them carefully, judging how much trust to put in this group. And after the first round of conversation begins to die down, he raises his hand to get everyone's attention. He's made his call.]

Please listen up. I have something to share about this world. But it cannot leave this place carelessly.

[Lowering his hand, he continues;] You're all aware that faith becomes power in this world. The kami here are spirits whose power becomes stronger enough to manifest miracles. The common belief is that kami make their own power and use that power, willingly, to help the humans who believe in them.

But that's not entirely true. Humans can influence what power a lower kami has and how they manifest in this world through their faith. And~. Some humans who understand this abuse it and create kami through Rumors. They entice spirits who have a wish and create a rumor that initially grants it... then twist that Rumor into a curse and use the spirit's power for their own wishes.

[That's it. He's pretty sure they can piece together the rest of his theory.]

At this point? I'm not sure. But I can see why it would feel hopeless and trapped enough to rely on others to grant a wish.

Then if I give it the power to grant its wish... Will things go back to normal?

Edited 2022-05-23 18:37 (UTC)

... Yes, that's correct.

I heard that Satou's power doesn't reach that far. Which makes sense, I suppose, given how the people seem to regard the supernatural, from my short experience down there.

[ But... ]

I don't know if there is anyone strong enough, or anyone who has abilities tied to plants, but -- would moving it potentially be a solution if we were able to?

How could we grant that kind of wish? If they don't want to be forgotten... Would writing about them help? Or do you think they meant it in another, more immediate kind of way?

...

[Fauna pulls the strange device from her belt, holding it out.]

I can detect a strong wish from the tree. I don't know if it's the tree, or a spirit inside the tree, but it's there.

If there's a third party getting in the way, we need to find them, and eliminate them.

Blood?! It's bleeding?!

Would healing a tree be the same as healing a person? I can go grab a book about trees from the library, if you think that would help.

That sort of thing --

[ Yes, hello, local Fallen Star kami here who was just composed .05 seconds ago starts to tremble, her violet eyes starting to wet with tears as her fingers curl into tight, balled fists. ]

Humans shouldn't be using kami for such awful things!

[ She hates it, she hates it, she hates it, she hates it. ]

I think having it written down is a splendid idea.

[ She's not going to shoot anything down. ]

Anything tangible that future generations can see would be useful. But I also think that something much more immediate would also be good.

I believe it could be both. To be more specific: I mean that the spirit could also be the tree. It is not uncommon for kami to be things besides... humans, or human-like.

[ But then there's that second part that Fauna brings up. ]

If there is, I do believe that finding them is pertinent. But eliminating them...

[ She's not so sure on that front. ]

That's why such information must remain privileged. If people knew that the stories they told could become reality... Unfortunately, I think that we would hear more selfish stories than kind ones.

Apparently. Which means that someone most likely decided that it was nice to hurt it.

[ Because of course they would do this. ]

I don't think so. If it's a spirit, the way to heal it would probably be through spiritual means, or magical.

I don't think the spirit intended for its wish to be used this way. So I can't say. But... [And he's hesitant to explore this train of thought;] If we granted its wish, at least it could rest in peace.

[Fauna hates everything about this. Ever since her last fight with Flora, she tried to do better. She wanted to be better. But this place? Faith, gods... Power, wishes.... It's back to normal. It's back to how she was before.

Fauna can't save the people who were taken. But maybe, Night Wild can.

When Fauna walks into the bakery, gone is her normal sense of doubt, of anger, the fire that burned inside her. Instead, there's nothing but cold confidence in her stride, as she walks in, with the self-assurance of someone who is ready to hurt everyone who gets in her way.]

I'm not new here. I've been here a while. But I still found that spirit the horned one spoke of. I was sent there when I touched the space-time shrine, and they told me that someone was angry, for 'not having a shrine'. And then they died as soon as they were born.

Beyond that, I can tell you that there is a strong wish within that tree on the bottom level. I cannot tell you if it belongs to the tree, or to a spirit within the tree, but there is a wish there. If granting that wish caused these problems, then perhaps it is better to destroy that tree, and whatever spirit caused this.

That is correct. She is forbidden from taking action down there.

And I'm not sure about moving entire trees. We would need to be sure that nothing else comes with it.

The spirit is the tree, then.

... Is the spirit we met, the spirit of that tree, do you think?

[Pidonus listens, but her concerned look soon becomes one of anger.]

So someone who wants to profit from this, or benefit, somehow. There's... A disturbing number of possibilities for who could be so evil, if we're being honest.

My question is... Who do we have to fight, or what do we have to do, to fix it? Or failing that... Where do we start finding out?

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【OPEN FALLEN STARS MEETING】

THE CURRENT SITUATION

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re: Tree's Wish

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Dimitri | NPC | re: rumors

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Fauna | OC

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Re: Dimitri | NPC | re: rumors