DUNGEON LOG: INCENDIA

[phantasmods]

Is everybody ready? The gliders are all set for those of you who are ready to go; Strange and Up are taking the drones, too, if you're not comfortable flying. They're all down in the hangar cavern waiting.

And indeed, so they are - there's four of the androids in the cavern, actually, in a gaggle around one of the metallic drones. Top is here, apparently to give them a send-off, giving Charm's shoulders a tight squeeze before stepping away to oversee and help anyone who needs a hand with the gliders. Charm, Strange, and Up are all carrying packed bags - Charm's a bright red backpack, the other two with reasonably large duffels.

If you hadn't heard about the androids planning to accompany you, it's pretty obvious now as the three of them load up, Strange and Charm in one of the drones and Up in the other.

And then, whether it's by glider or flying drone or some other means, away you go, with a last reminder -

Don't forget that sunset in the city is around 7PM this time of year! Don't get caught aboveground, and make sure to tell anyone you run into who's just arrived!

For right now, it's a bright, sunny morning as you set off... But don't forget...

Further information about the dungeon can be found here, with a special bonus of a separate Shops page for all your looting needs! Characters aboard the drones will initially arrive at the lake shore, in the shipping yard, but those aboard gliders are welcome to land themselves whereever.

Comments

MINGLE - UNDERGROUND BASE CAMP

[personalityquarks]

A couple hours after the expedition has begun, there's a post to the network -

Hello everyone! We're setting up something of a base camp in the tunnels - there's a large station there that can only be accessed via the underground, and we thought it would be a good place for everyone to sleep when they need it. If you get lost in the tunnels and can't find your way there, either post to the network or just follow the gold glowing arrows on the walls - they all lead here.

Sure enough, when you arrive there, whether it's day or night, the large underground station in question, once the site of several lines crossing paths and even a bit of shopping, is now being turned into something of a camp, the three androids having cleared most of the worst of the mildew from the upper level. The magic that once ran the station is strong here, and a good portion of the lights are actually on, though they occasionally flicker worryingly. At least one of the androids is here at all times throughout the expedition.

BED GRANDPA

[founderinglight]

[So the good thing about looting half the stores upstairs... Is that at least one person has brought along proper bedding. Sort of.

There's a couple small mattresses set up in one corner, along with some more comfortable chairs and the like - and blankets and pillows, near as many as you can imagine. It's in an area that might be a bit bright for some people to sleep, not too far from one of the flickering lights...

But this is perfectly explained by the fact that in the midst of the pile, curled up under a black and silver comforter, is Izunia, crashed out exactly as hard as usual and sleeping, perhaps surprisingly, with a small smile on his face.

Alternately, you might find him wedged into a corner sketching with some of the new supplies he swiped from one of the art supply stores, or with a magical camp stove set up to get some kind of hot meal going for himself and anyone who might want to join him.

But, honestly, he's probably asleep.]

[hairpincurves]

Daytime
[Early enough in the day, Akira can be found flitting around all the goddamn shops, holy shit. Her first stops after what's clearly a first sweep to see what's around are Tanias Grocers and Uncle Will's, where she can be found shoving a lot of goddamn food into her bag. She's also probably stopping by Sherill's Bakery pretty early...

Afterwards where she can be found is... anyone's guess, really. Maybe one can run into her cheerfully snatching up a pair of skates from Free Wind Skates. Maybe she's dropping by Truman Hair and Beauty, maybe she's raiding one of the department stores or Angelica's Aftermarket. Or any of the other clothing stores. Or... Okay, she's just basically going almost everywhere she can actually get in.

... She does take breaks, though. She's definitely gotta eat. And maybe feed some of those soot cats... Or maybe someone just found her as she was skating off to another store.

As it gets later in the day, though, she'll be going around, making a point to warn others to keep an eye on the time.]

Nighttime
[When she's too restless to actually sleep--she's doing that at the base camp, thanks--one can find her prowling the tunnels. Normally she's looking for people who haven't checked the network and thus don't know there's a base camp, but it's not uncommon to find her getting into a bit of a scrap with some of the flame dogs. She's fine against smaller numbers, but she may need help if a larger pack shows up...]

daytime!

[promittere]

[Ignis has been busy - the city isn't necessarily difficult to navigate, but there's so much there between the echoes, the stores, and the impending threat of fire and flame.

It's a welcome break, despite the danger, and Ignis is glad for the chance to pick up some things he (or someone else) can use back on the station.

Except, you know. The impending fire he can't quite predict until it might be too late.]

Is it getting that late already?

[Oh, bother.]

[founderinglight]

Day, All days: Loot till you drop (and then loot some more)

[What store are you in now? It might be kind of hard to tell, because half of it has already been disappeared. Blue sparkles mark Izunia's progress through the shops, sliding anything that looks potentially useful or like someone might want it later into his Armiger...

Which, ultimately, is nearly everything. Pick your shop, pick your poison, this man gets everywhere as only a Loot This Lucis Caelum can.]

Daytime, docks or park: mrew

[You guys remember Izunia's giant fluffy kitty, right?

Well, cat person: confirmed, as he sits on the ground with a bit of fish next to him, calmly waiting for a fluffy black soot cat to overcome its hesitation to approach.

...Those of you looking closely will discover that there's another already in his lap, eyes closed as it naps under his hand. There's a smear of black soot on the lower part of his NOT ARDYN, WE'RE TWINS shirt, and probably others hidden by the fact that the rest of his clothes are black, but he doesn't seem to care.]

Night, tunnels

[Unlike with the Looting (tm), Izunia takes his time wandering through the tunnels. He is always easy to spot, accompanied by an orb of glowing magic floating either just above his hand or over his shoulder. He's more than a bit jumpy in the dark, as those familiar with seeing him on other expeditions at night, or those who paid attention to the SHITlist, will likely expect. If you sneak up on him by accident or intent, he's likely to whirl on you with a blade drawn, either his rapier or the Sword of the Father - but as soon as he recognizes you as not a threat, the blade vanishes.]

loot! loot! loot!

[promittere]

[It shouldn't be a surprise to Izunia at all that he's found Ignis in an abandoned grocery store. He has his phone in hand, listening to it reading off the labels and tags of the food in front of him before he whisks it into the armiger.

In his other hand is one of his daggers, and the frost of ice elemancy is apparent. (Just as apparent as the smudges of soot on his hands - it's clear somebody else has run into a few of the soot cats.)

All in all, he's taking everything he can, though he does acknowledge the appearance of someone else arriving.]

[riderofcharlemagne]

Day, looting

[Izunia probably shouldn't have given Astolfo Armiger access. He darts around the shops collecting anything that catches his eye, which is pretty much anything. Though he seems to visit pretty much all of them, he does take particular attention to some.

He spends a considerable amount of time in Star Decoration trying on a wide array of accessories and clothes, with very few of them disappearing into the Armiger and instead staying on him. He also kicks back in Gleam, coming for the loud dance music, staying for the drinks and snacks. In Nightlife Adult Goods, he demonstrates a lack of maturity by playing with the toys in ways that are not intended.]

Day, vroom

[Who left this motorcycle here? Whatever, it's Astolfo's now.

Demonstrating his capabilities as a Rider, he takes to it naturally, speeding around the city far beyond whatever speed limit it probably had at the time it was inhabited. Though he's reckless, he will stop before hitting anyone who comes into his path, however close the call may be.]

Night

[Come nightfall, Astolfo takes to the skies with his Hippogriff, looking for those stranded in the burning city and directing them back to the base camp. Later into the night, he explores the tunnels. With no issue with the darkness, he bounds on through, lively footfalls likely to attract attention.]

Nightlife; cw: Adult Silliness in this thread

[founderinglight]

[Honestly, that kind of looting is exactly why Astolfo has Armiger access. It lessens Izunia's workload in terms of grabbing all the things; he can pick through whatever Astolfo shoved in there later.

Right now, though...

Well. Right now he pauses in considering the contents of an expensive-looking pink and gold box to watch Astolfo play about, with a hand slowly rising to cover his mouth as his cheeks color.]

I don't think that's quite the intended use, little moon.

[beguiledcard]

first day | July 2nd


[ On this day, he can be found exploring the Industrial Zone for the most part.

He will be seen very slowly making friends with one of the local cats, not minding at all that it's very quickly turning his entire hand black. In fact, he's smiling when he's finally able to pet it freely. Hopefully, Morgana won't get jealous??

In any case, he eventually gets to exploring the place with-- holy crap, there are so many stores around here.

At some point early on, he can be seen looting a lot of stuff from the place called Resona Aere Herald. Yes, it's because travel blankets, folding chairs, and umbrellas. Not far from there, he can be found hoarding a ton of balloons from the cart. After the hoarding, he can be seen checking out all the food places around this general area. Boy can he be seen putting away a lot of food... and not just into the inventory.

Buuuut... that's about all he can be seen doing on this day. ]



second day | July 3rd


[ He looks... tired, today. And he's not talking all that much.

But, that's not what's important!

Apparently, all the nicer things of Keyes' Jewelers have already been taken from the front. But the back part is still locked, which means there are likely things still there. Hence this guy being glad for having experience with breaking into places! Unfortunately, the fancy key doesn't cut it, which is no surprise... since this isn't your everyday house door. Buuut... the Eternal Lockpick seems to do the trick!

... Which is how Akira was able to raid an entire jewelry store like a proper thief on the second day.

It's after that, people are free to laugh at him over at Free Wind Skates, since he's not doing a great job at regular roller skates. If anyone watches him from the start, they'll get to enjoy the sight of him falling down an impressive five times before he decides to just... go with wind skates and a hoverboard for now.

Yes, he's keeping a pair of regular skates to practice with later, because he's stubborn like that.

Honorable Mentions: Variety Pets, 8 Days, Shadowcast Games, Juicybee's, Beyond Beyond, Bodysoap, and... definitely Truman Hair and Beauty. He spends at least an hour in some of these places before wiping out for the day. ]



third day | July 4th


[ He starts out at Sibbyl's Beads, and then heads over to Marva's Clothes... but isn't there an impressively long period of time. At least... not as much time is spent there as is spent at Kayla's -- but, come on, it's coffee, and he's going to be aiming to shove pretty much... half of what's there, at least?? into his inventory. Maybe more, if a certain other Wildcard or anyone else who enjoys the stuff isn't there around the same time as him. Granted, it's not as though they don't all live together and can't share, anyway, but whatever.

Point is: coffee.

It's after that, he hits up Rutille for just a short while, before ending this day over at Brickhouse Magic, where he definitely winds up with a few things of interest!

Lastly, he spends the entire rest of the day going to every single clothing store and grabbing random outfits and shoes and accessories off of the racks and the shelves. It's all being shoved into his inventory at random without him so much as bothering seeing if it fits? What the heck's up with that...

And then, after Day Three of hoarding stuff, he's wiped out and heading down to help try coaxing a certain someone into proper sleep again. ]

day 1 balloon animals

[nojohnyouare]

[Mai passively watches Akira's looting adventures and picks up an inflated balloon to contemplate it.]

Balloon animals. ...For a party?

[Because you must have some reason for taking them, how much inventory space do you even have.]

[fistsofchange]

-1: It's not looting it's SCAVENGING-

Lin wouldn't steal from anyone if she could avoid it. But at the same time, you can't really steal something if it's been abandoned for a hundred years. At first, she was being picky, taking into account that she could only carry so much, but once she found one of the magic "bigger on the inside" suitcases, she started going nuts. Here's a list of all the stores you might run into Lin at: Monkswool, Dawnstar Cosmetics, Moon in Water, Southern Six Imports, Aye-Aye!, Nightlife Adult Goods, Anna's Fabrics, Uncle Will's, Marva's Clothes, Bodysoap, Icutio, City Smokes, Belts and Boots, Sunset Pharmacy, Scenery Liquor, and Cornucopia Baggage.

-2: Fun day Sunday-

12 hours of daylight is a lot of time to spend looting, and frankly Lin had never seen a city like this before. As usual, she wanted to try stuff out. She spent the second day in Incendia just fucking around.

First: Explore the fair grounds at the park and try out a bunch of festival food (at least the kinds she could try with minimal time actually spent cooking. She didn't MIND cooking but she didn't want to spend all day here.

Second: Trying on rollerskates at Free Wind Skates. Why not? After a little bit of unsteady tottering around, she actually got the hang of them pretty quickly. In short order she was zooming around the city like she'd been skating for years.

Third: The beer garden. There were inevitably some of the others taking a load off there. If you're one of them, Lin joined you for a drink or two.

Whether this leads to drunken rollerskating, I can neither confirm nor deny.

-3: Man it would be tragic if this actually happened to someone else-

At the lakefront district, Lin almost died. She'd gotten lost in the cargo container maze trying to see if there was any kind of cargo worth breaking into. She hadn't been particularly concerned. She had plenty of time before the fire came. She hadn't been counting on the containers moving, though.

Two of the containers next to Lin slid together with a resounding slam. It was only quick reflexes and a forty foot vertical standing leap that saved her from getting mashed into a fine paste.

She landed gently on top of the pile of cargo containers, and could see from here how they were all moving and sliding around. Just...give her a minute to stop her heart from pounding.

fairgrounds

[nojohnyouare]

[Mai gives Lin a nod, already inspecting the stand with the big fish on the sign. She reads over the directions and starts up the fryer.]

Fish... Easy to fry. Like turkey legs.

[nojohnyouare]

day

[Mai thought she was prepared, but the second she walks into the city, she looks like if you took someone from a small town and plopped them down into Vegas. Her usual lineface may be tempering it, but her eyes are open wider and she stares in awe at everything from the streetlights to the store signage. In the streets, you can often find her just looking at something obviously and blatantly magical as if she doesn't know what to make of it.

At Sherill's, Mai is only half paying attention to her cinnamon bun, the other half distracted by the pigeons eating the displays.]

Bird-san... Cute.

[You can also find her running laps at Weigh-a-Way Fitness, because hey, gotta be in shape for fighting whatever's out there. She takes some time in Toy's Box, where she contemplates a stuffed rabbit, and Icutio, where she tries on random outfits that don't seem to suit her. If you notice, they seem evenly split between covering everything (including the scars you're probably used to on her neck) and covering less (particularly exposing another scar, a piercing one over her heart, that also looks pretty fatal).]

Night

[Mai tries to scare the dogs off by waving her sword or knocking things over (or occasionally throwing food their way), rather than actually attacking them. Still, she's keeping to herself and looking somewhat upset. Maybe it's having to fight dog-san. Or maybe it's because, what with the heat, her already-damaged sword looks like it's started to melt, and she's having to keep hold of it and concentrate on keeping it metal.]

Sherill's

[photoshooter]

Aren't they?

[Prompto's got his camera out, distracted from his own breakfast quest by the birds. Cloudy's sniffing at the street far enough away that his sound-dampening effect isn't. You know. In effect.]

They don't seem unfriendly, either.

[motherfucking_ghost]

loot loot motherfucker
[Church obviously is here to take everything useful that he can. It's become kind of a familiar tune, only this time he actually has an armiger. He might not be all that great at getting what he wants out of the armiger on demand, but he's sure adept at putting things in.

Clothes? Clothes. You can find him at Eastside Leather, Monkswool, HATS, Magister's, Bezel's, and less clothes-related places that still also have clothes like Icutio and Lute.

Food? He's one of the people raiding Tania Grocers, 8 Days, Uncle Will's, and Elidia's Confectionery. The last one is less for him and more for his sweet toothed husband, but hey, you don't know that.

Books and media? Heck yeah. Medicine? You bet your ass he's grabbing everything not already looted or nailed down at Sunset Pharmacy. What else is he grabbing? Well...not furniture, where the fuck are you gonna put any of it, right? Not makeup, not shoes, not food that isn't premade. Southern Six Imports, though, that gets a thorough look. There's electronics! There's non-magical electronics! Blessings fucking be.

And booze. The beer garden is definitely raided. Hellacia? Consider it raided. But once he runs to Scenery Liquor--or should I say, runs into Scenery Liquor--he's cursing up a storm. Because it won't let him in. Huh. That's kind of strange! You know what else won't let him in? The adult store. He leans against the invisible magical barrier holding him back and whines.]

when the night has come
[He still thinks it's absolutely truly bugfuck stupid to stay in the city while This City's On Fire, but what's he gonna do, go camp out alone while everyone else is underground? Fuck no.

What he is gonna do, though, at least on the first night, is try to stop the fire. Like a fuckin' moron. He has ice powers, but if you stop to grab him from being an idiot, it doesn't look like he's doing much. There's a swirl of frost in front of him, emanating from his hands, and the air around him is more frigid. But that's about it. Whatever ice might form on the road around him melts near instantly. Maybe save him from himself?]

fun and games
[When he's not looting, and when it's day, there's other trouble he can get up to. Like when he steps on one of the bulbous power lines and gets his ass tossed into a breathless heap.

Or running through the fountain in nothing but his boxer shorts.

Or investigating what may or may not be ghosts maybe don't let him bother ghosts maybe that one's a bad idea.

Or collecting some fire crystals and shoving them in the armiger. Ooo, pretty! He has no idea if they do anything. Or if they're good or bad. But they look like they might be worth something, and apparently he's for that.]

fountain

[nojohnyouare]

[Have fun running around in your gitch. Mai stares in that way where you're not sure if she's judging you or if her face is just like that.]

Church. ...Fun?

[misanthropicprinciple]

Resona Aere Herald, July 2nd, day

[Junpei's already swapped out whatever he was wearing for a RESONA AERE RESOUND FESTIVAL OFFICIAL T-SHIRT and a RESONA AERE RESOUND FESTIVAL OFFICIAL SUN VISOR, onto which he's pinned a couple RESONA AERE RESOUND FESTIVAL OFFICIAL PINS to prove he was at the RESONA AERE RESOUND FESTIVAL. His face doesn't look particularly festive, though, as he stands right in front of the booth with the newspaper in his hands, grimly poring over the front section for any clues as to what exactly went down here--if they knew the Fissure was coming, if they had any hint.

If, perhaps, the city's reset function is not a bug, but a feature.]

Hector Wilde Memorial Ritual Park, July 4th, approaching sunset

[Sometimes, a guy's just minding his own business, eating knockoff Dippin' Dots with the ironic appreciation of someone who spent half a round of murdergame living in a knockoff Dippin' Dots kiosk, watching the hypnotic twist of the magic fountain, when something terrible happens. Sometimes, a guy's too distracted to understand that it's terrible. Sometimes a guy shouldn't cut it so close to the wire, since he knows the city will ignite in an hour or less, and here he is, chilling.

But sometimes a guy's stupid.

Junpei has no particular affinity with the dead, per se. As many times as he's recklessly offed himself, his allegiance to life, to living both well and good, is perhaps surprisingly strong.

But everyone in Ardyn Tenmyouji's Kingsglaive is weak to memory, and it brushes against the back of Junpei's mind like a familiar, much-missed whisper.

A child's fear. A little girl's. He senses it before he sees it, the dark waver in the air some yards behind him. She's terrified. She's in pain. No one is there to help her. Junpei can taste fire and his eyes sting with smoke, even though the air by the fountain is clear and clean.

The Dot Scream drops numbly from his metal hand.]

...Kanny...?

[The darkness screams into flame, burning with betrayed terror, and lashes towards him like a whip.

And Junpei stretches out his arm to it in return.]

Downtown, any day: LOOT LOOT LOOT

[And of course, here's the all-purpose looting prompt, here to cut tension every time!

Junpei's both en-Armigered and an acquistive little shit, so he can be found most places shoving stuff into his king dad's pockets. He does, however, linger at Bell's, where he looks like a kid in a candy shop opening boxes of tools before he even gets them home; Checkboard Games, because sometimes he's popping a game open to check the rules before he decides if it's Good Shit or not, and every now and then he gets lost in a tabletop handbook; Comicalia, where he legit just sits on the floor and starts reading like the worst kind of bookstore teenager; and Brickhouse Magic.

He spends a lot of time in Brickhouse Magic, actually, too engrossed in the book section to thnk of sitting down.]

looting, brickhouse

[founderinglight]

[And at some point when he's engrossed in the books, he'll look up to find a hand reaching up past him to the top shelf - it's generally familiar in shape, but the lace cuff of the black jacket, over a full black leather glove, can only belong to one of the twins.]

Don't mind me.

[cyclicalconcept]

July 2nd - Shipping and Industrial Zone

[As Kana makes her way through this part of the city, looking through containers and getting ready to set down stabilizers, she notices a cat following her. She smiles and after awhile gives the cat a treat from her dress. It's so very similar to Amy.

Luftëtar looks unimpressed.

Then another cat comes.

Then another.

Then another.

Soon there's a half-dozen cats following her, expecting treats.]

I think I made a mistake...

[NO NEVER but seriously can she keep all of these cats??? Probably not. Luftëtar is suspicious of them all!!]


July 3rd - Downtown Shops

[During the day, you might find yourself catching the smell of something delicious. And what's the source of that great-smelling food? Why, it's one of the restaurants! And who's manning the counter--]

Hi! What can I get you?

[Yup, she's good with serving you. What's on your stomach?]


July 3rd - Underground

[It's night, and...yeah. She can feel the magic zinging through the air, and her bow is out and ready, just in case. She should probably consider putting some stabilizers down here as well. Maybe even shifting planes to see what's going on.

For now, though, she's on alert for whatever needs to be done. Her bow lifts--then relaxes.]

Oh, you...!

cats

[nojohnyouare]

[Mai watches in awe as Kana becomes the Pied Piper of cats. She bows.]

Hello. New friends?

[serrata]

July 2nd

[ It's not immediately apparent what, but something about Incendia seems to light a bit of a spark in Yuuri's eyes. No pun intended.

It might be the prospect of being back in a city after being in the relative wilderness for so long – she's a city girl, after all, and being stuck at the station doesn't suit her. But when you see her marching from shop to shop with an uncharacteristically businesslike stride, it looks like that's not quite the case either.

Yuuri knows, of course – you can spend however long being safe and happy but that little switch in your brain that flips you over to survivor mode never gets decommissioned. Just turned off.

To start things off, you'll find her checking out Sunset Pharmacy and Cornucopia Baggage. She's polite enough not to schwoop everything into the Armiger but that's definitely more first aid gear and baggage than one girl really needs. Especially one girl with a hammerspace.

Once she's done with whatever that was all about, it looks like she's a bit more willing to branch out in terms of LOOT HEAVEN. Top Roof Gardens is her first stop, where her focus will be on packing away anything she could use to set up a nice little flower garden for herself. For similar reasons, she'll stop off at The Curled Leaf where you'll find her taking everything with starry eyes. YOINK. Most of this is coming with her.

She makes one last stop before heading underground to the camp for the evening – Calla's, which is a bit unusual for her. But it's such a pretty shop, full of such gorgeous wedding gear. Let her get a little wistful and dreamy, just for a bit. ]

July 3rd

[ Yuuri rather warily makes her way back up to the city on her second outing, but once she sees that things are no longer actively burning, she gets back to exploring. After a cursory check on the places she checked out the previous day, she confirms to herself that things looted stay looted and resolves to check out some new stores today.

Yuuri starts the day at Moon in Water with some nice tea and a pastry for her breakfast. It's surreal to be relaxing in a city she knows was burning not seven hours ago, but at least they've got enough time to explore before all hell breaks loose again.

Once she's swiped some tea on the way out, she does a bit of clothes 'shopping' – Current Affairs, Aye-Aye!, Lilymoore's Dress, Star Decoration and Pepper's though it looks like only the latter two are actually for herself. Everywhere else, it looks like she's searching for other people going by the way she's checking sizes and cuts. In Lilymoore's Dress, however, it doesn't seem like she's intending on taking any clothes with her. She's just looking through the smallest size dresses with a slightly rueful expression on her face.

When she's satisfied with making herself sad her haul, she decides to head back, just popping in a few places along the way. She pops into One Coin because she's Japanese and of course she's not going to pass up a Daiso knockoff. But it's curiosity rather than practicality that leads her to Variety Pets and into the back room.

Not five minutes later and she's dashing back out, looking appropriately enough like the cat who got the cream. She's ducking back in just as quick with an enormous duffel bag and if you care to investigate you'll find that she's gently and carefully coaxing the family of kitties into it as a makeshift cat carrier to get them out of the shop. ]

July 4th

[ After yesterday's nyadventure, Yuuri's got a more concrete goal in mind when she goes a-looting today. Variety Pets is her first stop so she can basically completely clean the place out of kitten and cat supplies – especially anything like vitamins or medicine. Once she's happy with that, she heads over to Bezel's Imports and Discount Furniture for, well, furniture. She's gonna make her and Junpei's room nice and homey if it kills her.

To that end, she stops off at Lute Imports because what's a living area without a nice low table and some cushions? She nabs herself a table and some cushions as well as a kotatsu because you can BET she's busting that out once it gets chilly. Once she's got her furniture squared away, she starts going through the rest of the store, too. It's nice and familiar and homey, but the warm smile on her face gives way to something thoughtful while she's examining one of the kimono-a-likes. ]

... that's right. That'll be in just a few days.

[ Whatever it is that she's thinking of, apparently it's enough to dampen the mood a bit. During the afternoon – not close enough to evening to be risky, thankfully – you'll find Yuuri in the memorial park sat at one of the benches facing the fountain. Her eyes are on the water as it goes through its twisting patterns, but her gaze is distant and her head is clearly elsewhere. Someone's got a bee in their bonnet. ]

mrow; the 3rd

[founderinglight]

[And in the time it takes her to dash and come back, someone else has arrived at the shop and a couple of bags of cat food have already vanished. There's no way for Izunia to pretend he doesn't see her when he looks up, though for the moment he's just raising his eyebrows at the duffel...

Until there's a kittenish mewing down at his feet. Someone has come to investigate! this! grandpa!]

Ah - oh dear...

[biddentodance]

[a - we pillage we plunder we rifle and loot]
[Minato is a law-abiding teen, undercover weapons deals with a cop aside, so stealing isn't really his thing... nevertheless, when looting is the name of the game, he will certainly play along.

He's not shoving an entire store's stock into his pockets - well, except food, he's taking all the food he can get. Is the wildcard appetite infamous yet? It should be. He's also taking all the music he can find - mostly of the nice portable type, to be listened to, and every genre available. His now. He might also pick up a few things from the actual instrument store, and can be found pondering over instruments like he's actually shopping, and it's the same story at the fabric store. He'll also be taking any blue clothing that fits him, and really....probably shouldn't be taking any particularly out there costumes he can find, but he is. Though, really, you can probably spot him picking up all kinds of random oddities from anywhere. He's particular about his looting.]

[b - rock me like the wind and rain]
[Those shipping containers that move about on their own down by the lake. You might notice a teenager taking himself a nap on one. It does move around with him on top, and even seems to move more than most? Maybe what forces may be are being considerate about not letting another container place itself on top while he's there. Maybe someonr should like....make sure that stops being a danger...

Alternatively, he could be beating the heat by taking a nap in that fountain. How the hell can he sleep there? Good question. Or he could have a pair of those hoverskates and be struggling to learn to use them, also in the fountain, because why the hell not. Minato will get better as he goes, but there will be faceplants and skinned knees. He looks happy.

For a different meaning of 'rock', he might also be boogieing around the dancefloor in that one shop that still has music going. He really does like his tunes.]

[c - LIGHT THE FIRE UP IN THE NIGHT]
[The first time night falls, Minato....doesn't go running. Isn't really doing much of anything. He just stares at the fire with something like fascination. Buddy you uh...may wanna move...

He knows better and obediently heads underground quickly enough on other nights, though not necessarily without rounding up anyone he can find in the immediate area to get them out of here first. Once underground though...he's exploring. He stays up late, heading out into the tunnels. He is prepared to fight, at least.

Which is good, because he seems to have a knack for finding the darker places. Where he's more than likely going to need to fend off some of those oilslicks.

And some of the dogs. Hooboy.]

Nice doggy...

[d - wildcard (eyyyy)]
[Or Minato is just. You know. Around. Milling about with Echoes that seem almost drawn to him, eating two of those way-too-big-for-one-person burgers, playing with those six kittens and going on a fetch quest to feed their mom, etc. Feel free to find him anywhere, getting up to shenanigans.]

c

[dubiouslychthonic]

[Jetshard's been mostly looking for newbies to direct underground, but... boy that sure is Minato not doing shit to avoid the fire, isn't it. Honestly. She's quickly becoming jaded to his apparent lack of a sense of self-preservation, but that doesn't mean she's got to encourage that sort of thing.

She comes over - face hidden behind a vaguely beaky gas-mask, but it's not as if there's a lot of tall, grey-skinned women with forked horns around here - and places a hand on his shoulder as he watches the flames.]

That would be our cue to get underground.

[photoshooter]

Truman Hair and Beauty, July 3rd, Day

[It's been MATH% months since Prompto arrived, and while Noct took care of the contact lenses situation and time's taken some care of the clothes situation, he hasn't been real happy with his hair situation. That's suddenly clear in the way he's tugging at the front of it in the mirror, moving it this way and that, checking the length with his fingers.]

Well, to hell with this garbage.

[Prompto clomps right back to the sinks and starts to wash and condition his own hair for the immediate Styling. He spends the better part of an hour cutting and trimming his hair until it's perfect, and he leaves the door wide open as he does. Anyone fancy a new 'do?

Once he's restored his hair to it's proper chocobo-ey glory (chocoblory), stocked up on gel and hairspray, and seen to anyone else with a haircut request, Prompto makes one last stop at the hair accessories. There, he hesitates, then looks briefly sad. Finally, he pulls a red hair ribbon out and ties it carefully around his wrist, above the black leather band that's always there.]

Resona Aere Teleportation and Airship Port, July 4th, Day

[Perhaps understandably, Prompto's nervous as he enters the elevator from the Underground. It's pretty gross and scary under there, after all. But nerves disappear when he reaches the top of the skyscraper to find that wide, sunlit space meant for travel.

Mouth wide, Prompto stares at everything, and Cloudy scampers off to investigate in his own doggish manner while Prompto takes his camera out. He heads right over to the edge to take bird's eye photos of the abandoned city; he frames some shots of the forgotten luggage, too. Somehow, that--more than anything--speaks to him of the absence of human life in Incendia.

Eventually, he slows, and Cloudy returns to sit by his side. Up here with the breadth of the city before him, it's hard not to remember Insomnia.]

Downtown, any day: LOOT LOOT LOOT

[Of course, Lucian that he is, Prompto drops in at Current Affairs. He examines their punk clothes and their graphic tees with equal delight and quickly loads up on both. Perhaps oddly, given it's July, he also makes a stop at Bezel's Imports for winter gear. He even tests some items by growing frost across their surfaces.

Shadowcast Games and Metro Entertainment are way more titillating destinations, and he bounces through the aisles, picking up music and music players, headphones, and games. So many games. He seems to lean towards RPGs, racing games, and FPSes, and the virtual reality aspect of the magic projections paired with these genres only heightens his excitement.]

Hey! Try these with me!

LOOT LOOT LOOT

[nightcure]

You found video games? Hell yes.

[ HE IS ABSOLUTELY HERE. ]

What've we got?

[blackestwitch]

[ Who let the blind girl come along during the mission? Well, circumstances are different this time, so Maddie thought going full transformation the entire time was overkill. She had adults to at least pretend to be dependent on, but she could honestly handle a normal city just fine, especially an empty one. ]


[ Daytime: July 2. Obligatory looting prompt. ]

[ On this day, find Maddie practically waddling down the streets downtown wearing about ten different T-shirts over each other, two hoodies tied around her waist, and then a backpack stuffed full of whatever other odds and ends couldn't be worn out. It looks like she's hit up Luminese and Current Affairs, because of course she did. Her brown-and-brown cat, Zel, is trotting just in front of the girl.

Feel free to hit her up at either shop she hits, as well as Checkboard Games or Comicalia for browsing while wearing all of her merchandise, or Sherill's Bakery or Say Burgers for food. Or just wandering the streets looking like she should be suffering under all those clothes. ]

[ July 2 + 3, dusk. Obligatory magical girl prompt. ]

[ As the fire begins to pick up, Maddie isn't Maddie any longer. There's a strange magical girl near one of the bigger subway entrances downtown, sitting and just almost looking out toward the fires. She's clad in a floofy gray and black dress, and notably, a long black blindfold.

Something else to notice, especially as it gets further into night, is that the sparks around the edges of your vision are... gone, and have been for about a block around the subway entrance. And no magical fire is springing into existence around there, either.

It's a stop-gap measure - Black Witch can prevent the fires from starting here, but they can still spread normally, and that will grow more likely the further into night it gets. But she can ensure more people make it down safely, so she will. ]

Hurry. It's safe down there... supposedly.


[ July 4, late afternoon, just before dusk. Network and in person. Injury prompt. ]

[ It's getting near dusk, which means fires will be starting soon. But while people are wrapping up their daily looting, a simple voice message is sent across the Network. It's a voice message, and the username associated with it is M.C., Maddie's username, but it's an unfamiliar, deep male voice who speaks. ]

Injury downtown, heading to camp. Please don't attack the spider.

[ /Network ]

[ This is obviously not a good day for some people. Especially Maddie.

This is obvious since she is currently unconscious, and being carried through the streets in the oddly jointed arms of a giant spider monster. Blood is dripping from somewhere in her hair - hard to tell since both blood and her hair are red, but it's more obvious when it's running down her face or dripping down onto the street.

Zel, for that's who the spider monster is, seems to be heading for the nearest subway tunnel. He's following through on what he said. He knows it's getting close to dusk, and he figures the best bet to finding somebody for Maddie is at the camp. And.... hopefully Jailbreak will have received the message and know what to do. ]

July 4th

[nor_iron_bars]

[Jail does, it turns out, receive the message.]

[What she does is slam on the breaks in her newly-acquired magitech hover taxi, make a hairpin turn that probably viscerally enrages the lingering ghosts of any Incendian traffic cops, and immediately head straight for their location at highly unsafe speeds.]

[She pulls up alongside Zel and opens the passenger side door for him and Maddie, shoving a collection of various looted items off the seat and out of the car to make room for them without any hesitation.]

Get in, driving's faster.

[Her tone is uncharacteristically grim, frown deepening as she takes in Maddie's condition.]

You can tell me what the fuck happened while I'm getting us back to base camp.

[plentyfriendly]

a/no one will miss it; July 2

[One of the first things she does when she finally gets out of the shipping maze (pocketing a couple of stray fire crystals, just in case) is head downtown to pick up a few things. Namely, hair dye; Truman Hair and Beauty is fresh out of anything in white very soon after she arrives. Of course, she can't exactly carry it all... yet.]

b/personal library; July 3

[Now armed with with a bag which is quite literally bigger on the inside, it's time to take more things. Today's focus is on books - magic is a science just like anything else, so Phi would rather take time to understand it before relying on it. To that end she stops by THE PUBLIC LIBRARY, Labyrinth Books, and Brickhouse, ending her day at Checkboard Games for some more hobbyist reading.]

c/festival city; July 4

[This day she's taking off for the festival booths. She has funnel cake and shaved ice. She has a towel laid out on the ground to just relax for a moment. She has a small gang of fire ants closing in on her as fast as their tiny legs want to go. That might be a problem.]

d/wildcard

[There probably aren't too many places you won't find her at least once during the week.]

hair dye

[nojohnyouare]

[Mai blinks but otherwise takes no notice as she examines shampoo.]

Do you need a bag.

JAILBREAK IS HERE TO STEAL EVERYTHING HER GAY LITTLE HANDS CAN CARRY.

[nor_iron_bars]

I. Missed Connections [July 2nd, soon after arrival]

[Jail is, very unashamedly, a thief. So, naturally, her instinctive reaction to an abandoned city is to gleefully prepare to start looting it... except that there's one thing she has to do first.]

[In a somewhat surprising moment of responsibility, she's getting ready to take a Look at the Incendia Fissure, to see if she can find out anything more about what's going on here, before she does anything else. Work before pleasure, and all that- she's at least enough of a professional to understand this, even if she's specifically a professional criminal.]

[She finds a relatively safe-looking spot, takes a deep breath, and braces herself. Then she looks up at the sky, and Looks into the Fissure, cast her gaze deep and deep and deeper, further than any physical sight was meant to go.]

[The first outward sign that she's got something is when her dark grey eyes widen in sudden shock. There's a feeling of connection, of being seen in turn, and-]

[It's in pain, so much pain, all torn-paper ripped-up edges and broken-glass jagged cracks. It's something huge, so its' pain is huge too, to match, but pain she can understand. Whatever else this thing is, she doesn't know- it isn't human, isn't like anything she already knows, vast and powerful and strange- but pain, she understands.
Pain, and the sense that it's... looking for something?]

Wait-!

[Jail cries out reflexively, reaching forward for a second in a kneejerk attempt to stop the being from going, but it's too late. That huge, vast presence catches sight of her, sees for a moment that it is being seen by another mind, and flees immediately, too fast for her to even try to stop it from going, even if she could possibly succeed.]

[She lowers her hand and pinches the bridge of her nose wearily, hissing under her breath in frustration.]

Dammit.


II. You can take it with you [From later July 2nd to midway through July 3rd]

[Okay, that's her good deed for the year done, thanks.]

[Now that it's over? It's looting time. She's having much more fun doing this, and can be spotted at basically any location in the city picking things up and cramming them into her pockets.]

[Clothes? In any clothing store on the list she's there, putting on extra t-shirts, grabbing all kinds of new outfits. Accessories? She's there, taking those. Makeup? She's there. Books? She's there. Craft supplies, office supplies, medical supplies? She's there. Curiosities and toys? She's there.]

[Electronics? She's there, and has probably already started dismantling part of the stock.]

[She's scooping fire crystals off the ground and shiny magical or jewelry crystals off the shelves, squirreling away tools and knick-knacks and alcohol... and all this is before she discovers that bag of holding type luggage, after which she gets even more serious about this.]

[Jail may not have some kind of fancy-pants hammerspace inventory like some people around her, but she does have a truly overwhelming determination to strip this city down to the bare bones... and she has her actual, literal pants, which are nice roomy cargo pants with about twelve different pockets.]

[Every single one of those pockets is visibly bulging with stuff, as are the pouches of her toolbelt.. She's also wearing a good deal of her new hoard, including a sleeveless longcoat from Louvelier's and a truly ridiculous new hat. The new clothes have additional items stuffed into their pockets, and there are multiple bags of the bigger on the inside variety dangling from her belt. Even the hat has some extra spoils tucked under it, as well as a few things scattered around the brim and put through the band.]

[The end result is Jail wandering contentedly through the city, snacking happily on various types of food she's found along the way and chatting casually with the small flock of flame pigeons that started following her around when they realized she was willing to toss them chunks of fruit and bits of granola on a regular basis.]

[At least she's making new friends.]


III. Used car, new deal [From late July 3rd onward]

[It's after she's been wandering for a while that she spots it.]

[She's walked past multiple cars so far, scattered around the silent roads, but this time a thought strikes her and she doubles back to take a second look at it.]

[And then, she takes a Look at it.]

[And then she grins.]

[A couple minutes later, Jail is under the hood and deep into the workings of the abandoned taxi, happily rooting around and rewiring things in strange and arcane ways.]

[The little car is slightly larger than a VW Beetle. It's pretty much the same shape as the standard two-door sedan found on Earth, painted a familiar golden yellow with a black-and-white-checkerboard pattern stripe horizontally through the middle of the doors. The logo on the hood reads AERE FAIR TAXI CO. in black and white print letters. The interior is upholstered with a plush dark blue fabric, and on the roof is a plastic sign that says TAXI, which proves to still light up in pale blue when Jail finds the right button for it.]

[By the time she's done with it, the car looks more or less the same... except for the scattering of new buttons in the dashboard, the strangely altered shape of the wheel, and the fact that the hubcaps appear to have been replaced with something that looks like a round art deco metal carving inspired by computer circuitry.]

[Oh, and it's hovering several feet off the ground. That part's new, too.]

[Jail sits behind the wheel, looking smug as she drives her new car through the city streets, the backseat and trunk loaded with all her previous scavenged goods and a few new ones to boot.]

[Barely suppressing a fit of laughter, she presses the horn. Instead of a honk, a flat computerized voice speaks:]

Beep beep, motherfucker.

[Aaaand she's officially gone, cackling gleefully at her success. Who let this woman have magical powers, this was clearly the worst idea.]

III

[blackestwitch]

[ Maddie is just minding her own business downtown. She's not gone as loot-happy as she did the first day. She supplemented her wardrobe and that's enough for her. But she's still exploring. Zel is her eyes and ears, but she's taking in the sounds and smells she can as well.

Which is how she hears a... car? She thought those were all not working. She's sure to shuffle over to the sidewalk proper, but otherwise doesn't make further note of it. She has no reason to suspect who is driving.

It's getting closer to dusk. Hm, she should transform soon. It takes a little bit to expand her Zone enough... ]

[dubiouslychthonic]

Day

A - Looting is serious business
[Mostly, she's out in the afternoons; she's still a troll, with a troll's nocturnal preferences, but this is one fissure where "wait for nighttime" is not a viable strategy.

Once she's finally been granted access to a more spacious inventory than her own sylladex, Jetshard sets to some larger-scale practical looting. Sunset Pharmacy is a pretty significant priority for her; she's hardly the first one to hit it, but there's probably still some stuff here that others wouldn't have bothered to take. Granted, a lot of it is going to be medications with specific uses which she's not sure will ever be needed at the station - but better to have it collecting dust in a cupboard in the medbay than leave it behind here.

She also makes a point of raiding the health and suppliments aisles and the in-store pharmacy counter at Uncle Will's; most of the others who've been focusing on these stores seem more interested in the food and drink portions of the store. The pharmacy's stock goes into the armiger, as do over the counter pain meds, first-aid supplies, cold and allergy remedies, multivitamins. She makes a sweep of the menstrual supplies and condoms, too; she may not have any personal use for that, but both are things that they keep on hand in the medbay and she figures she might as well restock. The smaller selections of meds and first-aid at more than one of the 8 Days locations follow suit.

And once she's finished with those, you might find her at Lakeshore Goods, picking through the sporting goods' section's selection of camping gear - or over at Anna's Fabrics, where she picks out several packets of sewing needles, before moving over to speculatively look over the selection of knitting needles, picking up a couple and testing their weight in her hands in a way that does not seem to imply an intention to use them to knit anything.]

B - Shopping Spree
[She's not all business all week, of course. When she's not in "restock all the supplies" mode she's more leisurely about picking things out, and more of it goes into her own sylladex rather than just getting dumped into Izunia's armiger. Find her at Icutio for wardrobe staples or browsing at Bezel's Imports or claiming several of the floor cushions from Lute Imports, or looking through the stock at Labyrinth Books. It's probably not a surprise that Jetshard spends quite a while picking sunglasses out of the stock at GAZEMAKER'S, too. Maybe more surprising is when she ducks into Rosshtian Piano and Music Supply to puzzle over a Clarinet for Beginners book and maybe grab a handful of spare reeds, too.

And she spends most of the afternoon on the 4th at the festival in the park - looking through whatever's left of all the stands, but probably most interested in the Eastside Leather, City Glow, and HATS stalls.]

Late Afternoon/Evening
C
[As the shadows lengthen and the air starts to heat, Jetshard's major focus is on finding newcomers... but she'll pause for a moment if she comes across more experienced members of the group who seem to be particularly caught up in what they're doing, too.]

Hey. Not to interrupt, but you know where the nearest underground entrance is, right?

Night

[Most of the night, each night, Jetshard can be found at the basecamp.]

B, Labyrinth

[plentyfriendly]

[Oh, there's someone else here. No sense just ignoring him, though.]

What are you looking for?

[foolishjustice]

[Day 1]

[Goro is flying into the city on his own power, giving people who hadn't seen them before a chance to get a look at his shining white crow wings, each roughly the size of the entire rest of his body. He keeps them out for a little while after he lands, but not long after he can be found without them due to: new clothes! While he flew in wearing a pair of distressed jeans and a somewhat ironic T-shirt, he can be found throughout the day at any store that carries something bright, sparkly, glowing, or otherwise eye catching, trying on clothes before deciding whether or not to keep them for himself. Aside from that, he also spends a lot of the day in places with food, as long as it's not clearly spicy...with a distinct bias towards sweets and anything served cold. Even if the stores are air conditioned, getting from place to place still leaves him out in the sweltering heat.

And speaking of getting from place to place, he at some point finds a motorcycle sitting abandoned, and is using that to get around the city. His driving is...not the best, he's clearly new to how a motorcycle handles compared to a car or bicycle, but he's unlikely to crash into anyone or anything unless they walk right into his path. He's definitely having fun, though, both in the looting and the joyriding.

There's also one point where he can be caught in his merman form, swimming around in the magic fountain like it's some sort of giant fishbowl.]

[Day 2+]

[The next day, however, finds him...inexplicably worn down. Though there's no visible signs of injury, his movements are sluggish and distracted. He's still hitting the restaurants and food stands hard, but his looting focus is overall more practical, raiding furniture and bath supplies heavily, along with a drop by the pharmacy and pet store for an upgrade to his first aid supplies (including medicine for symptoms of illness) and proper food and toys for cats and birds.

Even between stops, his driving seems less like an excuse for a joyride, and more simply using his new motorcycle for transportation...]

[Dusk 2+]

[Toward the evenings after the second day, Goro isn't going underground right away. He's simply switching to his Crow outfit, Rangda's mask protecting him from the heat of the flames, and searching the city for anyone who might have been caught too far away from a station or accosted by an Echo. If he finds anyone who seems to be stuck, he'll make his way over and call out.]

Are you alright?

Day 1, a little before dusk... (Closed to Shido+???)

[foolishjustice]

[The first evening, an unexpected encounter with an aggressive Echo forces him to put on his mask earlier than he expected. Though Kushinada-Hime's ice is what dispatched the angry spirits, it's Rangda he wants to protect him from potential surprise attacks.

The problem with Rangda, unfortunately, is that she has two weaknesses...both of which are represented in the magic circuits. He's maybe still a little distracted by the excitement of such a highly magical city, and doesn't notice a broken one in his path until it's too late. When his foot comes down on it, it bursts like normal...but instead of knocking him on his butt, it sends him flying. He lands several feet away, tumbling a few times before coming to rest sprawled face down on the ground, mask shoved up to rest on his forehead like some sort of bright red unicorn horn. He's also...not moving right away, beyond some twitching and muffled, pained groaning. In fact, it almost seems like he was stunned by either the explosion or the landing...]

[theosophomoric]

July 2

[Sonja pokes into a couple of other stores on arriving in the city, but the first place she really lingers is Icutio. The fashions may be unfamiliar, but she can recognize the quality well enough. Besides the time she spends looking through the shirts, skirts, and trousers - because honestly, she prefers skirts but they're not exactly the most practical option for running around the countryside - she can also be found in the women's undergarments section, carefully and somewhat perplexedly reading the labels on bras. How does one fit these things, anyway?

Lunchtime finds her at Tuliyla's, where she's left a couple of bags from the department store on a table near the back while she raids the soup and sandwich bars.

After she's eaten, she discovers Cornucopia Baggage, and equipped with a modestly-sized but bigger-on-the-inside rolly suitcase, moves on from there to... Belts and Boots (for new boots, and one of those hip-bags with the optional thigh strap, and a couple of belts for good measure) and then Current Affairs (for a number of accessories up to and including a couple of pairs of dumb spiky rave goggles) because there's only so long this scavenging expedition could last before it devolved into Sonja being a parody of herself.]

July 3

[She starts her day lingering over a cup of coffee and pastry at Kayla's - and, amused, helps herself to a "BLACK AS YOUR SOUL" button as well.

Once she's done, she goes and grabs another of those wonderfully useful suitcases, and then this morning's looting is mostly focused on the festival stalls. Particularly, you might catch her at Ephemeral Stockings, Krysta Krystals, Laietery Soaps and Candles, or Valley Fudge. She also takes time to go climb up on the hexagonal ritual dias, spending a while walking along the edges, trying to make out any lingering chalk marks. She hasn't the faintest idea what they are or what they're meant to do, but she's curious anyway.

(And then it's time to take some time out to spend with Lin, as threaded elsewhere.)

Later, she's back on her bullshit, this portion of her search of the city brought to you by her very high "hedonist" attribute - Bodysoap and City Smokes are fairly straightforward, with stock that she's pretty confident in recognizing at first glance, but she gets a bit more distracted looking around Nightlife Adult Goods. Goodness. Some of this would make Sinning Jenny blush.]

July 4

Morning
[Ok, so maybe she's running out of steam a little on looting; she still picks up a few things here and there, but she doesn't bother getting another suitcase to stick things in. After breakfast - Kayla's, again - she goes over to Brickhouse Magic to see what's left of the selection of how-to books, and then to the Public Library.]

Afternoon - Closed to Letty
[Sonja hasn't spent a great deal of time in the shipping district; if she's exploring more than scavenging today, she figures she might as well take a look around there too. It's a little eerie, with the smooth, undirected movement of the shipping containers; it's not long before she's lost her way. Not turned around - she knows perfectly well which direction is the lake, which is the city, and she has a fairly good idea of how far she is from the nearest underground entrance - but lost all the same, unsure how to get to any of those places.

Ah, well. The sun's still high. She figures she'll find her way out eventually. She just hopes that if she runs into anyone else in here they won't be too smug about it.]

July 3rd, ritual dais

[misanthropicprinciple]

Anything interesting?

[He's watching from the other side of the hexagon, one hand in his pocket while the other one's playing the piano fiddling with some kind of fidget spinner.]

[matchmakes]

Daytime
[So the first order of the day on July 2nd actually is to get his wyvern underground just after arrival. He needs a place to keep her for the time being, because while wyverns are hardy creatures, she needs the rest and Robin frets. After that, though, it's time to start exploring. He makes a stop at Cornucopia Baggage, walking out with a comfortable backpack--he has the convoy, yes, but it only has limited space and it's being used by himself and his sister... The rest of the day, he can be found at places such as Brickhouse Magic and Labyrinth Books, though he does make a brief stop in Louvelier's and grabs lunch at the Merrellan BBQ stand sometime in-between.

July 3rd sees him grabbing a quick bite to eat at Kayla's for breakfast before setting out for the day. Anyone looking for Robin today will have the best luck finding him at Boxers, Beyond Beyond, and Turner Books and Music, with a stop at Taste of the North for lunch.

On the 4th, he's mostly spending time at Bell's, The Curled Leaf, and Variety Pets, but he does actually hit some of the other shops today... Like for example, contemplating whether to go into Nightlife Adult Goods or not. But seriously, he's just about anywhere today. Come bother him.]

Near Sunset
[Around sunset on all three days has Robin flying around on Melady's back, looking for anyone potentially trapped or injured by the fire starting up. Or too tired to walk back to base camp on their own. If Robin somehow misses someone flagging him down, the wyvern, thankfully, won't...]

Kayla's, morning

[founderinglight]

[While Robin probably saw Izunia already chugging a cup of coffee from his Armiger down at base camp this morning, that doesn't mean that the coffee shop is going uninspected. Or un-looted, as Izunia snatches up a handful of ceramic travel cups from a display.]

Morning.

[anarchia]

Day, Memorial Ritual Park

[Not much one for accumulating possessions, Carnivac foregoes looting for raiding the Music Festival stalls. Whilst he has helped himself to whatever pre-prepared food there is available, it doesn't stop him from making attempts at the kinds that require more effort. He has no idea how to operate the various fryers and cookers, let alone know how the various cuisines should be prepared. Anyone catching whiff of burning can probably trace it back to a particular robot...

He, later, takes to exploring the rest of the park. The emptiness leaves him on edge, though how noticeable that is depends on how much attention you're paying.

As it nears dusk, he starts to notice the Echoes populating the area. That unease is certainly more prominent now, as he stares wordlessly at the erupting pillars of flame, hunching over as that horrible sound resonates in his head.]

Day, Lakefront

[There was something oddly comforting about the industrial area that allows Carnivac to rest for a moment, leaning against the wall of a factory. He's not alone for long, he notices, as something strange and black seems to bunp against his leg.]

What? [...Is that a feline?] No, I don't have any food...I'm sure you should be put off by me, besides.

[Though he tries to keep his voice low, his chattering to the cat can probably be heard to anyone passing through.]

Night

[Shifting into wolf mode, Carnivac patrols the network of tunnels underground with some curiosity. This dog isn't on fire, so please try to avoid attacking him. Being startled, however, is completely understandable.]

park

[nojohnyouare]

[Mai munches on curly fries while staring at the fountain. She nods a hello to Carnivac.]

Exploring... What do you think? Of the city.

[darkcure]

i. shops! shops! shops!
[Elize has seen cities before, but this one... It's not like anything in Rieze Maxia. It reminds her more of Elympios, although then, of course, they'd been far too busy to look around too much. Not that they don't have important things to do now too, of course, but... Exploring is part of it.

So Elize and Teepo are happily running around from shop to shop. It's no wonder, really, that they stop at Elidia's Confectionary first, eagerly looking at the sweets with wide eyes. Where else would you find a twelve year old? The balloon animals cart and the fireworks stand get her attention too, and you can find Elize happily lighting a sparkler at the latter. Some more places with food get long and interested looks, since there's a lot here they don't recognize. And of course she has to check out the clothing stores, because... it'd be nice to have a little more.

...And despite her protests about how mature she is, Toy's Box does warrant a long visit. Listen? Shut up.]

ii. birds of a feather
[Elize had noticed the pigeons and gotten awfully curious about them. She'd seen messenger birds before, but these were... probably just regular birds. Awfully cute, though.

So she'd fetched some bread to tear into pieces and started feeding them. And feeding them. And... feeding them.

At this point, there sure are a lot of them. Actually, is there any end to them? Elize is still happily feeding them, though, and giggling as one comes to sit on her head. At least none of them have taken a seat on Teepo yet.]

iii. night up my life
[Elize does spend some time walking through the tunnels at night, clutching her staff tightly as she does. It's not as if she's alone, anyway - Teepo's always floating at her side.

She's taking this task very seriously and looks very determined... if, maybe, a little too quick to jump at sudden noises.]

iv. closed to yuuri and izunia
[...It's several days in now. And yes, Teepo was constantly by her side. But now? Now Elize seems to be alone, as she wanders around in the city. It's still daytime and there doesn't seem to be anything dangerous around right now. Really, everything should be fine. Except...

Except the poor girl looks absolutely terrified and at a complete loss for what to do.

Oh.

Oh dear.]

4 obviously

[founderinglight]

[Several days in, which means that the immediate urge to loot is sated...

But of course, Izunia would drop any amount of loot for the sight of Elize, looking alone and scared. And that's exactly what happens - he comes out of the nearest shop in a flurry of black clothes.]

Elize? Are you alright?

[have_hat_will_travel]

[Option 1: THE LOOT!]

[As some might remember from her texting the network while flying in, Pidonus is interested in looting first and foremost. And she's very focused on that during the daytime. However, she seems to be less focused on perishable and consumable goods in general, unless someone nudges her in the direction.

Instead, she'll be constantly opening a portal to her extradimensional space, then utterly loading it with select stuff from one shop before moving to the next.

Places you may spot her at include, but are nowhere near limited to pretty much anyplace practical clothing and furniture, with little objective. A few places, however, may particular stand out:

Horizon Towels: You might hear Pidonus muttering something about "Always knowing where your towel is" as she raids this place...
Nightlife Adult Goods: Surprisingly, after one quick lap around, Pidonus only goes for the sexy outfit type stuff, not the toys or the like. Priorities, maybe.
Anna's Fabrics: This is the big one for Pidonus, apparently... Based on the sheer amount of stuff she grabs.
Toy's Box: Something about this place just seems to distract Pidonus for a while.
Checkboard Games: "ooooooooooh", Pidonus keeps saying as she raids the stock here...]

[Option 2: One particular stall...]

[At Fair Fries in the festival area, something seems to have drawn Pidonus' pause... Indeed, she just stares at one of the areas of the booth almost forlornly.

The baked potatoes, to be exact. Like they're reminding her of something...

This will be a great chance to bother her while she's not otherwise busy!]

[Option 3: Music]

[At Rosshtian Piano and Music Supply, Pidonus will linger... But not out of thievery. Instead, she's carefully setting up and trying each instrument one by one. Most likely, you'll find her on a lute, guitar, or mandolin for the longest period of time... And certainly, her playing of them is exceptional. Nay, transcendent. It seems, when she said she was a Bard, she meant it.

Notably, while she's playing, the expression on her face has a certain serenity to it that none of the group have seen before...]

[Option 4: As Night Falls...]

[As the fires begin, Pidonus - aware of the situation enough to not completely freak out - has taken a different priority: Looking for anyone still stuck on the surface. However, what's distinct here is her way of doing so.

If you're still on the surface in the hours around sunset, you may spot a shimmering aura in the space near you - before Pidonus suddenly appears, looking around for people.

This will keep going for an hour or two, before she settles into her underground routine. Notably, this is probably the only time of day she's particularly serious in her expression.]

Music

[giltfoil]

You have great skill.

[Ravus is standing half transfixed in the doorway. He's carrying and dragging several suitcases, but he seems to have forgotten them momentarily.]

[giltfoil]

Day - Downtown

[Ravus's first organized visit, once he sees the general resolve to obtain goods, is to Cornucopia Baggage - his arms can only take him so far, when it comes to acquiring goods, and a set of luggage is more easily dropped at need. There, he is pleased to find not just containers, but magical containers. He selects for himself one very large suitcase that proclaims itself "family-size" (fortunately it has wheels), one more standard-sized wheeled suitcase, and a shoulder bag. Unfortunately there don't seem to be any in white.]

[Thus accoutred, he dives into 'shopping' with a will. Ravus is pleased to find that Louvelier's caters to more or less the kind of clothing he is used to for noncombat wear. Formal, certainly, but it makes him feel almost a prince again. He hits up other shops, including Current Affairs, Icutio, and Bezel's Imports, for something a bit more hard-wearing. He has a rummage through Farriare's and Belts and Boots for some alternative footwear; his boots fit very well but they are not immune to damage or wear. He may come out of the latter store with more belts than he strictly requires. He pays brief visits to Truman Hair and Beauty and Bodysoap - it's not that he can't do without such things, but if they're available, he might as well. While he drops in here and there for a snack, the only places of that nature he seems particularly interested in are Moon in Water and Scenery Liquor; in both his tastes run towards the expensive. No Tenebraean teas or liqueurs, but nothing is perfect. He carries away several boxes of teas and bottles of wine and liqueur nonetheless, all of which go in his shoulder bag.]

[Ravus visits Rosshtian Piano and Music Supply for some time. He can be found in front of one of the pianos, picking out a tune with an even more distant than usual look on his face. His prosthetic hand moves only hesitantly over the keys.]

[Talking of hands, he ducks into Min's Metals on a whim, only to find himself confronted with a rack of prosthetic limbs in various forms. There is no point, any such thing would have to be custom made for him to be worth the effort, and yet - He turns away. He finds better luck at Booker's Crafts, where a nice set of watercolor paints, a selection of brushes, and a few sketchbooks find their way into his bag.]

[While his clothing and other selections have largely gone into the larger suitcase, the smaller one has remained largely empty...until Ravus arrives at the Resona Aere Public Library and vanishes into its depths, coming out only to stack more and more books carefully inside. The catalogue system is unfamiliar, but being a library, shelves are labeled for the uninitiated. He focuses on history, science, and magical theory, but a few works of fiction manage to find their way into his suitcase as well, mostly historical and classical novels plus a few books of poetry. He only stops when even the magically-enhanced space of the suitcase will hold no more.]

[Getting his bags back to the station may prove to be A Task.]


Nightfall, the First Night - Aboveground

[Ravus loses track of time.]

[That is the only explanation for how he comes to still be outside when night falls. He read about this city, he knew what was coming, and he still finds himself in the middle of a downtown street when the flames rise as if from nowhere.]

[In Tenebrae, it seemed like the fire was coming from nowhere at first, until he looked up. Ravus scans the sky reflexively, his breath only coming faster as he sees nothing. No MTs come to destroy his world, but there must be something -]

[No. He draws a careful breath and reminds himself of the weight of his baggage in his arms. This is not Tenebrae. He read of this. He is in a Fissure. All he has to do is get to - At this juncture Ravus realizes something important: he wasn't keeping track of the underground stations and now isn't sure where the nearest one is.]


Night - Belowground

[Having learned his lesson from the first evening, Ravus can be found at the base camp from at least an hour before dusk to an hour after dawn. He is willing to venture into the tunnels, either on his own or with a partner, and can probably be found there after dark, prowling the area to guard the station from flame hounds in a way that is definitely not paranoid or neurotic in the least.]

[Alternatively, he opens the middle of his three suitcases and makes a start on some of his reading.]

Nightfall

[nor_iron_bars]

[If anyone asks, Jail definitely just lost track of time looting everything in sight and wasn't at all out looking for stragglers because she was worried, okay? Total coincidence.]

[And she's definitely just calling out to Ravus to say hello, and not because he looks lost out here and that's a bad sign.]

Hey, you wanna get someplace a little colder? I dunno 'bout you, but I'd be sweating if I was in that coat of yours.

[daughterofthemark]

Park

[The first day, Arianna wanders into the Memorial Park, but soon makes her way back out. She's only there briefly the second day, also. Someone specifically looking for her at just the right time might catch her staring at the fountain, or the stages. But people will only really run into her there on July 4, when she investigates the shops, Armiger-ing anything that catches her eye (except for a cowboy hat from HATS which she puts on). She makes extended stops at Fair Fries and Fair Cakes, which end up becoming the least healthy lunch she's ever had, and steals almost everything from City Glow, but she'll ultimately at least briefly visit every shop here.

All three days she can sometimes be seen looking off into empty space, feeling melancholy.]

Downtown: Disney Mode Engage

[On July 3, Arianna heads for the residential district for a different kind of gathering. She picks a promising apartment building and ventures inside, emerging from one balcony after another, where she looks at gardens and carefully uproots flowers to send to the Armiger.

At least that's what she's doing when she's actually on task. In practice, most of her time up here is spent talking to pigeons. Nobody's been up here in a while and they're interested in meeting the new neighbor! Especially once they start actually having a conversation.]

Yes, I like the pastries as well. I think I may have one. Let me check...

Downtown: Looting

[This, of course, is the main event. Over the course of a few days, Arianna visits just about every store, with the notable exception of Scenery Liquor, but some highlights include:
- Keyes' Jewelers, where she tries and fails to get into the back, to her visible frustration.
- Southern Six Imports (the big one), where she steals some computers because they look familiar.
- Hellacia, where she tries to figure out the instruments with varying success, doing distinctly better with the keyboard.
- Cornucopia Baggage, which might come as a surprise, but she's preparing for her trip to...
- Turner Books and Music, where she methodically goes through the shelves dumping books into six or seven magic suitcases so she won't have to pull them all individually out of the Armiger later. The other bookstores and the library seem to have been pretty well covered by other people.
- Boxer's, where she picks up a bunch of notebooks and such.
- CAPITAL BANK, where she does help herself to some slightly uncomfortable desk chairs, thank you very much.
- Lillymoore's Dress, where she takes her time trying things on from both sides and picks herself out several new outfits.
- GAZEMAKER'S, where she has no reason to be at all but she's having fun trying on the display frames.]

Underground: Defense

[At night, when not in the base camp proper, Arianna is usually hanging out in the surrounding region, keeping an eye out for threats. It's relatively bright here, so the oil slimes mostly stay away, but she's had to deal with a few flame dogs. On July 2 she tries talking to them and convincing them to leave. If you want to know how well that goes, consider that she doesn't try that again on later nights, instead trying out various swords on them.]

boxer's

[bulletnews]

[Arianna will find someone else in here! Aya is looking at the fancier notebooks and journals and the like, but she also has a bag stuffed with so much printer paper. She was beginning to run out.

It also seems like she's found something she really likes, and she's... knocking on the cover, for some reason?]