[Riku's been rather quiet lately. After the nightmares and Sora's disappearance, he's been a little sullen. Sure, he's gotten used to people vanishing, but so soon after those nightmares had his back up.

Today, today this is important. A certain someone else has disappeared, though he's sure the cute little Komory Bat just flew out the window out of curiousity..]

Hey, uh...

If anyone sees a little multi-coloured bat flying around the city, let me know? He's-- [Well, 'pet' would probably be the easiest way to describe their relationship here, but that's not what it feels like for Riku. They've fought together enough for him to not be just a pet.] ...I'm just taking care of him.


Action;

[Said little lost Komory Bat is having an absolute ball outside. He's been cooped up in Riku's room for over a week with the window shut and locked tight, and finally has a chance for some glorious freedom!

And he is everywhere. Flying around the Dark Carnival and enjoying the ghosts that roam around. Watching people train and compete at the Arena in Thor's district. Sleeping on the wall near the Gate of Fire, and perching and enjoying the sunset on the bank in Heimdall. In fact, he's almost everywhere but the park, which is probably aggravating for Riku.]

Alright, I need a couple of things from you guys.

[Isaac lazily ticks them off with his fingers.]

First thing's first, I'm guessing Asgard doesn't have a zoo. Any ideas where I can go to see live animals? I don't mean like kittens, I mean big cats, predators, stuff like that. I can hold my own against them if need be.

[Another finger.]

Secondly, I need a bike. A good one, not the crap in a corner store. If anyone's got one they're not using or knows where I can get one for cheap, let me know. [Or else he'll just steal one from some poor, unsuspecting native.]

And then finally, I want to run a few experiments with powers. See how they work when used together. I'm looking for body controllers, energy lenders, transferrers, and healers mostly. If you've got an offensive power and want to know how your powers can be affected by the passive powers, then let me know and we'll work something out.

[ when the feed flickers on, it is in a clear, open training room in the arena. it was difficult to find a training outfit, despite all the help the natives had given itsuki--it's nothing like what is usually worn to practice in the manor. instead, just opting for a simple yellow tunic and comfortable navy blue slacks with medium-length hair tied into a low ponytail, training begins. dummies are strewn about the room, and with each dummy, a move is practiced. a certain type of powerful kick, or bruising takedown, or open-palmed hit.

when itsuki is finished, hazel eyes turn to the feed and a respective bow shows the end of the training session. ]

Hello, I am Itsuki Myoudouin.

I'm looking for a hand-to-hand combat training and sparring partner.

If there's anyone here that would be able to meet regularly, to hone their skills, please, contact me.

[ a nod. ]

Thank you.

[ itsuki hesitates, looking a bit uncertain and a little green, before moving. the feed is cut off. ]

You never get used to that, do you?

[She tries to laugh, but it comes out more like a pathetic sort of huff. She's exhausted and looking a little drained, when in reality she's just gaining her color back. The 'that' in question is losing your bracelet, and anyone that knows her knows she's been missing for just about a week now. And that this isn't her first time.

The forced smile drops for a little bit, though, as she continues.]

Also, I don't know if someone's already made the announcement, but Castle's- [Her voice cuts out for a moment and Kate takes half a second to pull herself back together. A breath, and then she continues.] Richard Castle's gone home.

Which means, [Just keep talking. Keep yourself together, Kate, you're on the network.] I'm in the market for a new roommate. Two or three, actually. I've got paid housing in Sigyn, it's a pretty nice place, too. I just can't pay for it for myself.

[She's not shaking she's not shaking she's not shaking. Kate gives another smile, small. Trying to be hopeful but instead looking even more exhausted. As if she's aged years in just that week.] And if anyone else left while I was gone, could someone fill me in?

Text to Conan
Sorry about that. Did anything happen with the Department while I was grey?

(( ooc: I'm bringing Kate back from hiatus a little early! ))

Man... I really gotta keep tabs on this thing.

[ the feed turns on to Hilda muttering to herself and holding her head in one hand. she seems to be in some kind of pain - enough to momentarily distract her from the fact that she's recording. but once she brings her gaze back to the screen, she manages a smile. ] Hey, everyone. Miss me?

I guess I kind of dropped off the face of the earth for a little while there. Sorry. [ a chuckle. ] I've never lost my bracelet up until now, so this is kind of new to me. If anyone has a remedy for a splitting headache, could you let me know? My healing's kinda weak right now.

Oh! [ she's remembered something, and it's enough to make her perk up! ] About Poketopia... We've sort of lost some of our workers over the past few weeks. That means we're a little short-staffed, and we could reeeeeally use some more help! We'll be holding a sale in the next few days, so you should come and check us out if you're interested in getting a job at a cafe! You won't regret it, promise.

[ PRIVATE to Pokemon Trainers ]

The house is totally empty! Where'd you guys go?

[ PRIVATE to Hope Estheim ]

So... How's the egg doing?

[The feed starts off with a blue-eyed lion cub wearing a silly lion grin. There is snow in his mane and all over his furry little body. For someone who's usually human, Sora is rather unperturbed about being an animal.]

This is great! This snow is perfect for snowmen and snowball fights. Hmm...

[He paws at the snow and gathers a clump perfectly sized for his paws. Packing it into a ball proves more difficult. Disappointed, he drops his almost-snowball.]

I guess I need hands... Hey, someone should come out and help me make a snowman! We'll make the biggest snowman anyone's ever seen.

[Sora shakes off snow and sneezes, then looks thoughtfully at the bracelet.]

But since it's cold and snowing, does that mean it's close to Christmas? Does this world have Christmas? I hope Santa knows I'm here. I've been really good this year, too...

[ The video flickers open. Hanako made sure that the bracelet's camera wouldn't film her face, but below... to the thing that is sitting on her lap.



An over-sized, pink egg with flower patterns all around. She carefully holds it in place with her scarred hand. At the corner, you can see her pet dog Nashi eyeing at the oval thing curiously. ]

Erm... I'm fairly sure this is a Pokémon egg, and I found it at the door of my room today, along with some other items, but with no note attached. I wonder if this is part of the secret santa... Rose-san, can you confirm this?

[ A pause, as she gently rubs the flowery egg. ] I know this happened to Hibiki-san, too, but I wondered if anybody else received a Pokémon, among those who never owned one before. Finally... I would like to know which Pokémon this is, in the eventuality that it's going to require certain attentions - I don't want to be caught unprepared.

... I don't need to know who the giver is, but if you're watching this... thank you. I never thought I could have a Pokémon for myself, and I guess this was a nice surprise to wake up to... it fits with the recent decorations that appeared, doesn't it...?

[ You can't tell whether she's smiling or not, while she says that. The camera turns off. ]

[ "christmas" would be coming up around this time, wouldn't it? which brings up some curiosity. plus, it seems better to focus on good and happier moments than what's been going on as of recently.]

I was thinking, we're all from different worlds so.. that could mean celebrations and holidays could be different for each of us. So I wanted to ask, what was your tradition for the holidays? Christmas, for example. Or any holiday if you don't celebrate it.

My region we hear of talks of presents being delivered on a sleigh of Sawsbuck. Which.. I guess would be the equivalent to the "reindeer" animal. But I also heard that in other regions of my world they say Delibirds help deliver presents. Which.. [hold on, let him.. there! a drawing that closely resembles that.] is this Pokemon.

So are there any special traditions you do or have heard of for the holidays? [some cities do festivals and stuff, so hey who knows. maybe some people build snow Beartics or nail shields to their house.]

[Lucas has been experimenting with some different baking techniques it seems. When the video comes on he isn't wearing that signature hat of his, and even his face is smeared with what seems like flour or dough. He has a wooden spoon in his hand that he waves around from time to time as he talks.]

Is anyone here really good at baking? I've been experimenting with different ways of making poffins, ones that look exactly like certain Pokemon to be exact.

[He reaches to grab one and shows it to the camera. Uwah it resembles a Shinx!]

Well? What do you think? Is it too much?

Hi!

[Lyra is sitting in her room, judging by the neat bed just barely visible in the corner of the shot. Once she speaks, she straightens a bit more, conscious of now being recorded. Those who know Lyra may notice her more serious demeanor; she's smiling, she's cheerful, but her usual exuberance is reined in.]

I'm Lyra. I'm a Pokémon trainer, I live in Sigyn district, and the gods chose me to be in charge of making sure the it's protected. And I'll definitely do my best! But I can't do it all by myself--we're going to need a lot of people to help out to keep it all safe, especially since we've got the hospital in our district and that'll be really important, I think.

[Lyra shifts a little in her chair; she's never been one for sitting still for too long. Still, she continues.]

I'll take anyone who wants to help, even if you don't live in the district--as long as you can get here to watch over it, that's fine with me! Once we get some people together, we could all meet up and get to know each other so we can work together and sort out how we're going to do everything. If you don't want to use the bracelets to talk to me, I'll be outside of Sigyn house today. I hope I get to talk to a lot of you!

Oh--and the healers and people who work at the hospital, even if you guys don't want to work right in the watch, I'd like to talk to you guys to work something out with you to keep you all protected. If things get--really serious, you guys will be really important. Thank you!



[Lyra can also be found outside of Sigyn house as promised, if you would like to approach her in person. Aside from being recognizable from the video, she is also accompanied by her Lugia, which will certainly help her stand out in a crowd.]

[ hello Asgard! the feed will click on to Mike, who is semi-nonchalantly leaning on a certain motorbike that he received during the Milkening. while this isn't quite Mutt and it can't run (he's tried), keeping the hog in his room as a decorative piece for now is the way to go. it also makes him look cool, but I digress.

Mike himself has his usual friendly smile, but something about it does look a little worrysome. and when Mike Chilton is worried, something serious is going down. ]

Hey everyone. I dunno if the word is spreading around yet, but apparently some of us were chosen to keep a lead eye out for our districts while all of this fighting is going to happen. They chose me for Freya, so I sort of thought it'd be good for people to know who I am and all that. I can promise that you guys are in good hands.[ his smile brightens just a little; gotta keep a positive attitude about this, after all. ]  Still, I wouldn't mind having some people help me out with making sure the district is safe, either. If you think you're okay with patrolling and stuff like that, I'd love to have you on my team.

But listen; I know that we've got a pretty hefty army protecting us, but I know that some people might not be totally comfortable with self-defense, too. I promise it won't come to that, but I'd be happy to help anyone with training for some peace of mind. I'm good with hand-to-hand and staff combat, so just shout out if you want to do some sparring or get some lessons!


[ PRIVATE TO THE BURNERS ] 

This might not be Motorcity... but I think as far as we're concerned, this is our turf now. Are you guys in?

Action
[Now Hiccup's been surprisingly quiet since he got pulled into this mess. Nothing's exploded, nothing's been destroyed...his father and Gobber would be so proud.

Or rather, they would have been so proud. There's such a thing as "speaking too soon".

The story starts a couple weeks ago, when Hiccup discovers a forge run by a nice, old native man, who lets him use the facilities in exchange for some labour. Molten steel, razor-sharp blades, lots of time to himself...what could possibly go wrong? As Gobber might say.

The answer is "a lot," as it turns out. If travelers and natives alike weren't warned off in the wee hours of the morning, when a certain viking can be seen lugging a largish metal-and-wood contraption through the city, they're certainly discovering this now. Once people have recovered from the shock of being pelted with what appears to be a lot of balled up parchment, they might notice the projectiles are being launched from some part of the wall around the city, and that the parchment does actually contain a message. It goes something like this:

"Have you seen this dragon?" Under the somewhat vague message is a clear, bold sketch of a dragon.

How curious.]

Video
[Some ten minutes later, a very contrite, sheepish Hiccup addresses the city.]

Sorry about the ahm...volley of parchment. It wasn't supposed to do that. I should probably fix that...

Anyway, since I'm already here, could someone let me know if they see him? His name's Toothless. I've been all over the place looking for him, but I thought asking wouldn't hurt either. Oh, and what are the chances he's outside of the city?

[A short, awkward silence.]

Yep, that's it. Thanks. And...sorry again.

Good day, Travellers.

As many of you may be aware, the time until true battle breaks out is short. We can't say when or how it will happen, but it is likely to be soon. We are doing our best to prepare for whatever may come, but today we must ask for your assistance.

First, we suspect there may be forward scouting parties like the one some of you faced while in the woods with Baldr nearby. We would like a small unit to assist a party of elven soldiers in making sure the close terrain is clear of such threats. Hopefully there will be no enemies at all, in which case you will assist them in gathering medicinal herbs and timber.

Second, we'd like to send a group of you to Utgard on errand. You will observe the state of the city and purchase supplies to make army rations. We need as much food and drink as possible in case of siege, particularly given that our trade with Utgard could be cut off at any time.

Both parties will depart in two hours. The first will meet at the Gate of Fire, the second at the Gate of Fog. We will not force anyone's participation in this matter, but we would be very thankful for the cooperation of all who choose to go.

If you have questions, ask and we will do our best to answer them. Thank you.

[This is the trigger post for the opt-out for the Biological Warfare plot. If you don't want your characters to be involved in the disease plotting, they need to be in one of these two expeditions instead. Characters on these expeditions cannot also be involved in the biowarfare plot. It is completely acceptable to handwave your character going on an expedition. If you don't have the time or desire to play in the logs, you are welcome to assume your character was there anyway.

The open mingle log for the wilderness expedition is here. The open mingle log for the Utgard expedition is here. Have fun!]

Is this how it works, then? Amazing!... Oh, but I shouldn't waste time.

[ the girl in the feed leans over to pull a large armored penguin into view, who flails awkwardly at the camera. HELLO THERE ASGARD. ]

To anyone who may be watching, my name is Platina Berlitz. I've only just arrived here, but I'd greatly appreciate some assistance! I think that empoleon is sick somehow. I don't know if this city has a pokemon center, but if anyone could help her, please let me know!

[Video]
[So, there's a new face in Asgard who hadn't even bothered to do a bracelet post until now, which is apparent when the feed turned on.]

...

[Yeah, he's staring at it for a second or so, looking pretty awkward since what is interacting with strangers.It took him a few more minutes before he turned the feed off and didn't even bother with an explanation.]

[Action]

[Some of you might find that the stranger from earlier on is just loitering around the Thor District with a bored look on his face, looking at the buildings without even noticing anything else apart from their architecture, clearly this is grounds for someone to bother him at this time of the day...]

[ Isaac is sitting on the steps of the Freya Welcoming Hall, his leg jiggling and he’s still fidgeting with the bracelet. (The technology here is really like something from a movie.) So... Not a werewolf. ]

Alright. That was weird to say the least.

[ He stops fidgeting, stops moving his leg, and finally looks up to the recording. ]

Everything she said… [ He stops short and closes his mouth, trailing off mid-sentence. No surprise, he wants to ask if there are others out there de-wolfed, but he doesn’t know how weird that’d be to ask here. ] It’s all true, isn’t it?

So we’re supposed to be helping this place for some crazy reason? [ Kidnapped and missing the only power he had, he’s a little doubtful about Asgard. He was stronger before here. ] What are we supposed to do about it?

I hate to say it, but I don’t think I’m saving anyone with this power.