aionlogs | EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

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EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

Sovereign Citizens

VENERA

In contrast the Aion's last visit, they now arrive in Venera on a completely average day... or so it seems. Unlike Godsblood, Venera has been given no warning as to what's about to befall it; the Kenoma are simply authorized to arrive and begin their bloody work without fanfare. Even their entourage of Achamite soldier don't stick out that much; in the time since the plague left, the city has refilled with occupying forces. Notably, the Hylician ones seem to be keeping out of the way, almost as if they've heard some things and would rather not be involved too closely in what's to come.

As opposed to the ghost town it was during the plague, Venera is now reasonably active, with most attending to their usual business. Shops are open, and its people are withdrawn but superficially friendly when meeting strangers. Initially, the targets of the Kenoma hit list will have no way of knowing what's coming for them, but after the first couple attacks word will begin to spread. Those that have recently been engaging in seditious behavior will become harder to find, leaving their usual homes and workplaces to stay elsewhere, and making other attempts to escape the Regent's attention.

Once those alerts have been raised, the Kenoma will have to engage in more detective work to find their targets, questioning other Venerans and seeking out fugitives in the homes of their family and friends. In the meantime, some of those who believe they are in danger may become desperately enough to seek out the Pleroma directly, imploring them for aid. Unfortunately, seeking out one sect may just as easily draw the attention of the other. Most uninvolved Venerans will be too terrified to intervene one way or another, reluctant to aid in the persecution of their neighbors but fearful of consequences. If your Aion travels openly, it will take some effort to pin them down long enough to hold a conversation.

SEEDS OF DESPAIR

Several days into the culling of Venera, the Aions will have witnessed the city gradually withdraw into itself. The streets become vacant as more and more people decide it isn't worth the risk to be seen outside, abandoning work and play alike to hide out in their homes, refusing to answer their doors to all except the most desperate pleading. Those that can't avoid their daily obligations are quiet and morose, trying their best to remain unseen and unremarked upon.

If your character has been observed as a Kenoma, either now or in their previous visits to the city, the citizens will look upon them as if they are the messengers of death. If you are seen as a Pleroma, they will resist your gaze, as if fearing your presence alone might leave them marked. In rarer cases, you will see those with stronger spirits, with glares of hatred or determination. They are powerless now, but seeds have been sewn, and whether they are the seeds of despair or of action are yet unclear.

By the time the Kenoma's hit list has been fully addressed, several have been killed and several more have been rushed from their homes to flee the city entirely. There have been holes left in the tapestry of the community they were once part of. One way or another, their absence will be felt keenly by those they left behind.

QUESTIONS

What is the best way for Aions to travel to Venera?
Estinien has plans to get an early start for the Pleroma by teleporting to the Lover's shrine and flying somewhere closer to set up a portal from the ocean caves near the Godsblood Lodestone to a spot of farmland closer to Venera. Paul will be setting up a portal directly from Achamoth to one of the Achamite outposts in Venera.

How much force can the Kenoma use while interrogating Venerans?
While they are generally not permitted to kill Venerans who haven't tried to physically fight them, they will be permitted to apply both physical and mental pressure upon those that refuse to provide them with information regarding the whereabouts of their targets. This duress should be proportional to the resistance the Veneran is offering. The Regent is not inviting them to terrorize Venera on a level to a level they cannot reasonably blaim themselves for.

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[ There's surprisingly little resistance from the soldiers every time Dokja comes barreling through, the Hylician guards scattering while the Achamite guards put up some pretense of a fight before ultimately turning tail. It's how he comes to take a young Veneran woman under his wing while remaining relatively unscathed, her whereabouts and precarious position leaked by a source from the Kenoma, and Dokja makes to escort her safely back to where some of the other Pleroma have been safeguarding similarly endangered citizens. The sooner he can get her to them, the sooner he can return to making a mess of things for the Regent's forces.

It's avoiding the Kenoma Aions that's the real struggle here. With a sword in hand and an obvious Veneran in tow, they stick out too much and it's not hard to put the pieces together, especially when the whole city seems to have boarded itself up overnight. Stealth has never been a strong suit of Dokja's, and he makes that clear every time a soldier calls out for him to stop and he engages in a fight almost immediately.

Hey, if it works... ]

We're almost there.

[ He tries for reassuring as he turns to the young woman hurrying after him. While she has a shawl wrapped around her head for some semblance of cover, there's no hiding the very real fear in her eyes. Even so, she takes a deep breath, nods, and schools her features into one of determination, every part of her relying on him to get her out of here.

And he intends to do just that, crossing through an open street while keeping his eyes peeled for anyone else looking to stop them. ]

[ what comes as a surprise isn't the hylician soldiers' lack of involvement, but more so that their efforts are gradually being thwarted by those who are also on the same side. maybe it shouldn't be all that surprising to have traitors amongst their midst, considering none of them have really endeared each other to one another, but still... for it to happen at such a pivotal mission is almost more annoying than a simple inconvenience.

no matter. when one encounters unexpected circumstances, you do your best to work your way around them, and kaeya is, if nothing else, a resourceful creature. it doesn't take long for him to hunt down his next target's potential whereabouts even after his first lead was squashed by an insider job. this is almost close to being a joke considering the trail of beaten down soldiers he was able to follow.

if it works, it works.

and soon enough, he finds himself standing in between a pleroma and a rebel's path to freedom. there's only a smile on his face for the time being. no signs of wanting to go straight into an attack just yet. ]

What's the rush? Are you headed anywhere important?

[ Cue boss battle music.

And there it is. Dokja had been lucky to avoid any encounters with the Kenoma so far, but his luck was bound to run out eventually. It would have just been nicer if he didn't have a civilian with him in tow to complicate matters.

He slows to a stop some distance away, the young woman quickly moving behind him without prompting, though he can hear her panicked breaths from where he stands. There's no way he can afford to prolong a fight with a non-combatant to look after, and his mind races as he tries to come up with a plan. The Kenoma in front of him is entirely unfamiliar, meaning Dokja has no information about his skillset or what the man is capable of, so that fucking blows.

Even so, he meets the stranger's smile with an easy one of his own. ]

Yes, actually. So I'd appreciate it if you could move out of the way, please.

[ He said PLEASE. ]

[ if only saying please is enough to stop most conflicts.

sadly, even if kaeya is ambivalent towards this whole mess, he isn't one to disobey orders directly. it's also unlucky that he is already in a pretty bad mood so this could be a nice outlet, all things considered. he doesn't move an inch from where he stands but he does glance over at the woman hiding behind the pleroma, making him raise an eyebrow.

when he smiles, it's all sharp amusement. ]

Well, certainly. I'll move out of the way when you hand her over to me.

[ it's a decent trade in his opinion! dokja is free to disagree, of course. ]

[ How kind and considerate! Unfortunately, Dokja does, in fact, disagree, shown by the way he also does not budge.

Rather than make the first move, he pauses, all sorts of thoughts racing through his mind. The most persistent being the last encounter he'd had with a Kenoma, and how that had brought him to the doorstep of the woman hiding behind him. It makes him consider possibilities that he hadn't entertained before, and has him wondering where exactly the divide between their factions holds.

So. He'll test it out. ]

They'll kill her. You'll take her to her death.

[ His own smile drops from his face, but his gaze remains watchful, as if searching for a specific kind of reaction from the man in front of him. ]

[ sometimes generosity doesn't go a long way. it's almost unfortunate.

kaeya isn't surprised that the pleroma aion isn't giving the woman up, because things are never going to be that easy around here. it does, at the very least, make him sigh and shake his head slowly. whatever reaction dokja is looking for is hard to get from kaeya, but there is a split-second where his expression darkens. his smile doesn't seem as sharp as before. ]

... Letting her go is only going to delay the inevitable, and you'll put her through more suffering than I ever will. Is that alright with you?

[ he doesn't expect an answer, but he does wait to see what the other does. all the while, his hand goes to settle on the hilt of his sword. ]

[ The small changes are barely perceptible, but they're there. And they're not enough. Before Dokja can respond, he feels a tug on his sleeve and spares a second's glance at the woman staring up at him. In that quick moment, before he turns his attention back to the Kenoma, he catches the look in her eyes and he doesn't need her to say anything to know what she's telling him.

That she's relying on him more than anything else in the world right now. ]

She wants to live, [ he says without an ounce of doubt. ] Today, tomorrow, the day after that. I won't take that from her.

[ He steps forward to widen his stance, the sword in his hand coming up at the ready to point itself at Kaeya. So much for trying to be reasonable. ]

And I won't let you take that from her, either.

You don't get to make that choice.

[ kaeya takes a moment to reassess the situation. having the woman hiding close behind the pleroma aion is going to be difficult to work with, because while they're allowed a reasonable amount of force, the end goal is to simply capture the rebels rather than outright hurt them. he's going to have to play it safe which isn't going to work out for him in the long run.

but if the pleroma isn't going to make the first move, he'll strike first— sticking to swordplay is going to be a good way to simply gather information about an opponent he knows nothing about. his first strike swift and light, making it easy to follow it up with another. the intent to slice the man across the chest is there but he's also interested in what he'll do first.

he thinks he can afford a few blows just for observation. ]

[ Testing out the waters? That's fine. That's about the same as what Dokja would have done, and what he intends to do now.

He meets Kaeya halfway, hoping to widen the distance between them and the Veneran woman. The last thing he needs is for her to get caught in the crossfire, and he's obviously mindful of that as he parries the first oncoming strike. He's just as quick and at ease with his sword, though he remains more on the defensive than anything else.

What he needs right now is to end this fight as quickly as possible. The longer he remains here, the greater the chances of Kenoma reinforcements showing up.

And so, as he wards off the second strike, he arcs his sword in an attempt to push Kaeya's blade up before a blast of wind comes hurtling from seemingly out of nowhere to try and push his opponent back and away. ]

[ it appears they're practically riding the same wavelength, testing boundaries and seeing just how far the other is willing to go. kaeya is also mindful of where the veneran stands, but because he's distracted by doing so, this is how the pleroma manages to push him back. the blast of wind comes as a surprise given the way it catches him off-guard. it's almost unfortunate how quickly he seems to recover, bridging the distance made between them once again.

his eye narrows in sharp interest. that's fun, but nothing he hasn't dealt with before, and if his opponent has no qualms in using elemental force, then... don't mind if he does the same thing.

with his free hand, he glides it over the blade of his sword, infusing it with cryo. it's ready by the time he brings it down at the other man again, following through with a forward thrust that comes with a burst of ice, aiming to freeze whatever is caught in its way.

he doesn't stop there. regardless of whether his last attack hits the pleroma or not, five thin and sharp spikes of ice manifest from above, and kaeya wastes no time in letting them freefall right where he's assuming the other will dodge into. it looks like dokja isn't the only one trying to end this quickly. ]

[ Aah, it's always annoying when he doesn't know anything about his opponent. Dokja's used to having at least some intel, so going in blind like this is sure to cause trouble for him.

A flicker of surprise flashes past his gaze while he watches the Kenoma's sword take on an elemental quality, but he's quick to do the same with his own. The white blade of his sword is imbued with its intrinsic ether property and a second later, scorching flames cover the blade as he uses it to slash at the burst of ice headed his way.

The heat is searing enough that it melts away most of the attack, but it leaves him careless. He doesn't look up, too preoccupied with what's in front of him, and it's not until he feels something pierce his left shoulder that he manages to react at an inhuman speed.

A flurry of white fur surrounds him, melds seamlessly into both his skin and clothes, and the rest of the spikes bounce off of him. He can't maintain this armor for long, having already used it over the past few days that it's at the end of its limit, so he's really feeling rushed now. His injured shoulder surely isn't going to help either, and he can feel the warm spread of blood from where it sticks his clothes to him. The pain he can manage, the spike lodged in his shoulder he can manage, as long as he can keep going.

And keep going he does. With the wind at his beck and call, he shoots forward at a brilliant speed, crossing the distance in half of a blink of an eye, blazing sword at the ready to swing down on his opponent. An opening. All he needs is an opening. ]

[ an opening is exactly what the pleroma gets.

his opponent's sword catching on flames is enough to give him pause for the briefest moments, bringing back memories that distract him from the actual fight. he nearly misses bringing his own blade up to block the incoming swipe, teeth gritted with just how close he was to getting sliced up. it figures this particular sight will never fail in catching him off-guard, even more so after the scenario had been made worse by how he was made to relieve through it by the innocence entity.

with their swords locked together like this, there are very little options that kaeya has to work with while he forces the man back, pushing his blade against the other in order to gain a position for an attack. the fur covering the pleroma's body is new too, which is going to be annoying, considering how easily it deflected his ice, so — it's time to redirect his focus elsewhere.

if dokja is busy with him, then surely the woman is left defenseless, right?

he glances towards where he last saw her. once he locates her, miniature shards of ice form behind his foe, as if warning him of what he's about to do. they're allowed some force as long as it equals how much their target resists, so he thinks the threat of harming her falls well within that range.

time to see what the pleroma is going to do next. ]

[ This is playing dirty, but game respects game. Had their positions been switched, Dokja would have done the same thing.

He has a very obvious weakness to exploit in this battle so it's not too surprising when he catches Kaeya's gaze and guesses where it's landed. The Veneran woman is completely helpless and now knowing what his opponent is capable of with those shards of ice, he can't take any chances. The other Kenoma had entrusted him with this woman's life and Dokja had sworn to him that he'd get her out of here in one piece and he intends to do just that.

Using all of his strength, he shoves forward with his sword to break apart their standoff. It's about then that Beast King's Sensitivity reaches its limit, and the fur covering his body recedes just as quickly as when it had appeared. Without an ounce of hesitation at the loss of his armor, Dokja turns on his heel and calls back the wind to aid him as he bolts toward her. ]

Get down!

[ He throws himself between her and the ice shards because what's self-preservation. Anyway, what's a little stabby in the grand scheme of things? ]

[ a little stabby is worth it for a good cause!

a good cause that ends with bitter frost spreading from wherever the ice shards will manage to dig in, but kaeya is in a particularly bad mood today. just the threat of frostbite isn't enough for him. not today, not right now, when there's still the possibility of another target slipping right through his fingers —

more shards manifest before him, but they're bigger this time and way sharper. when he sends them at his opponent, he's a lot more methodical about the areas he targets: the man's shoulders, his thighs. the palms of his hands. all in an effort to pin the pleroma down if he isn't quick enough to get the hell out of the way.

but if he dodges, that woman is going to meet the same fate, so kaeya expects this is going to end in only one way.

(where's your furry armor now?) ]

[ GONE but thanks for asking!

They're really in this shit now. The shards do their job and they do it a little too well. Dokja feels a numbing chill where they dig into him, and he hisses in pain as it creeps into and crawls across skin. The terrified woman in front of him cries out in concern, but he can't pay attention to her now. Not when there's more on the way.

When he whirls around, fiery sword held at the ready, he knows something's going to have to give. As the shards come flying at both him and the woman, he swings his sword in a broad arc, pointedly slashing at the ones aimed for his legs but having to sacrifice his shoulders and a wrist in the process.

Odd. There hadn't been a single vital area that had been aimed for.

Not like he has much of a chance to roll that over in his head. Swapping his sword to his other hand, he loops an arm around the Veneran's waist, ignoring the blooms of agonizing pain from his assorted injuries. It's quickly becoming apparent that he can't draw out a fight here, which means they have to run. ]

Hold on tight.

[ something definitely has to give.

once it looks like the other aion is focusing on escape, kaeya has to react accordingly. blocking their path seems like the most logical next step but he doesn't know if this guy, who literally has furry armor, might have other tricks up his sleeve. not to mention if he calls upon the wind's help again... it would be so easy for them to slip through his fingers.

no, he has to try and disable him before that could happen.

rather than going for another cryo attack, he tries one of his new tricks: a water ball aimed to completely drench both the aion and the woman. while it's relatively harmless, it's the burst of cryo energy coming from him that makes it worse, since if dokja isn't quick, there's a higher chance of freezing them both in place.

but since the goal is for them to ultimately get away... kaeya isn't going to get what he wants today. ]

[ Of course there's also water. Of course.

This would just be his luck, wouldn't it? His injuries are becoming all too apparent, dragging down every single movement he makes. He's losing too much blood and his stamina is at an all-time low. What he has left, he has to use for this.

Very luckily and through the power of pre-planned... planning, the water ball never reaches them. Not only does Dokja summon the wind this time, but blue lightning crackles around his form. One second he's there, and the next, he and the Veneran woman are gone, only a trail of lightning visible for just a moment before it, too, disappears.

It'll take everything out of him, but it is what it is.

Good show, Kaeya. Dokja will Remember this. ]

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EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

kaeya.

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why is that icon so feral hello

sometimes u become a little furry

i'm still not over his furry armor

please be over it please

i'll remember it forever......

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