thenashira | Game Update: May I 2377

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Game Update: May I 2377

Weather & Recap ⭐︎ By Daylight ⭐︎ By Starlight
🎶 Recommended Listening: Smile.dk - Future Girls ♪
may i 2377
EPISODE 1: Flash Fashion? Couture Craze in Chalra City!
May 1 - May 9

Weather: Chalra City is enjoying a balmy and sunny late spring with some light rain here and there. The inland breeze from the nearby beaches brings a cool touch and the promise of summer, and flowering forsythia adds splashes of bright yellow to many parts of the city. The highs for the month average around 72°F/22°C, with lows around 50°F/10°C.

Recap: Episode 0: Nova Knights, Awaken!
At some point in the latter half of April, you awakened to your destiny as a Nova Knight, and last week, you and your fellow Nova Knights assembled for the first time. With Nautis's help, you're here to fight for a common cause — saving the Earth from the Abyss, the evil entity that destroyed your home planet in a past life. Whether or not you've revealed your true identity to any of your fellow Nova Knights, though...

Nautis has asked that you all lay low for a bit while she analyzes some data to try and pinpoint the enemy's next move. In the meantime, you can still keep an eye out for the occasional low-level monster terrorizing innocent bystanders, but maybe you're taking this opportunity just to let it all sink in. Maybe it doesn't even feel real yet, despite the big battle last week. After all, finding out that you have a special destiny because you're a reincarnated space alien can be a lot to take in.

BY DAYLIGHT
⭐︎ The new school year is underway at the Everwave Academy for Distinguished Youths, and after a month, students and faculty alike have settled back into the familiar school day rhythm. There's a new teacher in the art department, Shelly Lustre, whose highly critical approach has already made him a polarizing figure among students.

⭐︎ Chalra City is always changing with the times, and fashion is no exception! The new hot thing is in and it is Dan Flashes, a high-end boutique that recently opened in the downtown shopping district. Shoppers are turning out in droves to snatch up their latest pieces, especially their signature line of shirts with a variety of elaborate patterns despite the designer prices, which seem...to be based on how complicated the patterns are...? Huh?? Their items are, uh, pretty unique, but maybe the exclusivity is the main draw. Surely no one would actually buy these because they think they look it looks good, let alone wear them, right?

And yet the craze has taken hold of the city! Even if you can’t afford to shell out $800 for a shirt that looks like a screensaver threw up on an upholstered bus seat, you can still show your brand loyalty by wearing one of their signature pins. They’re practically giving them away, and it seems like just about everyone is wearing one these days. If you want to be in right now, Dan Flashes branded pins are all the rage in pop couture.

BY STARLIGHT
Hideout: Part of the Nova Knights package is the secret hideout beneath Lucky Stars Arcade, made of the remnants of a part of the Nashira that crash landed on Earth hundreds of years before Chalra City's founding. Right now all that's accessible is the console room that houses Nautis's core and the briefing room, which serves as a kind of lounge, but aside from shelves built into the walls, the only furniture there is an ancient table bolted to the floor, and anything that hasn't been recently touched is covered in a thick coat of dust. Who knows what you might find in there?

Still, if you want to just hang with your fellow Knights while in supernova (you know, in case you're concealing your identity), this is the place to be! All of the Nova Knights have been granted the power to warp themselves to the hideout while in supernova, but there's also the secret entrance behind the Bleat Fighter 3 cabinet that can be accessed by inputting a special button combo.

Intel: As Nautis mentioned in Episode 0, much of the data she needs to track the enemy's movements still needs to be decrypted from her databanks. She's getting some funky readings, and while she doesn't know exactly what they mean yet, it could be trouble...but soon she might have some information about those behind the arcade kerfuffle — the Harbingers of the Abyss!

⭐︎
Welcome to the grand opening for Stars of the Nashira! 🎊 Feel free to post your own logs, or you can use this as an open log for first half of the month. If you have any questions about the game update, you can drop them in the comment thread below.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well, that is why one gets field guides-- to try and be able to better identify plants--

Wait.

Is that--

Holy shit, it is, that's one of mom's migraine remedies.

She roots in her satchel for a moment, gently and quietly sets down the first aid kit (We are still in a library), and opens it like your average goon in an action flick showing you The Stuff.

Maomao ignores her at first, tracing her finger along some text next to a detailed cross-section, but then she picks up on the faintest of fragrances — that slightly bitter scent that so many medicinal herbs have. She sniffs the air for a second, then her eyes lock on to Natalia's satchel, her eyes shining.

"Wait, is that—?"

A grotesque smile has stolen over her face. She looks like she is going to Lose Control in this school library.

Oh. Oh no that's cute. She absolutely cannot let Maomao know she thinks that's cute, that would only end in pain.

"Mother swears by it when she gets headaches of a month." She pauses. "Don't overdo it, that stuff will knock you out."

Natalia is correct. You can't tell Maomao she's cute no matter how cute she's being without incurring some form of regret.

Maomao's eyes somehow light up even more. This girl has what is known jocularly as fuckweed in her satchel and she is going to give it to Maomao?? If she could whip up a tincture from this stuff, she'd make a killing in certain parts of the red-light district. An unhinged cackle of delight escapes her that would definitely not escape a stern librarian's vigil, and she has clearly forgotten what a personal space bubble is by the way she reaches for Natalia's satchel like -- well, like a cat.

Wait...'Mother'?

Maomao stops and actually looks at Natalia. "Why do you have this?"

"Like I said, mother swears by it for headaches and muscle soreness." Here she slips into a casual, yet remarkably good, impression of her mother. "'Natashenka', she tells me, 'don't take this before going out in the cold, you'll freeze to death, but it will help with the stiff back and shoulders when you carry too much like you always do.'"

She hums. "Much warmer in Chalra City, though."

Maomao's read that it can do more than just a little pain relief. She honestly hasn't really paid much attention to Natalia as a person, although it was impossible to miss the fact that she is not from around here. So she's from somewhere this stuff grows readily.

Maomao is now half-clambering onto the table, apparently having lost all sense of self regard. "How much of this do you have? Do you have seeds? I'll pay!"

If I could grow this for myself, it'd make a killing back in the red-light district. Maybe if I kept a planter indoors...

Oh no. Optimus was sure to come around if they kept acting up like this. She'd have to think of something to curb Maomao's enthusiasm, and quick.

"If Eej has seeds, she planted them for the apartment's sunbox." Well. That wasn't quite true-- as an underbrush herb, it didn't much care for direct sunlight. But it was close enough-- her mother had all kinds of herbs in the apartment, barely room enough for the six of them when the men were back from the boats. "You would have to speak to her. I can introduce you, if you'd like."

No seeds? No problem! Maomao would take cuttings. She's already doing mental math — how much money does she actually have to be throwing around? She's still making payments on a small personal loan graciously given to her by the madam when she'd first gotten into hydroponics, but perhaps the old lady would overlook a late payment...

Before Maomao knows it, she is fully on top of the table and in Natalia's personal space bubble.

"Take me there."

... Really, honestly? There was no way she could refuse a face like that. "All right. Let me pack up."

So much for looking in the archives today. Perhaps another time.

~ * ~

Natalia's apartment-- well. the Koutolikas' apartment, rather-- is in an enclave of immigrants from the same country, likely right near to the pleasure district, though most of them were a bit too poor to show up as customers. It's also a little closer to the port, where many of them worked.

Natalia greeted some of the others around warmly, and conversations were winding, animated, and entirely in Natalia's native language. If Maomao can follow such conversations, at least one person is thanking Natalia for the work she did a little earlier this week; another for finding his 'lost Anya', who turns out to be the little dog in his arms.

Still, each time, she explains she's taking this friend of hers to meet her mother, and everyone nods understandingly.

That said, if Natalia is cold, her mother-- Her mother is just delighted. Full figured, ruddy, strong, if it wasn't for the shape of face and the eyes, it would be hard to say they were related. "Natashenka! And you have made a friend at last~!"

"Ah-- I don't know that she would say that," Natalia replies. "and 'Natashenka'? Eej, I am sixteen. Natasha."

"Oh, so stiff to her own mother," Lenya says, but there is vast humor in her eyes.

"Eej, this is my classmate, Maomao. Maomao, this is Lenya Koutolika, my mother."

Inside, there's a small herb garden, and some attempts at vegetables in pots; pinned to a corkboard are several index cards with measurements, and lengths of silk and thread to go with them.

Edited 2025-05-14 03:04 (UTC)

This kind of cozy family scene is foreign to Maomao, and heretofore, something she largely thought of as the stuff of hokey sitcoms. It's not like she doesn't know that other people have regular-ass families, but this?? Maomao's only begrudging concession is that it's not that different from some of the shades of community among the courtesans. She mostly watches Natalia with curiosity and bewilderment as they make their way through what feels like a social obstacle course. Most notably, though, is that Maomao's never seen Natalia this...comfortable?

Well, it's not like they're actually friends. Come to think of it, did she even know Natalia's name before today? Someone has probably said it in her presence, but she hasn't bothered remembering it until now. She makes a mental note of it. Natalia has the hookup.

Maomao may not have a mother like Natalia does — certainly not one so warm and welcoming — but she offers Lenya a perfectly courteous bow.

"It's nice to meet you, ma'am."

Lenya pauses and looks more closely at Maomao, before she finally says, "I am afraid that I am booked out for three weeks on lingerie fittings."

"Things are going that well?" Natalia asks, blinking.

"Well. Is not just for customers."

"Regardless," Natalia says, clearing her throat. "Would you like something to drink, Maomao? I am afraid your choices are water and three different types of tea, but they are available."

Maomao blinks in surprise. Lingerie fittings? This sort of thing doesn't embarrass her — rather, there are a few gears turning in her head now. Hoho, fascinating information. It seems like Natalia's little village has more to offer than just a few rare herbs.

"Tea is just fine for me. I'll leave it up to you." Tea and water are standard fare for her and her father's rather lean home. She turns back to Lenya and asks, in a most respectable tone, "I know you're quite booked, ma'am, but out of curiosity, do you offer a group rate on fittings?"

If she can finagle some kind of deal for Verdigris House, then maybe the madam could knock a little off her father's rent. Yes...this could work out...

"Eh? It is just me. By the hand. Natashenka, she tries sometimes, but she thinks like engineer, not like seamstress. Ah, but I should remember she found silk finer than I ever could! But..." Now Lenya turns from the 'doting mother' directly to the 'mistress of the side hustle'. "If you are promising steady work... who would you be asking for?"

Natalia is beginning to seriously doubt bringing Maomao to her family's apartment. Still, she gets some tea with orange zest, sets an electric kettle, and pulls forth cups and saucers. "you as well, mother?"

"Just water for me, dear," Lenya says.

Unfortunately this is just what happens when you let Maomao into your house, Natalia. Was this a social visit? Not anymore! She's in full business mode now. A beautiful opportunity is unfolding before her eyes.

"Are you familiar with Verdigris House, ma'am?"

Maomao actually smiles, a proper grin, lightly thumping a hand to her chest. She might not technically have any authority to represent their business interests, but she figures that she can get the madam's forgiveness if she brings home a good enough deal.

"Enough to know one woman alone could never keep them all in pretty underthings," Lenya replies. "Especially not with a Sergey in the home. And Natashenka, she deserves better than being recruited to my little side thing for full days of work."

A setting of her own current limits, this-- a one-woman operation in extremely limited space. And she gets by, heavens she gets by! But this understandably means she can't outfit every member of the Verdigris House.

Natalia fills the tea kettle, and sets it on the table with her mother's water. Then, to proper negotiating biscuits.

Edited (Oh right Natalia's still here) 2025-05-24 04:54 (UTC)

Hohoho. Natalia is bringing out the Good Snacks. Maomao knows she's on the right track, and now she is in her element. Based on her blanket antisociality at school, you'd never guess what a little saleswoman she can be.

"Not all of them, ma'am," Maomao assures her. "To ask you to produce on that level would, I'm sure, only serve to cheapen a luxury product. But if you've heard of Verdigris House, then perhaps you've also heard of the Three Princesses."

Pairin, Joka, and Meimei — three of the most popular courtesans in Chalra City, and minor celebrities in their own right. And all celebrities need to keep up their appearances.

"A high-class courtesan needs high-class fashion," Maomao says expansively, "not just for outerwear, but underwear as well. One can't simply wear the same thing season after season. And nothing says status like bespoke lingerie."

Maomao is offering not only a (currently unauthorized) promise of steady, spaced-out orders, but a relationship with an institution of cultural prestige. Sure, not every business wants to be associated with a pleasure house, but Verdigris isn't just any old pleasure house, and clearly, Natalia's mother isn't just any old businesswoman.

"Ho! That I shall believe if you bring them here, and not before!" Lenya sips at her water. For all her skepticism, she has a somewhat indulgent smile. "Forgive my outburst. While I am sure you do have some pull with them-- you bear their colors and seem very comfortable seeing underthings in construction-- Well. Many will claim to know the famous for a little consideration."

Still, Lenya hums. "Though if you truly do know them, and know them well... In a week's time, introduce my daughter to them. If there is anyone who has benefited well from my handiwork, it is my own family, after all! These others are a minor thing after we found out I did not have to make clothes for us all anymore, and others asked where I had found such wonderful things."

Natalia blinks. She is beet-red, but continues in her usual monotone, regardless. "Are you sure I will be an appropriate clothes-horse for this?"

Lenya's indulgent smile is the only response Natalia gets.

"You're a shrewd businesswoman, ma'am," Maomao says with great respect, spreading her hands. "I was raised at Verdigris House. I know the owner quite well."

Well enough to know that the madam knows a good opportunity when she sees one. Maomao is over the moon. It's not going to cost her or the madam anything to have Natalia do a little modeling — but she knows, too, that if the madam thinks Maomao is wasting her time, Maomao will pay for it somehow. So right now, Maomao is feeling especially motivated, and she's looking Natalia over in a way that one does not typically look at a classmate. Certainly not in a way one does in front of someone else's mother, either.

Natalia's question is a reasonable one, even if she's obviously a bit prudish. Too bad for her. Maomao puts a hand to her chin and tries to imagine Natalia without her uniform. She's got a healthy bust size, for starters. This might just work.

"Actually, you're pretty close to ideal," Maomao says thoughtfully. "Grams prefers girls with some meat on their bones."

Natalia pauses. It's not that she's uncomfortable with the way Maomao stares at her. She can't quite place the emotion she's feeling at that moment, but it does make her sit a bit straighter than she already was and cross her ankles under the chair.

"Grams is a smart woman!" Lenya laughs. "So. One week. You shall wear what I tell you and then we shall discuss matters further, if your friend is as good as her word... And you agree."

Natalia pauses. "It is simply modeling? Playing to the crowd? ... That, I can do."

~ ~ ~

She would say this-- her new bra was quite comfortable. She just wished that Mother hadn't hand-laced it to support her while also being, well, lace. What was more, the blouse was carefully embroidered and also with lace at the cuffs and collar, and her shawl was a print that her mother had taken the time to do herself.

And the skirt--! Another carefully made print. This one a sparse floral theme with a gentle, pastel blue, like the sky.

All of this to frame and build around a silk vest that had been lovingly embroidered with lavender flowers, carefully laced up to frame her chest.

But Lenya had not been done. She had two petticoats on, and the stockings still stole the show. She was confident enough in her mother's art that she was sure the garters fit and would stay on, but there was always that worry, too.

The overall effect was that Natalia felt a little like she was committing some sort of crime just by walking in this, even though she was, in fact, fully covered for everything short of a visit to the opera or something more formal even than that.

She had never been to Verdigris House, either-- it had been such a short time since she arrived in Chalra City, after all, and Verdigris House was not cheap.

So what's the place like? Well...

Verdigris House is busy and bustling at this time of day — things tend to be slow in the morning, but by the time Natalia and Maomao are out of school and in the red-light district, the evening crowd is just getting started. The generously-sized pavilion is dotted with tables and comfortable chairs to lounge in, where customers often took tea with apprentice courtesans and were entertained by hosts, employees who were, generally speaking, only involved in the front-of-house end of the business. Only vetted customers are permitted in the back, though a balcony overlooks the lantern-lit pavilion.

Natalia's mother had really gone all-out — the luxury of her outfit rivaled that of some of even the middle-ranking courtesans at the pleasure house. Her outfit drew more than a few stairs as Maomao, full of confidence, led her up to the entrance where the madam was engaged in some sort of unforgiving negotiation with a customer.

On seeing Maomao, though, she immediately breaks off, looking displeased. Maomao smiles and holds up her hands, entreating her to just hear her out.

"Grams, before you say anything about the rent, I've got a new business prospect for you."

The madam's critical gaze shifts to Natalia, and she looks the girl over carefully, scanning her from bottom to top. She's certainly made up well. The madam walks a half-circle around her, puffing on her pipe with a look of interest.

These men, these women, looking at her. She tries to tell herself that this is exactly why she has come. That getting eyes on her clothing was the point.

She wasn't a stranger to people looking at her with longing, either. There were always those who wanted to be like her. There had been, consistently, those who had considered her an amusement or a toy.

This...

This felt different.

She was maybe a little too stiff as she walked, maybe a bit too considered in her movements, and yet...

There was a little thorn of something in it. A little piece of something greater struggling to escape. By the time the madam was looking her over, she had one hand over her heart, trying to identify what was making it run so fast.

She wasn't scared, surely? She could have put any of them on the floor, should she have desired.

It's these conflicted thoughts which show in her body language, which regardless also show off the clothing. "Good evening," she manages.

The madam notes that touch of nervousness — a hand to the chest is hardly a subtle gesture — and she exhales plumes of smoke through her nose as she chuckles, looking for a moment much like a wizened dragon considering adding a new piece of treasure to its hoard.

"Well, aren't you fancy. Not half bad, though." She squints at Natalia, a calculating stare. "How old are you, girl?"

Maomao almost chokes. "Grams, that's not why I brought her h—"

She doesn't get to finish the sentence before the madam bops her on the head with her free hand. "Quiet, child. I'm doing business here."

She pauses, her mind catching up to the situation as she is asked a direct question. "Sixteen," she rattles off, immediately.

The rest of the comments catch up. Rather than examine why she is being interviewed, she adds, "you admire the clothes, then?" In hopes of avoiding an awkward conversation in a minute or two.

"Sixteen, huh? Well, front of house work isn't a bad place to start."

"She's here for the clothes, Grams," Maomao says, a little touch of desperation in her voice. Natalia's mother had seemed nice and sensible, yes. She also seemed like the kind of mother who might abruptly be a lot less nice and perhaps less sensible if Natalia came home with an altogether different job offer.

"I'm old, Maomao, not blind," the madam snipes without looking back at Maomao. Some people around here are capable of thinking on more than one level at a time. She peers a little more closely at the embroidery on Natalia's collar, letting out another puff of smoke. "That's someone's handiwork, every stitch of it. You make these yourself, girl?"

"The sourcing and materials," Natalia says, with perfect honesty. "My mother is responsible for the stitching and embroidery."

She pauses. She's a full head taller than Maomao-- and not many people larger than her. The school's guidance counselor was an outlier. Add in that she was quite skilled at martial arts... the conclusion, to her, was obvious-- and dead wrong. "As for front of house, I have not attempted crowd control before, but as a presence deterrent, and a way to come to observe the business, it would not be a bad place to start..."

Game Update: May I 2377

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