acatalepsy_logs | ( the sickness: phase two )

( the sickness: phase two )

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the sickness ends.

the temple.

The Temple, shortly after Astoria's burst of energy, is in a constant state of growth. Trees are bursting into existence from seeds in mere seconds, flowers are growing wherever magic lands . . . and the Temple is abruptly a-buzz with energy, magic crackling throughout the air. You may find a tree in your house, or flowers suddenly growing along the walls, or plants wiggling their way through the stone walls of the buildings of the Temple. All of a sudden, the place looks very overgrown.

The Forest of the Fey seems to be responding in kind, too. Sprites are exceptionally active, darting out of the Forest and into the Temple with increasingly regularity, playing basic little tricks on the members of the Circle they can find. Flower crowns are made at an alarming rate, and there might be a few fruit-food fights that break out with the sudden abundance of peaches and apples that appear on the grounds. Learn how to duck!

With the magic comes the sudden fluctuation of energy: canon powers flicker on and off, as do the powers granted by Astoria. You feel more like yourself, you suddenly have access to energies you did not have previously in the Temple However, it's a double-edged sword -- it is not constant, and it may be more trouble than its worth.

And, remember: the Sickness is not fading immediately. If you make it to Stage 3, then you're stuck with sensory deprivation for at least another week or two. Sorry, friends.

lake dona.

Lake Dona is a massive body of water, stretching outward for so far that it almost seems like an ocean until you see that the water is fresh. It is surrounded by long, leafy trees that dip into the water and has a variety of ancient ruins scattered around it -- weathered stones set into circles at seemingly even intervals, old buildings that seem to mirror the Temple in construct.

In addition to the ruins, there are a network of caverns tucked along the water’s edge, just underneath the surface on the western side of Lake Dona, that appear to go underground into murky darkness. The actual entrance to these caverns seem to be underwater, seemingly guarded by merfolk, but poking around may seem to be more trouble than its worth.

There is plenty of wildlife to be found within the lake itself, ranging from freshwater mermaids who would rather you stay the hell out of their backyard to a rather large and suspiciously friendly plesiosaurus-like creature (some would say that she prefers to be called Nessie) that seems intent on checking out who you are. The lake teems with odd-looking fish, most of which seem to be okay to eat, and plenty of plant life! But who knows what lurks in the depths below . . . that giant sea-monster looking thing has to be eating something.
PROMPT IDEAS: Here are some prompt ideas for this new area! However, don't feel limited to such ideas! Feel free to fish, to explore, to swim, to poke around . . . it's always possible Astoria may check in on your character, too, once she is feeling better! ;)

1.) The Great Pumpkin The overgrowth of plants have caused a massive growth spurt in a lot of the trees, including the fruit trees that sprinkle themselves throughout the Temple. However, the fruit themselves seems to be growing at a rather . . . alarming rate, resulting in a few pumpkin-looking squash growing to the size of small boulders in the fields. Hope you have a lot of spare time on your hands to make a hell of a lot of Temple-pie, because these squash aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

2.) Food Fight!: Those damn sprites are at it again, and are collecting fruit off the ground and throwing it at people. Fight back, organize, and conquer! Or not. It's probably better to just not.

3.) Part Of Your World: The mermaids within Lake Dona are a suspicious lot, and they don't take kindly to strangers stomping through their territory. However, they are receptive to music, so if you are so musically inclined, they will definitely be more inclined to be a little more playful than territorial. If you aren't? Have fun getting tossed into the lake head-first by a bunch of pissed off mermaids who want you to get the hell of their lawn. They don't take kindly to your type around here.

4.) Nessie: Within Lake Dona is a massive plesiosaurus-type creature which seems to be . . . oddly friendly? It seems to pop up at the most inconvenient of times. Are you sitting on the edge of the lake enjoying the water? Enjoy a massive ass dinosaur sticking its impressively long neck out of the lake to check you out and also scare the bejesus out of you. That being said, Nessie is an extraordinarily friendly being, and will even give you laps around the lake if you ask nicely!

5.) Caverns: The caverns within the lake are dark, deep, and menacing The merfolk inform you that you cannot go there -- no one can, but the merfolk sure seem to be keeping a careful eye out on it. Testing the boundaries indicates a weird magical field around the entrance of the cave, that works like a bit of a forcefield. Weird, right?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Good! Good. Glad to...hear that.

[ Did he ask about that already??? Oh gods. What is his problem? He gets flustered around girls easily enough but he would have thought by now he'd be over that with Alisaie. Apparently not.

Uncertain of where to take the conversation next, he blurts out the next question that pops into his head: ]

Sooooo! You...got a boyfriend back home?

[ ...what the fuck

SWEATS BULLETS ]

[ well... time to die... alisaie is so surprised that she nearly falls right off the creature's back, and her face flushes a burning hot crimson. ]

M-me? A - a b-boy-

[ remember when he thought she was cool and smart and badass? she misses those days. ]

N-no- no I - u-um. No.

[ Yep, about time he throws himself back into the drink...

Why did he ask that?! I mean, it's...good information to have, but seriously? Why did he think that was a good idea?!

He wasn't thinking, which is the problem, he just said the first dumb thing that came to mind, and now she looks like she'd going to die of embarrassment. He probably is about to too, if his flushed cheeks are any indication. ]

O-oh! Um...good...good to know.

[ Margaret groans again. ]

[ she's gonna die. they're both gonna die. poor margaret didn't sign up for this. ]

Do.. do you?

[ she asks, because it seems the natural progression of things, though her face burns only the hotter for it. ]

Have.. a girlfriend? O-or.. a boyfriend.

[ Oh, oh. She's asking him, now? He blurts an out unflattering laugh, before slapping a hand over his mouth and shaking his head.

He's more at risk of suffocating here above the water, for crying out loud. ]

N-n-no. I've never, um....dated...anyone....

[ WHY ARE THEY TALKING ABOUT THIS

WHY DOES HE EVER SPEAK EVER

WHY DOES HE EXIST ]

Edited 2018-09-27 05:09 (UTC)

O-oh. Of course. That's.. good.

[ is it, though?? she's not really sure that that's really anything to be complimenting someone on - not that she.. judges, of course, i mean it's not as if she has any more experience than he does.

but.. how? he's so kind and caring, so sweet and funny and clever, so strong, tender, and his freckled arms aren't bad either.. how is it that he could possibly never have been involved with anyone? mayhaps he's just been.. busy. she can't begin to guess.

anyway. time to sit in awkward silence some more. ]

[ Or...is it?

Attempting to salvage the situation, Prompto pipes up again, inevitably making things worse, as he is wont to do. ]

I-I-I'm s-sure you'd — m-make a good one. For. For the record.

[ Just making that clear okay now he can truly go bury his head in the sand for a hundred years!!!!!

Fortunately, Margaret decides to put them out of their misery, and starts back towards the shore. She is getting too old for this shit... ]

[ margaret no!! they'll be good!!

no, they won't. alisaie is still stammering, her face hot as the sun, her gaze foxed everywhere but on prompto. ]

M-me? Gods, no, I.. I highly doubt that.

[ a thin laugh!! ]

[ well because SOMEONE is too cool to edit their tag...alisaie foxes all over the goddamn place!!! ]

I-I'm serious! Anyone would be l-lucky to have you. [ tugging at a necktie that is certainly not there ] You...y-you're really thoughtful, you care about your friends a lot, you smart and funny a-and — c-cuuuuuuteaaaaaanyway...

[ He then spontaneously combusts, leaving only ashes behind.

Or he might as well. He makes a panicked sound as he twists around so he's not facing her anymore, leaning heavily against Margaret's neck. ]

So! MERMAIDS!!!

[ He shouts it. ]

[ wow that's right, she's super foxy!! dont you forget it!!

it's a good thing he turns around though so she can't look at him because she doesn't really want to see his face, and neither does she want him to see her face, so really this is.. this is for the best, now. she's burning hot scarlet, her eyes down on her hands, unmoving.

he's.. he's just being kind. she's overreacting. even if he's now... screaming. poor margaret.. ]

R-right. W-w-well, I suppose it isn't.. t-too strange..

Wh-what, the mermaids? Ooor s-someone dating you?

[ She means the mermaids. Of course she means the mermaids.

(Margaret keens, lamenting her afternoon with these two idiots.)

She means the mermaids. Also, he's still not facing her!! She can enjoy checking out his back freckles, though, he has those, too. :) ]

Th-the mermaids!

[ she is NOT looking at his back freckles!! she is in face very decidedly not looking at them on purpose!! her eyes are still locked onto her hands, pointedly unmoving. but she still remembers how his freckles looked on his wet skin..

so this is what it's like to actually be 18 years old, huh. ]

N-not the..

[ dating!!!! ]

U-um, right, w-well —

[ But before he can think of something else stupid to say about the mermaids, Margaret decides she's had quite enough of this, diving down into the water to leave the two of them to fend for themselves. ]

H-hey, wait!! Mags, don't be like this!!!

[ But it's too late. Margaret descends, leaving Prompto treading water, only just catching a hold of his shirt before it floats away. ]heck, man!

[ WOW margaret how dare!! we had such a connection!!

.. but okay, alisaie can't really blame her, though i mean really, they're practically at the shoreline by now, she could have endured their idiocy for a little longer, at least.

despite herself, alisaie bursts into a laugh, even while gliding toward the lake's bank. ]

I suppose she was quite finished with us..

[ Her laugh cuts the tension at last, and Prompto chimes in with one of his own as he starts for the shore. That water dinosaur totally just bailed on them for being idiots...and what was all that, anyway? Did he just...kind of tell her he wants to date her?

...Hopefully she didn't pick up on that. Please, please let her not have picked up on that... ]

Heh, think so! Can't really blame her... [ Even by his standards, THEY WERE BE PRETTY MORONIC. But that's just how he is when he's young and...you know. He probably just...embarrassed her.

He surges up and out of the water, offering her a hand up. ]

Well! I'd call our voyage a massive failure.

[ she doesn't really need it, but she'll be polite and take his hand anyway, definitely only because she wants to be nice!! for all she'd been a bit mortified (and still is, in the back of her mind), margaret had done them a favor in dislodging them into the refreshingly cold water.

not that.. all he's said isn't still branded onto her mind, of course, and no doubt she'll be overanalyzing it while she tries to sleep tonight, but that is a problem for future alisaie.

for now, it's time for her to be the one giving him an aneurysm when she snags the bottom of her skirt to begin peeling her dress up and off of herself, so she can shake it out and lay it over a warm boulder to dry. ]

Oh, I don't know.. it was still fun.

[ when they weren't being massive idiots

and even then, they were still riding a giant weary dinosaur ]

[ Oh, and now she's undressing, that's...cool...

But they're trying to be cool now! The tension was cut!! Thanks, Margaret. So he'll just...look at her a little over the top of her head, before finally taking off his pants because if he keeps them on, they will probably dry and fuse to his skin and he can withstand a little embarrassment for the sake of his blood circulation, probably.

just two totally not-hormonal kids taking off their clothes in front of each other it's cool ]

Yeah...it was. Wonder how fast she can go...maybe I could race her.

[ MAN VERSUS PLESIOSAUR, who would win ]

[ look, he's deserved an ogle or two given how she definitely ogled his wet skin and freckled shoulders... but she's been dressed like this in front of him before, anyway!! i mean, that was awhile ago.. but still...

anyway. ]

You could, but t'would be cheating, I should think, to use your power where she has none.

[ without it, plesiosaur would definitely win. ]

[ Look, his dokis weren't as big back then! And she was also sort of dying...

...

...Maybe he ogles just a little, through quick, cursory glances. Check out those scars...

...Anyway. ]

Hey, if she can use her natural advantage, why can't I use mine?

[ she wasn't dying at first!! only at the end..

anyway, she hops up onto the boulder as well to sit, and allow her skin to dry in the sun. ]

Because it is not your natural advantage.

[ some shitty witch gave them!! ]

[ Yeah, she wasn't dying when she had him help her out of her dress! :blush: ]

Well excuuuuuuse me [ PRINCESS ], but not all of us were born with cool, super rad, awesomesauce magic like you were! Us normies gotta take what we can get.

[ After a moment, he perches on the boulder next to her (would you look at that boulder, that is a nice boulder), leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. ]

Until I joined the Crownsguard...I couldn't really do anything special.

[ He doesn't sound bothered by it, though. It's just a fact of life in Lucis. Only the royal line carries magic in their blood. ]

That isn't true. Being able to manipulate aether is no more or less special than any other skill.

[ on hydaelyn, nearly everyone (save the garleans) are able to do it - some, of course, are far better than others, just like any skill or talent, but to her, using magic is no more interesting or special than knowing how to wield a spear, or craft armor, or any number of things.

leaning back onto her hands, alisaie turns her gaze up toward the sky. ]

You are an excellent marksman and artist, and moreover, you possess the exceptional ability to make people smile, to lift their spirits. That is a rare gift indeed, far moreso than any magic.

[ ...You know when he said he thought she would make a good girlfriend? The reasons why ring true when she says things like this. Prompto blushes a deep scarlet, but not out of embarrassment this time. He's flattered, and while it's hard for him to truly accept what she's saying is true, it's...welcome to hear it, all the same.

He rests his chin on his arms, turning his head to glance over at her, a slanted smile on his lips. ]

You...really think so? Heh...back in my world, magic is only possessed by a few people. I'd say what you can do is pretty special, too. Aside from, y'know, all the other stuff. Your general amazingness, and all.

[ look!! she's just being honest, okay!! she maintains that she would be a terrible girlfriend. she's so mean!! she'd probably tickle him while he was stuck in a window, or lock him in a cabinet with rotting serpent head, or spray him with cold water while he's covered with leeches. ]

Well, anything that is rare can be seen as special, but that does not mean it is. 'Tis only different.

[ she rolls her shoulders in a shrug. ]

I was born the the ability to manipulate aether, I did nothing to earn it, and therefore deserve no accolades. What truly makes people stand apart from others is the choices they make themselves, the people they choose to be.

[ No way, she would never do those things to someone she loves...! Or maybe she would only do them to someone she loves, either or. It's a toss-up...

His grin curls with a tease. ]

Well, y'know, you've kinda set yourself apart that way, too...joining up with the scions and helping people all over the world, and all. Just sayin'.

[ Even after they gave her plenty of reason to not help them, from the sound of it. ]

Heh...guess we both need to learn how to take a compliment.

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