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Who; Everyone!
What; Pulse log; REMEMBRANCE
Where; Throughout the City
When; August 8th - 15th
Warnings; Will update when and as necessary

In the days leading up to August 8th, the city is abuzz with activity. Businesses in the Merchant district have posted notices they will be closed the following week in observance of something called “Remembrance”. The Aspects are absent this week, though that doesn’t seem particularly out of the ordinary, and it’s easy to get caught up in what is quite a celebratory time in the city. Harvests and meats are being brought in from the outlying farms, the main square is being cordoned into stalls for food, drink, and performances. The guard is more present this week, keeping a close eye on the organization and watching for any miscreants.

As the time of the festival approaches, a quiet excitement seems to thrum through the others here, young and old alike, and on the evening of the 8th, a commencement parade makes its way through the market district.

The procession, filled with musicians, dancers, jugglers, and the like, make their way from the fountain square to the center of the market district, where a crude stage has been erected in the square at the center of the market district, in front of the guard headquarters. It’s nothing fancy, but it does serve the purpose of bringing to the attention of those gathered those who stand atop it.

A tall man in a Guardsman’s blue uniform climbs the stairs, steel plates glittering in the midday sun. He has a stern countenance, and there’s a stiffness through his shoulders that suggests he isn’t overly fond of public speeches. He takes a steadying breath before clearing his throat.

“People of Aterat, those of us who were risen from its ashes and those of us who have been gathered to kindle its flame,” he pauses here for a moment, giving his address an air of gravitas. “Welcome. I am Captain Orson Khannar, of the Aterat City Guard. I was a guardsman before the Fall and I can tell you we stand as a shadow of our former selves, but we do stand. Two years ago, today, the Aspects descended from the Fountain, all that remained of our once proud land, they saw the ruin wrought upon it, and they began to weave. There was little of us left, but what stands was reassembled because we Remembered.” A cheer rises from the collected locals, along with a few scattered cries of ‘bless the Aspects’ and ‘long may Halcyn reign’. Captain Khannar raises a hand to still the crowd and after a moment, their cheers and raised prayers quiet.

“But we did not remember enough. This year, the Creator has provided, and we welcome among us memories from other worlds. This Remembrance, do not forget their sacrifice.” His tone changes then, and his piercing gaze moves across all those who have come here from elsewhere. “Outlanders, I expect nothing of you, but I offer you a warning: we are not your captors but we are your neighbors. As such, we will hold you to the same standards to which we hold ourselves. I am the Captain of your guard, and it is my sworn oath to keep this city safe from miscreants. That said, those of you who are willing and able, I would welcome your aid. Surely by now you have seen our fair city has its share of problems. My office is just there across the square.”

And with that bit of business handled, he directs his attention back to the crowd. “A Happy Remembrance to us all!” The crowd cheers again, though less enthusiastically, as a few look around at those gathered from other worlds, uncertain if they share the Captain’s willingness to welcome the aid of ‘Outlanders’.

The rest of the week is a city-wide party. The taverns are overflowing with merrymakers, there is wine and food for all, music at all hours of the day and night. Performers come out in droves, there are artists, artisans, and the like. If you can think of a festival occurrence, it happens at some point, though all the shops are closed for normal hours. It seems it’s quite the holiday, and you are welcome to invent whatever you'd like for a scene.

The Captain remains true to his word, and the Guard HQ in the Market Square seems to be the only place operating normally. There are regular patrols throughout the events, but Captain Khannar can be found most days in his office, upstairs in the HeadQuarters, should anyone like to question him.

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There were quite a few people in this place that could relate to being more than a little miffed with being trapped in a strange world without their family (blood or found). Caelan himself wasn’t sulking exactly, not to the eyes of the average person. No, he was continuing to perform or socializing with a cheerful mask in place while he inwardly wanted to put sea urchins in the aspects’ (and that new guard guy’s) beds till they got fed up and sent him home.

Tonight the selkie was distracting himself with a drink and a little people watching at the tavern after spending most of his day among the entertainers. When one of said people he’d been watching spoke up, he raised a brow with a little grin. “Yeah, I do.” He gestured at her table lightly, specifically one of the empty chairs. “A free seat. Mind if I steal it?” If Caelan wasn’t mistaken, he’d seen the woman come and go from the red building a few times.

"It's all ours," she replied with a chuckle and shake her of head. Scents all blurred together in this place but Shalimar was pretty sure she'd picked up on his scent here before. Difficult for her to be certain of though with how things blended together in the Tavern. It occurred to her in this moment that she should have been paying more attention to that. There was safety in being able to recognize the scents around her more specifically. Maybe being away from her pack was throwing her mood darker than she was allowing herself to realize.

"Don't see too many thieves asking for permission before stealing something," she joked. In fact, experiences had taught her that most thieves didn't ask for permission for anything. "Not sure if it makes you the worst one I've ever met, or just the most unique one."

“I’d take unique if you’re looking for an opinion on that decision.” He responded a moment later, plopping himself down in the free chair and taking another sip of his drink. “Maybe off duty thieves do though. They can’t be on the clock all the time, now can they?” He added with a small chuckle, though it’s not entirely untrue.

As it was, he was more the sort of thief that stole what was already stolen. Usually... Sometimes the mark just had it coming to them. He was being on his best behaviour these days, at least until he worked out how this place worked better. Or if the mood to get into stupid shenanigans struck.

“Thanks for the seat though, the name’s Caelan.” He added, gesturing at himself with a small jangle of his bracelets. As far as scents went he probably smelled of the sea more often than not, unsurprising being what he was.

"Unique seems more appropriate. Not like you see many seat thieves out there," she replied as she ran a finger around the rim of her drink. "Off duty huh? Guess everyone needs a break now and then." Even a thief. Then again, she'd always assumed stealing was just in the nature of the thief. Maybe she'd just had too many bitter experiences with them though. One was basically asking for a bad time when they fell in love with a career thief who only thought about himself.

"Shalimar," she said with a flash of a smile. "Nice to meet you. Was getting kind of bored of just watching everyone else celebrate." It was a fishing statement, she wanted to know what other people thought of this festival that had been going on. Actually, she wanted to know what more people thought of this place in general. Did they trust it? Did they know things she didn't yet? Maybe, at the very least, she could figure out if anyone else was as paranoid as she was.

“A pleasure then, Shalimar.” He responded, before turning his attention to the people still celebrating around them with a thoughtful expression. He gets what she’s doing, looking for an opinion from another ‘other worlder’ like herself. Some seemed to be assimilating well enough, accepting the situation and rolling with it. Others did so begrudgingly from what he could tell.

“I suppose they have plenty to celebrate. Getting over some sort of world ending event, being alive to celebrate, mass abduction of peoples to ‘help’ rebuild.” He taps the list off on his finger with a wry smile, voice lowering to something a little more subtle. No, he’s not thrilled, and he doesn’t trust this place in the least. It was very rude to take people from their homes for your own needs where he comes from, he taught people who did that the occasional lesson back there now and again.

“Kind of them to include us in the festivities, yeah?” An illusion, something to butter them all up if he had to guess. Keep everyone happy, maybe give everyone a good enough time, and they’d be more willing to lend a hand or settle in.

"Pleasure is all mine, not often I meet a seat thief," she said with a flash of a smile.

"Some seem more happy about the mass abduction part than others," she replied. It seemed like some were suspicious of the motives that the people from other worlds may have than others. "Guess you can't blame them. But you'd think they'd have more faith in the people their gods choose," she shrugged. That was a strange part to her. If they revered these Aspects like gods then why weren't they more trusting of who they were bringing in? Unless who got brought in was completely random.

"Not sure if they had much of a choice but to include us. Looked like the Captain wrote his speech to give us his warning," she replied. "Think they've brought people here before that have caused problems?"

“You would think, but then again... their judgment has brought people here that I can’t see being much good for the whole ‘rebuilding’ aspect of the abductions.” He certainly wasn’t suited for this, but there were others even less suited in his opinion. “I met a twelve-year old they brought here. Twelve. She’s not going to be building anything from what I can tell.” He shrugged lightly, “I honestly wonder how long they’ve been around as ‘gods’ considering how they’ve gone about it.”

He grinned wryly at the mention of the captain of the guard, “Oh I don’t doubt that they have, considering how utterly random their choices have been.” Frankly, the speech only made him want to find trouble to cause. A little payback for all the trouble that being here was causing him. This was apparent in his eyes as he continued, “He certainly could have gone about warning people to behave better.”

"A kid?" she shook her head. "Huh, maybe they don't control it. Can't imagine someone thinking out how to rebuild their world and thinking a kid can help." But if they didn't control it directly, who did? Or what did? "You seen anything directly from them that shows what kind of abilities they have? Or has it just been all talk?"

She met his eyes for a second and a similar trouble making glint shown reflected back at him. "Doesn't give us much of an incentive to behave if he just throws an ominous warning at us without a reason." The only person Shalimar ever blindly followed was Adam and the Captain definitely wasn't Adam. "Nice to know they expect us to behave for them while not being open with us." Because no matter how she looked at it, it definitely seemed like there was a lot they weren't being told.

“I have not, though I’ve only chanced a conversation with Halcyn during the last gathering. Just to see what her temperament was like?” She outwardly seemed like the nicest of the bunch, and so Caelan had been tempted to see how true it was. The new captain of the guard was a temptation of a difference sort, not to converse with so much as ruffle his feathers and see just how he intended to deal with those who acted out.

Ah, but he certainly liked Shalimar already if that look in her eye was anything to go by. Raising a little hell now and again was good for boredom, and testing a city’s limits. “Frankly I don’t even know if they know what to do with us given how they’ve spoken thus far. Just vague ‘live your lives’ or ‘you’re here to help rebuild!’ nonsense, it’s less than nothing as far as guidance goes. All I know, is it makes one want to know what secrets they’re keeping more than inspiring to help out.” At least some of the residents, there were others who just seemed like they were falling into the role without much fuss.

"Too bad I missed the last gathering," she said with an over-emphasized tone of sadness. "Learn anything about her from it?" Something made Shalimar think the answer would be no, but she'd end up being wrong. Just seemed like they all were more interested in being vague than actually being direct. Damn, if she wasn't tired of people being in power being vague as shit.

She folded her arms across her chest and shook her head. "What if just living our lives means getting into trouble?" Her lips curled in a tiny smirk with the question. "They can't expect us to just trust them while they're being so vague." She paused for a second then looked around. "Where do they live? The Aspects and the Captain?" Not that she'd think of trying to break into where they lived, but she definitely was thinking of that.

“Nothing particularly useful, I’m afraid. She isn’t quick to annoyance or anger, though I suspect she’s more intuitive than she let on.” There had been a moment where her friendly demeanour had cooled, become more of a mask until he answered her question in a satisfactory manner. “I figured I would try again at the next gathering, but her and that Athony fellow were nowhere to be seen.”

A grin crept onto his face in return, yes they were going to get along quite well if what she said were anything to go by. Sometimes causing trouble was the best course of action in a situation like this, after all. “You’re right, for all I’m sure they would disagree. Of course, they’d have to catch us post mischief... Which I do feel safe in presuming they would have a hard time doing.”

What, he’s fast and can escape into the sea. There were no sea worthy boats!

“Sadly, I can’t tell you where they live. I’m still trying to figure that out.” Caelan’s face shifted into a small frown, “Been trying to work that out. There’s an abandoned neighbourhood that is full of houses that seem like they would suit their tastes, but they are abandoned so...” He shrugged a little, “I believe they might’ve kept their addresses guarded to avoid any of us from pestering them.”

(ooc: We don’t have to continue this where it’s so old! If you’d rather handwave the rest of their conversation I totally understand. I just didn’t want to leave things un-tagged as I get ready to come back from hiatus in October.)

"Not surprising. Can't imagine they'd be too interested in getting questioned on repeat," she said with a shrug. A grin spread on her face at his next statement though. "Pretty confident they couldn't catch me." Maybe there was shit she didn't know about them that could make that statement be less accurate. That wasn't something she was going to think much on though. Go in first was always her preferred method. It helped that she was superhumanly fast and agile, gave her a lot of options for escape routes.

"Doesn't seem like this place is too big. Can't be too hard to find them," she responded with an arch of her eyebrows. They had to be here somewhere, right? Maybe. "Might be hidden," she said almost to herself. "They don't have the technology for something like that." At least not from what she'd seen. Back home in her own world she'd lived in a mountain base that was completely hidden by technology. She couldn't imagine something like that here though, at least not with the technology levels she'd seen here. "If they show up to another gathering, I'll be able to find them after." As long as she was able to pick up a scent from them she was confident she could follow them.

“Good at running, are ya?” Caelan asked, tilting his head curiously with a grin. He takes another drink, before humming a little at the mention of the size of this land. “It’s very... contained, from what I’ve explored thus far? There’s a mist when you go far enough that you can’t pass. So yeah, the land isn’t that expansive.” It was annoying, he didn’t like the idea of being stuck in a fishbowl, he certainly didn’t like not knowing what might be beyond the mist either.

As for where the aspects were hiding, he rolled his shoulders into a dramatic shrug, “Small or not, there’s no telling that there isn’t another realm attached to this that they might dwell in separate from us.” Like in his world, the fae realm and the human world were almost parallel. Then on nights when the moon was right, it overlapped. Who was to say that it wasn’t like that here? The selkie hadn’t seen evidence of it yet, but he wasn’t ruling it out either.

"Had a lot of practice at being on the run. Few times I've been caught I've always managed to get away. Might say it's a talent," she said said with a proud looking smirk. "Take it you've been out to the mist? What makes it so you can't pass? Too thick for normal vision or something else?" Somehow she doubted it'd be as easy as just being hard to see in. That'd be too simple for her to get around.

"Another realm," she shook her head. "Sounds like something from some fantasy game," something one of her friends would love playing. Then again her entire life probably seemed like something out of science fiction. "Guess I've gotta get to work doing some more exploring."

He recognized that smirk, he’d worn it himself often enough. There was something very satisfying about knowing you got out of a situation that others would have preferred you didn’t. “Well then, between the two of us they’ll not know what to do, yeah?” He responded with a grin in a hushed tone.

Caelan at least took her question seriously, it was important after all. Everyone needed to know these things, even if he wasn’t going to embellish on which part of their little world he’d been poking the mist at. “Not normal mist, no. It turns you around, no mater how straight you keep. I’m guessing an enchantment of some kind. Either by the aspects design or someone else’s. Who knows, it might even be a remnant of whatever happened here?” Caelan huffed a little, that kind of enchantment wasn’t his specialty so there was little he could do about it.

He doesn’t know about any fantasy games, at least not the sort she was probably thinking. So with a little nod he gestured at their mugs. “I’d say you do, but not before you’ve finished your drink at least?”

"Maybe we'll have to see," she returned his grin with one of her own.

"Sounds like you've done your share of exploration." Which was good for her if she actually trusted he was giving good info. No reason to think that he wouldn't be telling the truth. "What do we know about what happened here?" That seemed like an important thing to have some knowledge about.

She looked down into her glass and then chuckled. "Might need a refill actually."

A refill? Well he’d handle that, waving a hand to signal for another couple of drinks for their table. After all, what proper fae would let their cups go empty?

That done, he returned his focus to the conversation with a small laugh. “Yeah, that I have. There wasn’t much else to do when I arrived, and I figured it was probably better to figure out how this place worked and where the convenient shortcuts might be. Then I ended up joining that group, the Gullwings, just for something to do. So I’ve had plenty of occasions to fuss about with exploring all the nooks and crannies of this place.” Aside from the forest perhaps, he hadn’t gotten that far yet.

“As for what happened here? I'm still not sure about that myself, the Aspects haven’t said nearly enough on the matter. The state of this place honestly suggests a number of possibilities, but nothing solid.”

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