The Sixth Trial

[hot_mess_express]

Who: unfortunate (?) souls
When: Day 15, afternoon
Where: some shady tent

Come hither, Heroes. Prove thy worth.

[Oh boy it's Trial time guys!!

That is to say there's the usual slight shake of the train, and outside a trial area appears! This time it's a highly decorated cloth tent, reminiscent of a fortune teller's stall, and the voice calling the heroes forth is a deep, aged and manly one. A warm light peeks out from behind the curtained entrance, welcoming you inside.

Those who go in, by their own will or compulsion, will find themselves in what seems to be a theatre lobby. There's a pretty, golden fountain with bench seating around it and lovely flickering oil lamps on the brocade walls.

For a little while, you're left to mingle.]

SIGNUPS ☆ PREGAME MINGLE ☆ RULES ☆ ROOMS ☆ WINNERS & ENDGAME

Comments

PREGAME MINGLE

[hot_mess_express]

Re: PREGAME MINGLE

[nihilmancy]

[Sitting around the fountain.]

He's not a bad host, at least.

[Still, she can't help feeling anxious, given the circumstances she arrived in.]

[desirestruth]

How ostentatious...

[She's squinting at the gold fountain. Who makes a fountain out of gold???]

[nihilmancy]

I wonder where all of this comes from.

[desirestruth]

My first guess would be magic, but even so...

[She sighs, rubbing her finger on the fountain to see if the gold comes off.]

This seems somewhat wasteful.

[nihilmancy]

Of course it's magic, but there must be more to it than that. Did these things exist in some other space before this event? Or are they merely a fleeting dream, fading away without a trace?

[desirestruth]

There's really no way to tell, unfortunately. And I don't see them telling us.

[Shrugging.] Though, if they had this in another space, why wouldn't they use it?

[nihilmancy]

There's no way of saying that this is the work of a collaborater of the Prince. This may well be some other force.

[desirestruth]

While true, I still question the judgement of anyone making fountains out of gold.

[nihilmancy]

It doesn't rust easily, at least. Most likely it is not solid gold, though.

[desirestruth]

It's ostentatious and pointlessly showy, is what it is.

[nihilmancy]

[Scoffs.]

So sayeth the Queen. [She agrees, though.]

[desirestruth]

I rule over a forest, we'd never have this much metal to waste to begin with.

[nihilmancy]

How do you farm, if all of the land is forested?

[desirestruth]

We don't, largely. There are some spaces suitable for smaller scale gardening, but agriculture in general isn't feasible. Fishing, foraging and hunting make up the majority of the food supply.

[She pauses, for a while.] A...little over a century ago, we also traded for those things we could not produce ourselves. And with recent developments, that trade may soon resume, but it's been a source of some concern.

[nihilmancy]

The population must be quite small, then.

You are isolated diplomatically? A loss in trade must mean a severe decline in living standards as well.

[desirestruth]

...Well, my mother seceeded from the empire we were a protectorate of, cursing our people and theirs in the process, and started a war that's been ongoing on and off for about 90 years.

So isolated's a word for it.

Re: PREGAME MINGLE

[wontforbidtherain]

[Cat is doing the requisite curious and puzzled newbie approach]

What is this?

[voreaciously]

[80H is here and is looking much different. She still holds herself with a very reserved, elegant air, which makes for an odd juxtaposition against her current state of dress: black, thigh-length velvet dress with sheer accents on the upper part of the bodice and cuts outs in the back that reveal skin; Thigh-high strappy stockings and ankle boots, opera length gloves with feather ruff aroud wrists.

She is also blindfolded.

It would be much more austere if not for the blue, orange, violet, and silver ribbons in her hair.]

...Hm, no puppets this time.

[bad_crowmance]

[ Crow's examining the fountain. ]

Whoa, now this is seriously fancy.

[crimeson]

Right? Dang.

[bad_crowmance]

Heh. Where did all of this even come from? I'm seriously impressed.