July II Event Log

[nashiramods]

Who: Everyone! (That's right, even you)
What: The Nova Knights close in on the newest energy harvesting scandal, but this time, the Harbingers are expecting them.
When: July 25 - July 31
Where: Chalra City and the Dark Ocean

Event Results
🎶 Recommended Listening: Wii Sports (Remix) - VGR ♪
july ii event log
EPISODE 6: Game Over or New Game+? Dive into the Dark Ocean!
July 25 - July 31
TIMELINE
7/25-7/31 Go Fish
7/25-7/29 Lab Cleanup
7/26 Investigate: The Wonder Junction Two-Day Video Game Rental
7/27-7/29 Mystery Plot
7/30 Showdown: Ludoreticula
7/31 Recon: The Dark Ocean

The second half of July is a little more challenging for our heroes. Losing a Constellation to the Harbingers was among one of their worst case scenarios, and morale has taken a serious blow. They still know so little about the Harbingers' magic that it's hard to strategize a recovery.

Fishing also seems to be challenging, but in all fairness, those carnival games are hard! A few Nova Knights managed to capture some enchanting looking goldfish, though, and now that the Aquarium finally has some inhabitants, even if a little sparse, it feels like the place is finally coming to life for the first time in countless millennia.

Midsummer on the Promenade is still going on over at the Smoketree Promenade, too! There have been local bands playing live music on small outdoor stage in the evenings, and even if carnival fishing isn't your game, there are plenty of others, as well as lots of tasty street food and sweets. A lot of locals are selling handmade goods along the street — what better souvenir for the summer? The chick seller is among them, delivering impassioned sales pitches for his hatchlings.

Cleaning up the Lab takes up most of the week, and it's looking a lot better in here! Sure, some of the arcane and mysterious equipment was damaged and even Nautis isn't sure how repairable it is, but hey! They've dusted everything pretty neatly and it looks like it's in respectable condition. Unlike the other rooms they've unlocked, though, this one isn't any good for just...hanging out. Maomao, however, seems to have her own plans for the Lab, even if she is visibly unhappy about the damage to the equipment. She's moved the hydroponic garden to the Lab for the meantime — both in the hopes of discouraging anyone touching her precious garden and for proximity to devices she apparently intends to learn how to use. Just imagine what kind of magical remedies Maomao might be able to cook up...she'll probably need test subjects volunteers once she's finished testing things on herself.

Business is still booming at the Wonder Junction Two-Day Video Game Rental, and on the 26th, Hope and Mabel make their way through the crowds to do a little Nova Knight snooping to considerable success. They rent the recently released games Gentleman Thief Escape: The Seven of Hearts and Shinebow All-Stars Grand Prix for research purposes.

Between the 27th and 29th, some Nova Knights take a crack at the video games, only to be sucked into the game worlds, trapped there until they can beat the game! Cynthia and Natalia successfully conquer the final stage of Grand Prix and escape on a note of triumph, but Harley and Kalim struggle to get through Gentleman Thief Escape and need a brute-force magical rescue from Nautis. The two of them aren't doing so good these days. To add insult to injury, the Nova Knights might be looking at some late fees, too...

On the 30th, Maya, Mutsumi and Jamil head to the Wonder Junction Two-Day Video Game Rental to face off against Ludoreticula and cleanse the shop of Abyssal influence. But this, too, is a trap — once inside the pocket dimension, Ludoreticula seals them inside and the harvested energy is whisked back via magic subspace to wherever the Harbingers are storing it. Their plan to have Ludoreticula capture and deliver them fails, however, when the three of them absolutely kick some video game monster butt.

On the 31st, Nautis warps Dirk and Reese to what she's pretty sure is the Harbingers' hideout...and she was right! It turns out that the Harbingers' base of operations is a starship floating in Earth's orbit, and they've been keeping their captive Constellation in the ship's engine room. While this information makes it back to Nautis, the Nova Knights themselves do not — it's into the Abyss for them!

Comments

INVESTIGATE: THE WONDER JUNCTION TWO-DAY VIDEO GAME RENTAL

[nashiramods]

[fibrillate]

It feels pretty amazing to agree to go out in plainclothes with someone on a mission like this, and, like, what's a fellow gamer gonna do? Rat them out? No, Mabel already seems really cool and Hope is totally comfortable with the idea. They're hanging out outside of the Wonder Junction Two-Day Video Game Rental with their hands in the pockets of their lightly torn jeans. Between their gamer tee du jour and their big chunky headphones, they almost look like they belong here. It's all going according to plan.

Loitering outside of a business isn't exactly new to them, and they've already told Mabel what they'll be wearing, so all they have to do is keep an eye out for the only thing that Nova Chroma could possibly look like outside of costume. They're smiling and quietly singing along to zettai daijobu dayo yarerusa yes sir in rhythm while they look around. What could go wrong with just giving themself a day to hang out with a new friend?

RECON: THE DARK OCEAN

[nashiramods]

Local dog trainer writes a tag, explains his character like he's a dog

[string_instrument]

To say Nova Pastos was undertaking this mission with some kind of attitude would be an extreme understatement. Which isn't to say his attitude is one of reluctance. Very much the opposite. That's at least half of the problem. He's wound up so tight with raw anticipation and drive that if he was a dog, he'd be biting the first person to touch him because he's so over threshold and can't control his arousal.

Thankfully, he is not a dog and no one is trying to touch him, because that would be weird. And also he is not actually going to bite anyone. That would also be pretty weird, although the way he presses his jaw back, his teeth locked together and muscles taut with unexpression tension, doesn't make it seem like it's completely off the table.

For once, he doesn't want to talk, not to Nautis and not to anyone else; it's not until she sends him up--or out, depending on how one calculates trajectory from Earth--that he finds something worth saying. He stands completely still, looking at the lights in the darkness, which reflect off the surface of his sick-ass anime shades.

He's taking in the metal panelling, the shapes and the engineering. There's a sense of gravitas to it all; the cold utilitarianism doesn't deter him in the slightest.

"This is actually really cool."

It's quiet, uttered somewhere between the gentleness of a murmur and the harshness of a mutter.

One hand rests lightly on the hilt of his sword. The other supports Cal--which is completely unnecessary, because Cal's arms are wrapped securely around his neck as usual--but he's still doing it. In a sense, he's armed with the puppet as much as he is his blade. Both of them support him in equal measure.

Well, maybe not equal. Lil Cal is special.

"Like actually."

[kneecapshot]

"Stay focused," Nova Justicar hisses softly, drawing his weapon and starting to scoot back into a corner before he realizes Nova Patmos isn't moving and he does actually reach out and grab his elbow, pulling him away from the center of the room.

"I need you to listen to me," he says, his voice taut and almost inaudible as he scans around for visible cameras. His voice is harsher than it would usually be, but he's tense and he doesn't have time to think about Dirk's feelings right now. "This was literally my day job. I need you to follow my lead, do you understand?"

[string_instrument]

Nova Pastos responds to being manhandled one of two ways: like a feral cat (which is to say, easily startled and actively armed, with hair-trigger reactivity), or like an immovable marble statue. It's the latter effect that Justicar experiences--he has to pull hard to move the Knight in pink at all, and then it's more thanks to Pastos' willing and active backwards walk that he gets where Justicar wants him.

Not that he couldn't have been dragged, probably, but between his physical instinct to resist being manipulated and lack of social responsiveness... well, on that note, he turns his head sharply, cocking it at a deeply uncooperative angle.

"Yeah. Sure." It's hard to read a tone that flat, so maybe his displeasure is less obvious. Or maybe it's really, really obvious.

He doesn't even ask for what it is Justicar wants him to do, if he has so much experience. He just presses his back against the wall and stands there in icy silence. Behind his shades, though, his eyes are taking it all in. He's not just a would-be-engineer; he has quite a lot of firsthand experience with cameras and hiding them.

He might be a bitter pill, but he's not forgotten what Shellustria did to him. Or why he's here.

"Lead on."

[kneecapshot]

"I'm serious," Justicar says flatly--it's obviously Nova Pastos didn't like it and was in a fucking mood today, but that wasn't more important than the mission. "Just keep behind me and be as quiet as possible."

Justicar carefully moves deeper into the ship, staying close to walls, his blaster at the ready as he checks around corners and then beckons Pastos to follow him.

MYSTERY PLOT A: GENTLEMAN THIEF ESCAPE

[nashiramods]

[istandwithmycancelledwife]

"Huh, this looks pretty neat!" Nova Sunbeam says as he looks at the description on the rental game box. The console's been set up in the hideout with a suspiciously high-end TV -- Kalim has never been much of a gamer™ but the idea of playing a game with one of his teammates ostensibly for Nova Knight research purposes is fun and exciting!

"It says we can both play at the same time, too!" he adds, beaming at Nova Vortex. "That's so cool! I didn't know they made video games like that."

Time to G-g-g--g-g-duel

[harlsequinn]

"Well tee-bee-haitch I only know about that because our newest member introduced me while I was helpin' her set this thing up. I think it was actually my first time playin' a videogame? Ever?" Nova Vortex scratched the back of her head. Gentleman Thief Escape, huh? She still doesn't really understand videogames, but maybe her real life experience could help her playing this? It sounds like there's gotta be some parkour and whatnot in there. "Anyway, let's do this! No time like the present!" Nova Vortex gently takes the box from Nova Sunbeam (with his permission, of course!), cracks the case, and inserts the game into the console. She waits for Nova Sunbeam to sit down next to her and grab the second controller, then flicks the on switch.

"Gentleman! Thief! Escape!" crows the in-game announcer. A small animatic of the eponymous Gentleman Thief scrambling over a variety of set pieces started playing, with a hovering box with the word 'start?' proudly emblazoned on it sitting just over the bottom of the screen. Nova Vortex presses start, maneuvers over to two players, waits for Nova Sunbeam to press start, and then selects 'Begin Story Mode.'

Nova Vortex feels a strange tug beneath her navel.

Within seconds, two game controllers clatter to the floor, leaving only the blips and grunts of the videogame behind.

[istandwithmycancelledwife]

Nova Sunbeam blinks, disoriented in the extreme to find himself in the alleyway exterior of Gentleman Thief Escape's introductory stage. The level design of this game is very... cartoon Victorian. Lots of brown and purple -- a pretty stark contrast with the hideout where they just were, that's for sure.

It's a relief, though, to see that the teammate he's sure he was sitting down to play with a few seconds ago is here with him.

"Nova Vortex!" he exclaims, hurrying to her side. "What just happened?"

MYSTERY PLOT B: SHINEBOW ALL-STARS GRAND PRIX

[nashiramods]

Re: MYSTERY PLOT B: SHINEBOW ALL-STARS GRAND PRIX

[theriflespiral]

When Cynthia had invited Natalia over for a study session two days after the smoothie incident, she had expected to adjourn to lavish appointments, much like the Captain's place immediately after the smoothie incident: wide spaces, with other people tending the garden, and a place so large it demanded several servants (who Natalia suspected she would have been more comfortable talking to than the rest of the rich kids who thought of the Captain's place as 'comfortable').

She had been surprised, but perhaps not unpleasantly so, to learn that instead of this, Cynthia's apartment was a tenement building an intersection or less from Natalia's own little suite with her family.

That day, Cynthia had learned many things, not least of which is that the Enclave District thought the world of Natalia, and that she was very much a polyglot, able to talk with most people of the Enclave district in their own languages. What they were talking about may have been a mystery to Cynthia, but the gratitude was obvious.

But now, it is a month later, and once more they are walking the Enclave district, with Cynthia's apartment building in sight.

"A haunted rental store..." Natalia says, pondering. Really, they seem to disperse their forces a lot. She's not sure it's the greatest idea, but there are so many little fires to put out... "It's an intriguing tale. Wish we could have gone."

It's usually Cynthia that dictates how they walk down the road since that day, and Natalia largely lets her; a little bit of embarrassment is worth it, for her.

SHOWDOWN: LUDORETICULA

[nashiramods]

Re: SHOWDOWN: LUDORETICULA

[avemortis]

Things haven't been going the greatest for Nova Mortis lately, she'll admit. She's still catching up on a massive sleep debt, and the attempted capture of that Constellation last month had gone really badly...but it wasn't like they could just stop and fold there. That'd be a complete waste of everything she's done up to now.

So she's ready to get back out there, ready to take on another fight. Not a fight with that jerk Prince Shellustria — even if she wouldn't readily admit to being afraid of him — but it's still Nova Knight stuff. As long as she's fighting bad guy monsters, she's protecting the Nova Knights, and that's all that really matters.

So when Mortis meets up with Crescent and Glimmer outside the train station on the evening of the 30th, she's all but bouncing on her heels. The lace mask she's been resolutely wearing since April is nowhere to be seen, and neither is her guitar; instead, she's cradling a plush doll that looks just like her, supernova outfit and all, and she waves with a bright smile once she sees them approach.

[snizier]

Upon Mortis's approach, Crescent is, possibly for the first time as a Nova Knight, stunned into speechlessness.

He recovers within a few seconds, but he definitely does a bit of a goldfish impression first.

"Uh... it's... good to see you in better spirits?" he says, hesitantly, because he has never seen Mutsumi be this cheerful a day in his life.

[parillegal]

Better spirits is right. Glimmer might not be Mortis's bestie or anything, but she sure wasn't this happy last time they were on a mission...

but in contrast to Crescent, Glimmer meets Mortis's demeanor with relief.

"No kidding! You look primed and ready to get going."

[fibrillate]

a. in time you'll see that i'm your only friend [pizza]

Nothing huge has happened yet, not since the horrible failed mission to capture the Three Sisters. But still, they don't think they can go to the hideout alone. The Midnight Diner isn't open. So what exactly are they supposed to do? Nowhere feels safe; nowhere feels good. Nova Pandora is just... sitting in the back corner of a pizzeria near the hideout. They've slid into a booth and they have a large pizza sitting on the table between them and the empty other side of the booth, and they're looking down at their phone.

They'd DMed a couple people from the Nova Knight group chat, people they expect they'll be on better terms with right now, and now they were just waiting for their response. And hopefully their arrival to the address they'd given.

Hey, it's Pandora
Listen, I just wanted to talk to somebody on the team who doesn't totally hate my guts right now
I could use some advice
If you're free and up for it, could you come here?

And I have pizza

If nothing else, they know that they can ply people with cheese on sauce on bread. They put their elbow on the table, rest their head in their hand, and glance up at the TV mounted on the wall, playing some sci-fi movie they watched the last time they went to see their mom. They sigh. Things used to be easier, like, four months ago.

b. everything i've yet to break is surely bending [school]

Everwave Academy might be winding down as summer break approaches, but Hope (Mx. Carassia if you're a student) has... well, honestly, they've seen better days. When they are with their students, good ol' TA Wheely-Cart has been getting rolled out a little more often, which isn't fantastic teaching but also, like, screw it. They're maybe not a fantastic teacher after all.

In between lessons and steering well clear of the art room for whatever reason, they've been trying to pretend they have it together. They've been bringing their guitar to school and spending time in the music practice rooms after hours, like they had only a handful of months ago, and they actually feel like they're getting better. They're spending time in the library, helping with keeping the stacks organized and doing minor tech troubleshooting when they can. It's enough to make them feel productive. Like they aren't losing their mind.

If you're not the kind to encounter them in the middle of the school day, then as they finish one particularly haggard school day, they feel about ready to fall down where they stand. They leave the building, then right next to the door, lean back against the wall and wipe their brow with an audible 'whew'. And then their eyes open, and wider than they thought, because they have been fully caught. "Hey," they say, trying to keep it casual. "Sorry, I just needed to rest for a second, it's been... one of those days!" they say, trying to keep it breezy. "I'll get out of the way in one second, okay?"

c. every choice you'll fail to make [wildcard]

((anything else? hit me up in the discord!!))

[A]n awkward meeting

[theriflespiral]

Why Nova Pandora actively insisted on getting a pizza and sitting down with it before anyone showed up is anyone's guess, but Natalia isn't about to complain about free food. So she found a quiet place, transformed, and felt incredibly awkward as she walked in to a pizza parlor. At least it was bright.

... She missed Pierogi.

Still, the booth is... a bit awkard to sit down in, if you have inch-thick armor covering your top half, even if you're as tall as Nova Neos.

It. takes her a try or two, before she carefully hauls up her armor and slips in, letting it hit the table with a clack. "Very well. Speak."

[fibrillate]

Pandora sits up straighter when they see Neos enter, and they're torn between laughing at the situation and wanting to sink into the floor for a moment.

"Sorry. I forgot that some people actually wear stuff that's good in a fight when they transform." They decide to let that be the last thing they say about it, because—just as they always appreciate with Neos—it looks like they're getting down to business.

"So... I don't know how much you know about how bad it all is with me, Pastos, and Mortis." Shouldn't be too hard to piece together. They are down a Constellation, after all. "But I think I need to find some way to make peace with them if we're going to be a team. And I just..." They hear the echo of their mom's words. You have to ask people for help, and you have to actually let them do it. "I want your advice on how to patch stuff up."

[theriflespiral]

Neos shrugs and says, "This is simply how I view a knight. I am sure it shall change as time goes on."

She slowly slices up the pizza and hands Pandora one. "However, I will admit, I am as frustrated about Nova Pastos as you are. He is... Simultaneously fragile and belligerent, and reminds me, unpleasantly, of tutors past."

The fact that she says this, largely, without changing her tone or expression is... Something.

"As for Mortis..." She pauses. "Mortis... Has undergone some changes, recently, hasn't she?"

for maya

[fibrillate]

d. you can always get it right next time [in continuation]

Yeah, this has probably been a long time coming. Even if nothing really feels like a long time this summer. They have to catch up with Maya on stuff that happened while they were Pandora, and it's never felt like more of a relief to come out to this pizza joint and pick up something big for both of them to share and slide into a booth without being Nova Pandora. While just being Hope Carassia, and if they really started to feel like shedding identities, Hope Asteria instead. Fuck their stupid dad taking over everything.

They've taken to like their faded hair, their worn contacts, their gamer tees and their torn jeans. They've spent way, way too much time in a different uniform as of late, and even if Hope has a lot of problems, they can actually do something about it. They feel like they can actually make some progress. Pandora's problems are... worse. Pandora's problems are screwing things up for more people.

They sigh and rest their elbow on the table, running their hand through their hair. "Oh, Maya, I'm really in it now."

[parillegal]

Magical heroism was supposed to be cool, wasn't it? It's strange, then, that the friends Maya keeps making are all having such troubles. When they'd escaped the abyss, it had felt like nothing could go wrong to Maya— but since then, the revelation of Mortis's identity to Glimmer had seemed to cause her so much stress, and now this mystery with Pandora, and Crescent's comments—

The least Maya can offer is a listening ear, but man, she really hopes she can actually lend a helping hand.

"Lay it on me, Hope! I'm here to listen, and my schedule's clear," she assures.

"What's up?"

[fibrillate]

Ohhh, man. Okay. Well.

"How intense do you want to get?" they say, almost laughing but definitely not getting there, not all the way. They rest their hand on the table and look up at Maya through glasses that have probably needed to be cleaned for a little while. "The first time I met Pastos, he was yelling at me for being a coward," and they don't say about what, "And I only figured out it was him when we were on that mission together. And I don't know how to apologize for any of that."

Of course they should be the one to apologize. Right? That's how it works. Their inaction, or screwed-up actual action, caused bigger problems than hurt feelings. Ones that the Knights are still trying to resolve to this day. Good job breaking it, hero. "I mean, just for starters. Heh."

7/25: Natalia contacts group chat

[theriflespiral]

Natalia is on her way home, through the rooftops and the alleys, and sighs. The fact is, if she's not as good as she thinks, and she's pretty sure she's not, not really, not if Maya and Hope's stories of Shellustria are to be believed--

She needs to work on her spells. Not just making them stronger, but in figuring out what they can do. She's already found herself able to stretch the limits and remit of Body-Temple Aspect. It leaves her wondering where the rest of her abilities can go.

The simple fact is... She's not getting anywhere on her own.

And that's when she happens upon a fortune-teller. The prescient bird act! "Ah."

"You seem pretty down, young lady."

"Well, yes. Obviously."

"What seems to be the matter?"

".... I'm not sure I'm good enough," Natalia replies, and it's the truth.

"Nonsense! No one can be as good as they can on their own! It takes dedication and support for someone to truly become as strong as they can be!"

"... So you say, but--"

"In fact, even I wouldn't be here today without the help of my associates. And I'm just a humble chick seller! Everyone needs a little help sometimes. It's not a shame to want help or companionship!"

Huh. Yes. I could do that... And I'll need to do it fast, things are heating up. "-- Of course!"

"So you'll buy a--"

Natalia was already off and running.

"Hey, wait!" the chick-seller said, with a groan.

~ ~ ~

So. Our last physical training session went... Acceptably.

[She was not going to tear Pastos a new one in the group chat. That's Vortex's job.]

Lately, I'm sure some of you have noticed that I've been trying to use my spells in more creative ways.

A little bird told me that I would have better luck with companions. As such, if you are interested in a brainstorming and spell-practice session, let me know, either through group chat or on channel. I'm sure we can figure out something to do within the Nashira.