[Event Info - Tldr Version]
Powerful energies emanated from the heart of Menomori as the wards placed long ago lost their strength. The boundary between the world of spirits and the world of mortals had grown thin, disappearing in some places. The weakened portions were small at first and continued to hold the border. But with time, the holes widened and grew, and bit by bit creatures began to trickle out. When the deities of Darkness and Light were at odds, the divine energies that surged wildly in Kujishoku bolstered the barriers briefly. But when that influx of power left as rapidly as it had come, the wards finally began to fail.
Deep within the bamboo forest, charms and talismans linked by ropes and cords dangle about, hastily tied into haphazard garlands. A cloaked lone figure stands before the edge of the realms, frantically working to mend the frayed attempt to hold the spirit realm's denizens in. "You will hold, you
must hold. Just a little longer, just a little more time–" Fingers tying corded talismans into knots, broken and new talismans littered the ground around the Overseer of Luck. Skittering creatures with many eyes and legs breached the waning wards, only to be caught by limbs formed of shadow and forcibly thrown back in. It was all barely holding together, just ready to fall apart.
The shift had not gone unnoticed by one of the responsible parties. Silent feet moved expertly through Menomori, pausing only when they came upon the fast working deity. Guilt formed in Naota's chest as he watched her before softly calling out, "Shiloh," he chanced coming closer, eyes cautiously moving to the fragmented barrier. Everything started to click together as he watched the inhabitants of the spirit realm coaxing their way out. For weeks Revaliir had undergone many changes, leaving this pair with a piqued curiosity. Shiloh was working hard, quick as usual with deftness despite her rapid movements. Naota, on the other hand, was all too calm. "This won't be fixed with talismans and charms alone," he stated, coming to stand next to her.
"I need more time." Shiloh muttered. Catching a writhing centipede spirit, she flung it back across the wavering border. Without turning to look at the other deity, she continued. "They're almost ready–we've spent months preparing the new wards. I had someone do research on what was keeping the boundary between Kujishoku and Menomori. When you moved to Canelux, they were already failing. I started noticing when strange phenomena began occurring in Ataiyo." The hood of her cloak had fallen off in her haste, revealing familiar tendrils of inky blackness now spreading up the left side of her neck. Constant vigil of the weakened borders had worn her down."They keep coming. Their numbers have increased exponentially in the past weeks after several powerful beings broke through and escaped. If they aren't taken care of, it'll only get worse from here."
Turning to look at Naota, she gave him a quick summary of what she had learned following the breach in Menomori. Reports from her information network identified eight regions across Parvpora majorly affected by the spirits which tore through the severely weakened wards. Baltil's mining was almost at a standstill, many tree-dwelling animals were disappearing in the Haza, trade routes on the eastern side of Abed had become impacted, Hoja Mesto was suffering from a wide-spread epidemic of nightmares while Komiteia was steeped in an abnormal euphoria, ships were no longer able to pass by Tyr as something on the island was bent on sinking any vessel in sight, and murders were piling up in Jayou with each passing day.
The younger deity rubbed her face with a hand, sighing. "When was the last time I slept again? Last… month? I don't remember." She must have been exhausted –because she didn't immediately refuse the offer. "Taking measures is an understatement. I can't be everywhere at once. What do you have in mind?" He gaped at her, his eyes wide enough to cast a soft glow on her cheeks, "A month, Shiloh?" At this rate she'd be lucky if there was enough left of her other than the gradually consuming silhouette. What could be done? How would they be able to make sure she'd be well enough to help, but not at the risk of her life? Death didn't come easily to a deity, but neither would want to test that.
Shiloh waved a hand dismissively when he gasped at her sleep deprivation. He didn't know that insomnia was a habit, and didn't want to give more reason for concern. "…As long as it doesn't involve some brackish mystery liquid, I'll think about it." A wry twitch from the corner of her mouth, and she nodded. "I trust you aren't going to do what I'd do–knock myself out for a few hours of unconsciousness." Part of her was curious as to what he was planning. She wasn't exactly familiar with the rest of the Conclave. His eyes glinted mischievously, but he fought to keep from smiling too much as his eyes drifted towards the barrier. Now or never, he thought to himself before saying, "Not exactly."
A gentle smirk flitted across his face, "I have an idea, I'm not sure you'll like it though." He moved both hands to her shoulders in an attempt to pull her away from the boundary and put her focus on him. "It might be drastic, but you're in need of rest and well..I
am the God of Dreams," he bit the edge of his bottom lip, worrying it before the smile was back, "Do you trust me?"
With that he looked back at her and quickly pushed one hand against the center of her chest. His other kept a grip on her shoulder, anticipating any shock she might have had to pull back. Swirls of crystal quickly encased her body, feathering out from beneath his splayed fingers in deep hues of amethyst. Just before the seal could be done, his hand on her shoulder gripped tighter, and pulled a secondary Shiloh out: her consciousness. "Steady," he warned in as gentle a tone as he could muster. "What the-" Shiloh immediately began resisting when she was being encased, which stopped once she was fully enveloped. In front of them was her body: eyes gently closed, darkness contained within her temporary crystal case.
He moved his hands to his hips and eyed it with an appraising whistle, "Not too bad right? You like nice and comfortable in there." He gave the front of it an appreciative tap of his knuckles and looked over to the now transparent Shiloh. "That could have been way worse," he admitted, eyebrows raising before looking back to her encased body, "Good thing it worked though, yes? Your negativity will stay in there with your body, but your consciousness can travel around." He smirked, proud of himself but also glad that his friend was all right, "Ah…One catch though? You're
technically going between the waking and dream realm right now so," he reached out, passing his hand straight through her middle, "No touching I'm afraid." He offered an apologetic smile.
After Naota had pulled her consciousness out of her body, she continued right where she had left off. "What's going on? What did you just do?" Turning around she saw her own body, inside a crystal. "WHY AM I LOOKING AT MYSELF WITHOUT A MIRROR?!" Her ethereal state was still loud as ever, and she was almost about to shake him like a ragdoll when she proceeded to phase through him. "….How is this supposed to solve the problem?" She glared, pointing at the barrier.
Naota laughed, unable to hide his amusement with his fellow deity, while simultaneously being relieved that her soul was safe and feisty as ever. His eyes softened, their emerald shining brighter as he looked at Shiloh's sleeping body. He gently ran his fingers along the case, proud of his work, but troubled that this had to be done for her in the first place, "Your body needs to rest Shiloh, and the darkness around you…" he shook his head, finding another smile to wear before tapping his fingers on the crystal. Shiloh's body disappeared in a silent flash of rainbow light, leaving her soul and Naota standing alone outside the barrier.
His eyes stayed on the spot where she'd been, "You're back in my temple, don't worry. Nothing can touch you where I've got you." He looked over at her now, "It won't fix our little barrier problem, but," his eyes drifted up to the scarred divide, "You'd be surprised how much work you can get done when you aren't restricted by a physical form." He sighed, "For now though," he continued, offering a smile he hoped was reassuring, "We have a lot of work ahead of us. And with you being suspended between the dream world and the physical, think of everything you can accomplish that others can't."
Covering her face with her hands, she groaned. None of this was what she had in mind. "I'm going to have one mess of a headache when 'I' wake up." Crossing her arms, she looked back at the boundary. "Now that nobody is keeping watch, I'll need to switch tactics to the offensive. We're going to need manpower–lots of it. Informing people is easy, but what they need is a motivator to make them take action. People are most productive at something when they are happy to do it… And I can't convince them myself." The storm deity asked, giving Naota a sly glance. "…How do you feel about subliminal coercion?" A corner of Naota's lips slowly tugged up in a light smirk before flicking his eyes back down to hers, "Well, they don't call me the 'Dream Weaver' for no reason."
Shortly after, mysterious bounty posters began appearing in every tavern and square across the continents. No matter how many times they were removed, another would reappear in its place. These posters depicted descriptions of fantastical beasts and monsters, promising enticing rewards. The parchments themselves were enchanted to rearrange their wording to what would convince the reader the most. Those who chose to take the offers would be granted a rare boon from the Overseer of Luck, though what kind of boon was never explained.
