[EVENT] On the first day of Christmas...

[vrdr_mods]

Winter has been drawing in for quite a while, and even here, Christmas is inescapable. What's going on?

The day before

Snow is falling... all around. It's a freezing cold evening, and the air is still—except for the blizzard outside. Will you stay home in the warmth, watching the snow fall and the frost form on the windows? Or will you head out into the whirling night? Visibility is next to nothing, but you'll probably be fine... as long as you don't go too far.

The next day

Snow has fallen! It lies everywhere you look, inches-deep, from Tokyo to Mikage-cho. The air is still, and the sky is a clear, wintry blue. Doesn't look like it's going to warm up any time soon. But that means a snow day. You'll be fine, as long as you wrap up warm. Do you want to make a snowman sledge, skate or ski? Waterways are frozen solid, and if you can get to the right store, you'll find the equipment you need. Or maybe you want to keep it closer to home, with snowmen tea-tray sleds and snow angels? Just try not to kill any rivals or near-rivals with a snowball.

Snow also drifts gently from the ceiling of the Velvet Room, fading before touching the floor. Festive, unseen sleigh bells clash unnervingly with the usual elegiac piano melody. Igor watches on with his trademark knowing smile—the festivities are just beginning....

In Iwatodai Mall, Inaba Shopping District, and Station Square, there are Jack Frosts around the place, along with chilly-looking Pixies, Onmoraki, and many other assorted demons. They have large sacks, or toolboxes, or planks of wood; they work merrily in hard hats, and whisper and giggle amongst themselves, and watch you as you pass. What could they be up to?

Christmas trees now stand in all the open spaces, hung about with baubles and lights. Illuminations are up, too, on every building, across every street, between streetlamps, you name it. More urban areas, like Tokyo or Sumaru, are as dazzling as you'd expect. But it isn't just the real world—all cognitive zones are suddenly hung with countless tiny lights as well. Probably not a good sign.... then again, the inhabitants seem strangely reluctant to fight you.

Comments

[reluctantprince]

He took another sip of the coco, now he was certain it wasn't poisoned. "That's good to know." He was so not in the right spot for this, but when has the world ever been kind to him. He was tired of these twists and turns.

"So I take it there's more of... us?" He looked over the other again. "What's with the shujin outfit?"

[fogbornphantom]

"I attend Shujin, which I understand isn't the most common outcome. Not necessarily uncommon either, though." He shrugs. He's met enough versions of Ren whose Akechis went to Shujin to know he's not the odd one out, at least. "But yes, I would say that versions of us make up the vast bulk of the population here."

[reluctantprince]

He sighed, he was tired. This was so much for him. "That's quite a fun notion." He closed his eyes for a moment. He wished he had gone there. Maybe things would have been easier.

"You seem very adjusted." Take that as you deem fit.

[fogbornphantom]

"I get that quit a lot." Still, he's not offended. In fact, he chuckles softly. "My life took a different direction when I was twelve, and I never got tied up in Shido's conspiracy. I am familiar with what 'typically' happens, however."

[reluctantprince]

"Lucky you," He hummed. Not getting tied up in the dumpster fire that was shido was a luxury he could only wish for. One he got the exact opposite of. He sighed, there was another option back then. That really wasn't a good hit to his ego.

"What's it like? Not having him over your shoulder?" What's with the phantom thieves, does he know Akira, is Akira okay, does he still get in trouble? There were a lot more questions that he was going to keep locked up.

[fogbornphantom]

"I'm grateful, but I wish that other versions of me were as lucky. Knowing what Shido put you through..." He looks away from a moment, posture tense. "Not that my life has been simple. I've dealt with my share of murderers and would-be murderers, gods and false gods..."

[reluctantprince]

"Don't get me started on those. I understand why Akira shot one." He would do it now if he could. He just didn't even know where to start on that process. He only knew Akira did shoot one. There was a lot of things Akira did that made sense now, he still held a grudge about how stupid the interrogation room stunt was.

[fogbornphantom]

"Heh. Yaldabaoth, I presume? I've heard of that fraud, but the gods I've faced were of a different sort, and several years ago." Even then, he wouldn't say he did them alone. He was part of a team, and not even the leader.

[reluctantprince]

"Yeah, that's the bitch." he shook his head. "At least yours got handled." he took a drink again. That was something he'd have to work towards again.

[fogbornphantom]

"Well, we're presently dealing with Yaldabaoth in the form of a fake Igor. Ren is aware he's being used, at least, but we're still grappling with ways to outwit the false god without putting Ren's life in danger." He digs a hand into his hair, sighing loudly. "That on top of dealing with Maruki under Shido's command... well, as you can probably imagine, it's a mess."

[reluctantprince]

okay, that's not what he expected, for as put together as he was, he thought things would have been over. "Don't you just want to deal with it and get it over with?" he left the 'by any means necessary' out of the verbal, but it was there by the look on his face.

[fogbornphantom]

"That's not how I operate. I believe that Maruki needs to face justice for his actions, just as Shido does. However, there is a fundamental difference between acting under Shido's command and acting independently." Even so, that doesn't stop his scowl from deepening. "I know what Maruki's goal is, and I know what happens when he wins. I will do what I can to prevent that alongside my team."

[reluctantprince]

He hummed, "Your loss. It's easier to handle." He didn't know what held him back, but he didn't seem to know everything yet. He just acted like it. God, did he seem like that. He really hoped he didn't.

[fogbornphantom]

"It's a matter of principle for me. I've helped thwart a supernatural serial murder case in the past. Helped push someone else into abandoning his worldview that everyone but him should die..." So he lifts his hands and shrugs his shoulders. "I believe that my enemies deserve punishment, but I don't believe death is the ideal option."

[reluctantprince]

He hummed, "if that's what you think." He wasn't of the same mind, nor did he have such principles, but this one did seem to at least not have the emotional turmoil of their father. The serial murder was interesting, but it wasn't something he really hadn't seen before in his line of work. "I think some people just deserve it more than other's should have to suffer to handle them."

[fogbornphantom]

"Oh, make no mistake. Were Shido to die tomorrow, I would not mourn him, but he would become a martyr. A tragic figure. It is far more fulfilling to me to put his mistakes on full blast and force him to grovel."

The scale of his intended calling card approach would yield just that... An ideal outcome in a shitty situation.

[reluctantprince]

He chuckled, "Oh no, you can ruin his reputation with his death." He just needed to be sure the calling card or whatever he used wasn't anything like what the phantom thieves used.

[fogbornphantom]

"Oh, really? Is that your big plan, then?" Heh. How bold. He'd certainly love to hear more...

[reluctantprince]

"You get enough audio recordings, emails, and other documents, you can make anyone a villain." it did help that he knew who to reach out to, to get those things taken care of even if he did have to wait for the phantom thieves to get to her.

[fogbornphantom]

"Hmm... true. It's not a terrible idea. I'd just rather transform Shido into a groveling mess and force him to face his crimes." There's something satisfying about the prospect of it all. Seeing Shido become that sort of mess of a man. "I even toyed with exposing the way he treated our mother in the calling card. Telling the entire country how many children he's undoubtedly abandoned because he couldn't keep it in his pants."

[reluctantprince]

That wasn't a bad idea. He could probably dig up some evidence for that too. "I think he'd grovel enough for my liking when I get to him. I don't get my... friends back. I can at least protect them from his stunts."

[fogbornphantom]

"...Did something happen to them?" That's interesting, though. An admission of friends. perhaps his circumstances differ from the likes of Magpie.

[reluctantprince]

"That's a way of putting it. I think it was more happened to me." God, that was going to be fun to explain. He also hoped his friend notion didn't fully go to his head he just didn't know how else to describe it.

[fogbornphantom]

"...Interesting. And what exactly did happen to you?" How intriguing. He watches closely, waiting for more information. This clearly isn't your standard Goro Akechi affair.

[reluctantprince]

He sighed, pinching between his eyes. "I wish I knew everything. I'm back in April. We got rid of Maruki's palace, and when I woke up it was April again. I found the glowing blue door, and discovered Igor, or at least the pretend Igor. Talking about redemption. Shido's back in power. I just thought it was all over and now it's back."