Mid-Autumn Festival (OPEN)

[pure_havoc]

Who: everybody! who wants to, that is
What: celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival. Cao Pi is hosting a noble-level celebration at the palace of Xuchang, and will escort anyone who wants to join in safely to the location. Soldiers in the main camp are celebrating, too. The Teahouse is offering free moon cakes, and there is a lantern-decorated shrine to Lady Kaguya even if no one knows where she's gone. In Xuchang there is a huge feast on the eve of the Equinox, and Cao Pi has gone all out to show everyone how great a host he is.
When: anytime Sept. 5 - 22 (shhh date fudging with a lunar calendar)
Where: in Xuchang, as well as the main camp
Warnings: not likely
Notes: rather than post two logs, the Main Camp may use this log for open threads taking place there, even though the bulk of the prompts are set in Xuchang. Feel free to wildcard anything you want.

[Having announced his intention to host a celebration at Xuchang to mark the second most important holiday in the Han calendar, Cao Pi has opened up the capital city to everyone, especially newcomers, so they can have a real roof over their heads and a real feast to mark the occasion. It should be a time to fete the Lady Kaguya who has been physically among them in the past year, but she has disappeared along with the other missing officers. You'll just have to offer up your sacrifices in spirit rather than load her down with more moon cakes than she could ever eat.]

A On the Way

[open to anyone! Chat with the Lord of Wei as he leads a large contingent back to Xuchang - his soldiers, and anyone who wants to come along. It's a good time for shenanigans on horseback, shenanigans in camp, or on a more serious note, the realization that in the near distance on either side of the path, there is definitely a miasma preventing anyone from straying too far. Like a haze of purple fog, anyone who steps into it will find their strength waning and begin to grow faint and sickly.]

B Xuchang, capital of Wei

[In Orochi's world, there isn't much of Xuchang to see - only the immense palace with at least three layers of walls protecting it from the outside, sitting in the middle of otherwise empty farm fields and forests. Beyond the huge gates of the inner wall is the main palace, a tall flight of broad stairs leading up to the main buildings Cao Pi and his retainers call home. Everything is made of stout stone, and though the outer courtyard is full of twisted lava formations, inside the palace is pure opulence.

Upon arrival there is a small feast, where Cao Pi can welcome his visitors properly, and then everyone is turned loose to enjoy the peace and quiet, the fine low-framed beds, and plenty of views of the changing phases of the moon. Have some moon cakes, play games, wrestle with the soldiers, or simply sit and have a cup of wine with the lord of the kingdom. He has plenty of clear millet as well as his favorite grape wine on hand. Wei is, after all, not poor.]

C: Equinox Festival

[Whether at Xuchang or in the Main Camp, the night before the autumnal equinox puts a cap on the festivities, with the best food the land can provide and so many moon cakes. It's your last chance to lift up a cake in sacrifice to thoughts of loved ones far away from you now. There may even be a dragon dance at Xuchang, if the handmaidens can be coaxed to perform even without Lady Zhenji's flute to dance to.]

D: Wildcard

[anything else that doesn't fit, or anything in the main camp!]

Comments

[lendedahand]

I could give it a try myself as well, not being human may make me more resistant to it... or more susceptible, but a little optimism never killed anyone. [Except him if this goes badly.] At the very least I can see if I could try to dispel some of it. Not exactly my field of expertise but I can try to figure something out.

[Hopefully now that the voices from the Vir'abelasan knew it was magic, they would be more forthcoming in ways to... unmagic it or something. Also hopefully he would be able to understand it.

His concern made sense, and there were many possibilities as to just how to strike. He may have learned well from his advisors, but he did not yet have their insight.]

Well, the last time I was in a situation like this, party and all, a queen got assassinated in hopes of throwing the lands into chaos. So I would be very careful if I were you.

[pure_havoc]

[The slightest eyebrow-raise] I may be without the fine company of Wenyuan and Kongming at the moment, but I believe I am in no danger. The politics of the imperial court are a world away. An attack now would surface as demons racing across the hillsides toward Xuchang - eyes must be kept to the land beyond our walls, not within them.

[still, he can appreciate that Lavellan knows exactly how that political intrigue goes. Were there an emperor in this land with them, he has no doubts that his father would be subverting and assassinating left and right to make sure no one but himself had favor. Ah, how the nature of danger changes when there's no one around with whom to curry favor...]

Not being a human may indeed be useful, here. But I wouldn't send you out alone, in case the less optimistic route turns out to be true. This seems to be one of those cases where otherworld magic can be far more useful than our own old standbys. [gesturing at the map again] If a party can be found to serve as escort, would you be interested?

[lendedahand]

A little extra caution never hurt. Your regular political opponents may be cut off, but that miasma is out there for a reason. I would think the greatest threat to whoever went through all the effort, would be the leader with a collection of of strange foreigners with unique abilities.

We have to act with the assumption that you are the only one with access to otherworlders, and the only one organized enough to potentially undo this. [He took another sip from his glass of wine.] I mean, I certainly wasn't snooping around this place for my health. Your rooftops are something treacherous... I mean, preferable to eavesdropping on nobility, but still.

[And it was anyone's guess how he managed to even get on the roof in the first place, but it might explain how he had gone about snooping.]

I'd be more than willing, and I won't turn down any help you could offer. I might have been able to handle it on my own once, but I'm a little short handed now. My spells have been a little lopsided, and I would rather not die to something too foolish if I can help it.

[pure_havoc]

[he gets the super eyebrow-raise this time. What are you doing on the roof?]

Do try not to slip on the tiles. As skilled as my healers can be, they can do little about a broken neck.

[he huffs and picks up his reports again, paging through them to find something besides 'no sign of Orochi army.']

Lord Zhao Yun is also around, I saw him in the camp leading the men of Shu on some errand. If I know him as well as I think I do, if Lord Liu Bei is among the missing again, he will take up command and be fairly good at it. [his expression lightens; Zhao Yun earned his respect during the first phase of the war against Orochi, and still has it now.] But he is undoubtedly more of a field commander and tends to put himself in the thick of it. If I can get in touch with him, I may request an honoring of our alliance and send him out with you rather than risk myself. As you say... [the smartest of smartass looks] ...caution is warranted, if I end up some kind of leader.

[lendedahand]

My neck as proven to be surprisingly resilient! I have fallen off countless buildings, trees, rifts in reality, and even a mountain once and survived. I mean, I cheat but still, I like to think that's impressive.

[The only thing impressive about that was how he managed to fall so often really. He'd blame being forced to wear shoes. Not that that was the actual reason, but it was his excuse.]

I believe I've met Zhao Yun, he seems a good sort. [Then again so had Solas, and that ended rather poorly. But at this point the situation was pretty much a case of "how could it possibly get any worse?" He shouldn't have even thought that. It would probably get worse now just for that.] I'm more than willing to work with him if he has your trust, I've never been one for sitting back and letting others have all the fun myself.

[He laughs at the smugness and sets down his glass to give the other a few amicable pats on the back.]

Well, if leadership is in your future all I can say is... better you than me.

[Then he took up his wine glass and tipped it back, finishing it off. His liver wouldn't last another bout of leadership. Just once he'd like to go back to the forest where everything made sense without the world breaking itself apart at the seams... again.]

[pure_havoc]

[Cao Pi gives him a slight eyebrow-raise at the contact, but dismisses it as just something he's probably used to. Right, then.]

Have you? That will make things much easier. I'll send a message to the main camp in the morning, assuming he hasn't returned to Chengdu. Have no worries. [dryly, with a somewhat envious glance at the glass of wine] I am prepared to take on that kind of responsibility. It is my lot in life.

[at that moment, he is distracted by something in a missive from recent scouting, setting aside all the boring stuff to get a better read on this report] ...hm. It seems the miasma has open paths through it, here and there. One scouting party reached Chi'bi, there are new ships there. And... [frowning to himself] ...claims to have seen a dragon in flight?

[lendedahand]

[He nodded in regards to the man Zao Yun, with any luck they could be on their way in due time. It would be preferable to sitting idly by at camp, particularly when that camp completely muted his magic. It always made him paranoid he was going to wind up half-Tranquil if he lingered there too long.

He was about to make another smart remark about the burdens of leadership, and the wonderful position he was in... in that he got to retire- but that all went down the drain at the mention of a dragon. Part of him hoped he wouldn't have to kill the beast, rare as they were, but if it was flying so close to a city, that may be inevitable if it began causing trouble.]

A dragon? Well I hope no one was hurt, what did it look like? I've taken down a few in my day.