WORLD JUMP # 1: EL MINHA.

[acatamods]

I ▫ main IV ▫ premise       XI ▫ applications XIV ▫ activity II ▫ logs V ▫ rules VII ▫ bestiary   IX ▫ canon updates XII ▫ taken XV ▫ drop/hiatus III ▫ ooc VI ▫ faq VIII ▫ setting   X ▫ mods XIII ▫ reserves XVI ▫ players welcome to el minha. It will happen at random- you could be asleep, or wandering the Temple, or a variety of other options. It will feel a little strange, like a sudden warmth spreading across your skin, and then your bracelet will light up and a semi-familiar voice will be heard. I hope you are able to help the people of El Minha! And oh- in case I didn't mention it already, water is very, very valuable here. And then you will blink, and it will be bright. Bright, and warm, as you are standing just inside the grand walls that protect the impressive city before you. At your hip there will be a small bag with a few bits of coin - nothing too crazy, and definitely not enough to last you the entire stay (which...you're not exactly sure how long it will be), but enough to get started. Your presence brings a couple of glances, a stare or two, but overall the city seems to continue on with its day. Welcome to the Red Desert, the city of El Minha. THE PALACE After a few hours of being within El Minha, the King has heard that a large amount of travelers are now wandering within the city limits. An audience is called in front of the Royal Palace, and King Kathashun steps out onto the dias. He is dressed rather plainly, for a monarch -- a purple robe, with some gold bangles and bracelets, but no ornate crown or anything like that. However, when he appears, the natives around you grow quiet, at the presence of their King. “I understand that there are a lot of new people, within our fair city. Welcome to El Minha, the Jewel of the Red Desert. Enjoy our culture, our people, our wares; we welcome you, and hope you enjoy your stay.” There is a pause, though, as King Kathashun seems to weigh out what he wants to say. “I normally do not spend my time greeting tourists to our city, as our Crown Guard typically handles educating our visitors on our ways,” he continues, folding his hands behind his back. “But the heart of our city has been heavy, in recent months, and I feel it is my duty as King to be clear, to be honest, and to speak the truth. Recently, we have been attempting to hunt down individuals who wish our city harm, who have harmed my family, and my people. The Syndicate has been active, as of late, and I warn all of you who are not familiar with El Minha to avoid certain areas of the city should you wish to keep your pocketbooks.” There’s a slight quirk of his lips, as he says that, before he tilts his head in a polite gesture of greeting toward the crowd. “Please, enjoy El Minha. And should any of you garner any information concerning the Syndicate, please do not hesitate to contact me.” For the duration of your time in El Minha, King Kathashun will be within his palace . . . or so the Crown Guard says, should you ask them for an audience. That being said, you might be lucky wandering the streets. The King of El Minha tends to mingle more with the common folk than the Crown Guard would lead you to believe . . . THE GRAND MARKET Welcome to the heart and soul of El Minha - a massive outdoor market in the center of the city. Covered by fabric stretched between the buildings, this market feels almost like a city, or living soul, in and of itself. It is constantly moving, constantly evolving. Anything you could imagine is for sale here - spices, jewelry, weapons - whatever you’re looking for, anything at all. While you won’t necessarily find specific items from your home, you can find any matter of similarly made or crafted ones. Think cheap knock-offs, or unnecessarily well-made versions, because they can vary widely. There can also be items of some level of magic, though nothing particularly strong or overly impressive. (feel free to ask the mods on the previous ooc post about if an item is too over-powered to be found in the market - and also know that there’s always the chance you could find it in the underground. It just depends on how determined you are to track it down.) Stalls can range from cobbled together boxes and goods to grand, incredible stands - it all depends on what you’re looking for, and how long you’re willing to look. There is no map here, so tread lightly! The merchants that work in the market are experienced, practiced sales people. They know how to sell to anyone, but especially tourists. Barter to your hearts content, but it will take a little more than a ‘please’ to get those prices down. They have expert eyes and will not take pick-pockets or thieves well. However, as experienced and watchful as the merchants may be, that won’t stop young kids on the streets targeting the tourists as well - so keep an eye out on your pockets! As long as you have coin, water, or something to trade you are welcome as long as you’d like to stay here in the El Minha Marketplace. However, if you loiter for too long, you might get a swift kick in the ass to either get moving or buy something - they’re not giving away anything for free, and that includes the shade. THE SPARKLING SAPPHIRE As the announcement from King Kathashun comes to an end, all members of the Circle will be communicated - in one way or another - the direction to the Sparkling Sapphire. Free housing, you’ve been told. All you have to do is go, give them your name, and let them know you are part of the group that King Kathashun has directed here. Here, as it turns out, isn’t too shabby of a place. A large building with plenty of rooms, it is clean and fairly busy, with a bustling tavern area and rooms upstairs. You can pick up your key from the older woman behind the front desk, and are directed to the staircase in the middle of the establishment. The rooms are clean, but plain, with one or two beds depending on your preference. Downstairs in the tavern you can find food served for both breakfast and dinner, which is included in the room. Otherwise, there is a small fee for food or drink, and the servers are talented and experienced and very, very friendly. It is in the tavern that you can find the hookah, and some strange liquor as well, but it’s up to you if you choose to drink it. The food is incredible, beyond incredible, and they can make almost anything that you’ll like, though it may come out a bit creative. The main room is comfortable - with a roaring fire but without the suffocating heat. There is a bard in the corner, who will sing or tell stories or simply play, depending on the feeling of the room. Have a drink! Or a meal! While most of the people here are indeed Circle members, there may be a couple of natives mixed in as well. Take a load off, relax, and enjoy the hospitality that only a King’s Coin can bring. THE FIGHT RING The ring itself is somewhat on the outskirts of town - a colosseum-esque collection of buildings that watch over a pit-like arena. The buildings protect the Fighting Ring from any outside eyes, or any unwanted attention, as this area is solely under the command of The Syndicate. Anyone is allowed inside, as long as you don’t cause any problems and don’t start any trouble. There are a number of what you can assume are Syndicate-employed figures that are constantly canvasing the area as well, so don’t expect to be able to sneak in unless invited or allowed. The Fight Ring is open for volunteers at any time, and once you’ve been checked for any fun business and told the rules (no magic, only weapons allowed are the ones provided, the fight will end once one side relents or is taken out of commission). If this still feels like your cup of tea, you are invited to take a spot in line. Perhaps, if you’ve shown yourself promising enough, The Champion may appear to protect their crown. Otherwise, you will find plenty of adversaries around. If you are looking for a less aggressive route, there are plenty of seats open to watch, as well as many other members of the city taking a break to watch the fights, and they certainly wouldn’t mind sharing some of their favorite stories of matches or victories. The Champion is the resounding favorite, but the stories shared will vary to the point that almost no useful information can be gleaned. Join in the festivities that surround the ring! Pick up some food, bet on some fighters, enjoy the competition, and maybe you’ll be lucky and catch a sight of The Champion, or any of the other legendary figures of the El Minha Fight Ring. THE GOLDEN PHOENIX The Golden Phoenix is the central location of the Syndicate . . . and locals will make absolutely no effort to hide that fact from the Circle members. However, people don't seem to be afraid to go, though you definitely need to have coin to get through the door. There are multiple tables where various dice and card games are being played, as well as old slot machines. There are multiple employees in dark uniforms wandering around, offering drinks to all those who are spending coin on the machines, free of charge. If you loiter too long without spending money, you will be asked why you're there -- not in a threatening way, of course. But the relationship between the Syndicate and the King isn't all that great, as of late . . . can't be too careful with spies. In the back of the Golden Phoenix, there's a tiny racing ring in the back where small lizards are being raced in a little track set on a table. You can place bets on any of the lizards and, who knows? You may win a prize, including a little lizard! How cute! (Be careful, though: they nip.) But out back, there's another lizard racing ring, though these ones are . . . well, they're certainly not tiny. In fact, people seem to be riding on them akin to horse racing . . . and jockeys are a dime a dozen, in El Minha. Fancy yourself the next Triple Crown winner? Step right up, step right up, and take a spin on the track outside! Additionally, please feel free to write up and work with your own prompts! These are presented as jumping off points for your characters, not limitations. The idea of this world- as with all the others- is to explore. There will be some NPCs interacting with characters as well, so keep an eye out for those as well! If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask them back on the mod questions thread back in the OOC post from before! From this point forward, the Circle has become involved with the political stasis and climate of El Minha. What your character finds out, decides, and does from here on out will affect the future of this city- one way or another! But what you do is completely up to you. What you discover, explore, and uncover in this city will be yours to discover, explore, and uncover. Who knows what you might find? :)

Comments

1

[lonered]

[Keith catches sight of Sam -- and honestly, from their conversation on the network before, he's already curious about this guy -- and hesitates only briefly before making his way over. He slips himself into a seat beside him and glances over with a fairly standard,]

Hi. It was Sam, right?

[Sam the hunter of all things that shouldn't exist.]

[buff_for_a_nerd]

[ Sam's almost convinced himself to just go ahead and ask for another drink when he's greeted from the seat next to him, and he makes a sort of 'hang on a minute' gesture at the questioning look from the bartender before turning to regard the familiar voice. He recognizes the face too, and the name comes along with it easily enough. ]

That's me. Hey.

[ Since he's been struggling a bit with varying ideas of what constitutes a polite greeting, he won't immediately go for a handshake, but if it seems like it's expected he'll offer one easily enough. He doesn't have a problem with keeping things more informal. ]

Did you come for a drink or for a talk? Or both?

[ He seems a little young to be drinking alcohol, but Sam's not here to judge. ]

[lonered]

Probably shouldn't drink... [A decision he will wish later that he had kept to. But for now he's behaving.] Doesn't look like they have an age requirement here, but...

[He is young to drink, though it's hardly the morality of it that bothers him. He just hasn't often, and doesn't want to start in a place he doesn't know. At all.

Handshake would probably be appropriate, but Keith is terrible at these things so it's not going to happen.]

So I guess that leaves conversation.

[buff_for_a_nerd]

[ Age requirements were never much of a concern in Sam's family, whether it came to beer or driving or handling weapons, and he's not too worried about any of that here as long as no one's getting in trouble. ]

Something non-alcoholic?

[ If Keith wants anything, Sam will wave the bartender on over. She's been very helpful as far as getting Sam anything he wants, to the point where he's starting to think it's not just his money that she likes.

He'll probably ask her for a non-alcoholic drink himself when she comes back by. He's had enough that he can feel a faint buzz, but drinking to the point of incapacitate definitely isn't in the cards here. ]

So what do you think of the place so far?

[ He doesn't know Keith very well, but from what he's heard so far he respects the way the guy thinks. He's skeptical, and he's wary of the delicate situation they might have walked into here, and that kind of awareness is what they need here. ]

[lonered]

Yeah, maybe that.

[Keith will order a water because he's about that level of boring as people go. Later this might change, but he's on edge still here. Not sure what to make any of this at all yet.

And then Sam asks that question. Keith hesitates a moment before shaking his head.]

I'm not sure yet. They're... way too welcoming. Who puts a huge group of strangers up for free?

[Like that's a lot of "out of the goodness of a heart" especially with poverty being pretty evidently a problem here.] Why are we getting special treatment?

[buff_for_a_nerd]

[ Sam makes it two waters, and he saves his reply for when the bartender heads back to the other side for those two glasses. He doesn't really think she's in on some plot against them, but it's a habit of a lifetime of conversations that are just better off not being overheard even by innocent bystanders. ]

I assumed that Astoria arranged payment for all of this somehow, since she gave us some coins to start with here as well, but now that you mention it I don't think she ever actually said that.

[ He frowns at his watch, idly tapping the screen which is currently off, and when he goes on he lowers his voice just a bit more. ]

Whoever wants us here, it must be because of the political situation. I don't see how a civil war would be good for anyone here, but it sounds like that's what the King is worried about.

[lonered]

[Honestly Keith can appreciate the caution. And the paranoia. He's not exactly the most trusting of... anyone. Ever. This experience is probably not going to help with that.]

I guess she could have.

[But yes that's the thing. They're her to meddle. The people here can't possibly be aware of that, right? Or they definitely would not be happy to have them?]

...war is always going to be messy. And have a high cost in terms of pain and suffering. There's no way around it. Sometimes you can't avoid fighting, but...

[yeah. It'd go badly, in all likelihood.]

[buff_for_a_nerd]

It doesn't seem like these people want to fight.

[ Granted, his opinion might be influenced by the fact that he's been sticking to the 'average' citizens rather than the wealthy ones, and most of them seem to just be wary of another King like previous one. Wary, but not to the point of wanting to fight a war to oust him without reason. ]

But I don't know about the Syndicate. No one seems to, or if they do they're just not talking about it. So far we're only getting one half of the story at best.

[ He takes a sip of his water, thinking back to the impression he's gotten of the previous monarch. ]

If the last King was that bad, you'd think he would have gotten along better with them. Or maybe he just didn't like the competition.

[lonered]

You're right about that. We've gotten the official story from the guy in charge.

[Which isn't always the whole story. Or even a true half of the story. But it's a start, and what they have at the moment. The Syndicate is more complicated, given the whole criminal element thing. Do they even have someone in charge? A spokesperson? A manifesto?]

There can be different flavors of bad. Not all exactly get along.

[buff_for_a_nerd]

And in my experience a lot of the time there's not even such a thing as a 'good' side and a 'bad' side. Just different people with different ideas of how the world should work.

[ He sighs, propping his elbow on the bar so that he can settle his cold glass lightly against his temple. He's definitely not quite used to the oppressive heat of this place yet. ]

This political stuff isn't really my area of expertise. I'm not even sure we know what the problem really is here yet.

[ Maybe it's as simple as the people's mistrust of the new King. Maybe not. ]

But I do know that trying to meddle without knowing that has gotta be a bad idea.

[lonered]

Sure, most things are some shade of gray instead of black and white.

[Sometimes though it's just that clear. Keith shrugs his shoulders in something between agreement and having no idea how to process this.]

I don't think we do yet. We're all outsiders. We don't have enough context to just step in... so there's some work to do for that. But not everyone is going to trust outsiders, so it's not going to be easy.

[And Sam is super right.] We could cause more trouble than we'd help if we're not careful.

[buff_for_a_nerd]

[ Sam shakes his head, not at Keith but just at the situation in general. ]

I've gotta admit, I thought we would have something more... obvious to do. This place has plenty of problems, sure, but nothing that immediately makes me think of Darkness that's pushing the universe out of balance. Maybe this is the calm before the storm.

[ He drains the rest of his glass and motions for a refill from the bartender. Between the alcohol and the heat, he definitely could use another. ]

What were you doing before you she pulled you in, anyway?

[ He remembers Keith mentioning space and being a pilot, which seemed a little vague. ]

[lonered]

Right? It's got its issues, but... [But what place doesn't. Sure the social and economic conditions seem tricky and definitely not ideal, but maybe there's something more brewing beneath the surface that they aren't yet seeing. Maybe. It's more wait and watch and listen, and none of those are things Keith is good at. So he's trying to keep his frustration at the whole thing down.

It's a work in progress.]

Uh... fighting in an intergalactic alien war for the fate and freedom of the known universe. [The expression on his face at least is clear that he understands how dramatic and bizarre that sounds.] ...you?