Evening: 5:00pm - Midnight

[ IRL Timeframe: August 14th - August 28th, 2019 ]

As the sun sets on Harsen Island and the curtains close on Four's games that abducted all the heroes up into hours of entertainment, things absolutely refuse to wind down.

When the knights return, they'll be placed right where they were when they were added into the game show. The Princess, unfortunately, is the one that doesn't wind up where he was taken from. For everyone else, whether they were climbing up the mountain or existing elsewhere, it looks like all they lost is time.

And maybe a bit of patience.

Every hero that participated in Four's game show reeived a personalized 'Thank you!' card at the end of it, apparently the monster was excited about everyone participating! (Disclaimer: One knight did not receive a thank you card because he refused to participate like a big ole' jerk).

The bright, glowing blue fissures are still open throughout the ground, they haven't gone anywhere while the game show happened. All the cracks originate from the mountain up the slope from Craydon! Social media has finally confirmed that all the cracks converge on one location up the mountain: At a big glowing stone door. It's absolutely not a manmade door and it's definitely magic in some way, but why is it there now?

The Weather
Insects chirping all over.
66°F / 19°C
A surprisingly cool sea breeze.

Prompts:

??:00pm Mountain Door, Craydon: Any heroes still climbing the mountain, or who choose to climb the mountain, can reach the glowing door. As they ascend, they'll have to endure unrelenting wind blowing right in their face the whole way. When they reach the top, send a ping saying "they've reached the door" to receive a description.

6:00pm Rock Sugar Tea Cafe, Bamborough: Not wanting to spend the entire evening in Craydon, the Protector has made his way via train out to Bamborough to find a cafe that serves tea. Three Princesses had come here during previous years and the experiences had been good enough that he sought to try it for himself. He'll be found sitting under an umbrella-covered table outside the cafe, sipping carefully at a nuclear-hot cup of spiced apple tea.

6:30pm Sushi, Far Haven: Of all the places for Ten to end up in all this, he's arrived at the conveyor belt sushi restaurant in Far Haven. Situated off to the side from the lobby of the Crossroads Hotel, the restaurant is simply named 'Sushi' and is filled with numerous tables wedged up against a slowly-progressing conveyor belt filled with plates of sushi. The entire path is in a refrigerated tube to keep the sushi safe to eat, and when a hero arrives they'll see Ten reaching in to obtain a new set of rolls. There are already ten empty plates in front of him: How many more will he eat? Social media is already taking bets on the final count!

7:00pm Door Crater, Craydon: It's the end. Any heroes still lingering at the door on the mountain will be treated to the biggest nightmare of all time: The door starts to emit a high-pitched tone moments before it explodes outwards. Pieces of solid stone go flying outward from the blast, and when the dust clears from the event there's still smoke billowing out from inside of the cave entrance and rising up off of the small crater that the explosion made.

Just inside of the cave entrance is the figure of a child, laying slumped facedown on the ground. They're wearing nothing but tatters over their translucent cyan skin. They look as if they're made of colored glass, their hair looking very much like solid, shiny obsidian but moving as if it wasn't stone at all. Their eyes are closed where they're laying, but there's an unmistakable glow even through their closed eyelids.

Procedure:

Reply to the appropriate toplevel comments for events below. Indicate if a post is a private conversation with "Private" in the subject otherwise all threads should be open to interaction with others. Plan OOCly how you'd like to toss everyone around.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The Protector answers with a short "hm" sound as he considers the question.

"No." He answers after a pause.

"There are few monsters that would be foolish enough to target me, and the Wizard cannot harm me yet. I am not at risk."

"Oh... that's good. Do you think she would try, if she could? I know she wants to kill you but..." He trails off.

His conversations with the Wizard didn't make her out to be especially bloodthirsty, as the Protector had described. But he did say she would say anything to get him on her side, and Luka didn't want to come off as sympathetic toward her.

"I can't imagine her doing it in a sneaky manner, I guess."

"I have no doubt that she will try. Her desperation is as plain to see as daylight." He answers, watching Luka curiously. He doesn't pick up on any sympathy from Luka, though, and he is absolutely looking for it. It means his next answer takes just a little bit too long.

"But you are correct. When she tries, there will be no subtlety. She is incapable of it."

"I don't know if desperate is quite the word I'd use to describe the way she came off -- at least to me. Concerned? .... pessimistic? But she always seems cool as a cucumber, regardless."

He shrugs and sips his tea.

"It is my wish that she simply lay down and forfeit from this year on, I hope you are correct that she seems more pessimistic than before." He offers, taking a sip of his own tea.

"Just before you finish her and end this year early."

"If only it were that easy. She's not so much giving up as believing this year things won't go as they have the last forty. That we're making a mistake by playing our roles."

"I warned you that she would coerce you by any means necessary." He responds, firmly.

"Do not try to make sense of the web of lies she's trying to weave. It will come undone of its own accord." His tone says that he's not even entertaining the idea of her words, especially not hearing what she'd said.

"You're right, you're right." He agrees. "I don't have time for that stuff anyway."

The Protector relaxes slightly when Luka answers that he doesn't have time for that stuff. He's glad this Princess has some sense when it comes to matters like these.

"I am pleased to know we are on the same page."

"Yeah... kind of hard not to be, I'd think." Luka sips his tea. "This has worked for almost half a century. Why should things suddenly be different? It's not worth the risk of entertaining her ideas."

"You are correct. This year, like last year, will end with her defeat. It is as certain as the sun rising tomorrow." He repeats the words that he's said numerous times. A similar reassurance to every year.

"Be sure to tell the others. They must not waver, no matter her attempts."

"I do, y' know, when I get the chance. I'd hope they aren't spending more time with her than with me. Some of these Knights are terribly hard to track down." He takes a moment of pause to finish his tea.

"I mean she's certainly interesting to chat with but she's nothing compared to me. Even if she is The Wizard and all."

"Based on my observations, several knights have had interactions long enough to warrant suspicion. This is likely why you could not locate them." He shakes his head, sighing.

"Assert your authority over them if it becomes necessary. Your word is as good as my own."

"Which Knights? Some would be easier to uh, assert authority over than others, I think."

"All of them." He answers immediately, taking a moment to finish his tea and set the cup down.

"Their noncompliance to aid in saving the world is as bad as defying our efforts."

"All of them?" He repeats back with some skepticism. "What about Olivia?"

"There is no reason you would have to, unless someone swayed her thoughts." He answers, narrowing his eyes.

"Words have power, no matter the source, a clever evil can worm itself into any mind."

"I thought you knew something there that I didn't." Luka says, relieved.

"I don't trust many of the others not to get too friendly with the Wizard though, you're right."

"I have no doubt that several have already begun to consider her harmless." He says, coldly.

"I would not wish a knight dead, but if it happens I hope it reminds them of the grim reality of our situation and what she will do to anyone."

"Harmless?!" Luka laughs. "Even if they were fully and openly on her side, considering her harmless is just idiotic. We know what she's capable of."

"Exactly." He answers, shaking his head before sighing.

"Every year I am surprised that the world hasn't agreed. Forty years of evil is more than enough to alleviate all doubt. I will not grieve for even a moment when she is gone."

"Eh? Not even a little? I got the impression you two go way back."

He immediately scoffs, following it with a hollow laugh.

"Not by my choosing, there are almost no means to travel the stars alone."

"Ah, I thought maybe you had a thing in the past." He smiles.

"What a disgusting insinuation." He says immediately, sharply.

"I would sooner eat dirt than share any further memories with her." Wow, cold much? Honestly, he thinks he's still being too soft about this.

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