EVENT #5: SOVEREIGN CITIZENS (VENERA)

[aionmods]

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 Shops are open, and its people are withdrawn but superficially friendly when meeting strangers.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.

Comments

[devilmancrybaby]

[ He sneers. He doesn't care if she thinks he's a coward⁠—or rather, he doesn't care if he is, objectively, a coward. But he does want to gut her. Xin Mo really wants him to gut her. He can feel its hunger for it all the way up his arm.

His eyes narrow as she draws her bow again, and he surges forward, timing his movement to the moment she lets go of the arrow so he can leap improbably into the air to avoid it, sword poised to swing down at her. ]

[warmare]

[Funny.

She wants to gut him, too.

Perhaps after this week, she will learn to stop being surprised when human looking people move like beasts. There isn't any way she can pull an arrow from her quiver fast enough to notch an arrow and fire, he's too close, too fast, and as the sword swings down she doesn't even have time to dodge or run. At the last moment... she pulls a short hunting knife from its sheathe on the harness around her "waist", just barely managing to bring it to bear between them, sparks flying as the metal collides and forces her back a hoofstep.

Her elbow locks, the harshly trained archers' muscles in shoulder and arm strain against his above human strength... and her pupils dilate as the sword...

Hayame may not have a sense for magic, coming from a world as mundane as could be despite the biology that made people think it must be otherwise... but even she can feel something foul and wrong emanating from the blade. If that thing touched her-

A snarl bares teeth far too sharp to belong to a prey animal, despite the features on her lower half, fighting through the surge of fear...

To haul her head back in a whip of long ebon mane... and then slam it forward to crack her skull against his.]

[devilmancrybaby]

[ He bares his own teeth back at her as their blades clash, and in this moment his are fanged as well—but an instant later her head smashes into his, sending him reeling from the force of it.

He lands inelegantly, skidding, and looks up at her with gritted teeth, fingers clenching on the hilt of his sword. ]

You—!

[ He snarls and rushes towards her again, aiming for the legs once more but this time sloppy with anger and possibly a bit of a concussion. ]

[warmare]

[It might be a risk, but she takes it anyway, gambling on the hope that her skull was thicker than his. The crack of contact is loud, but there's something else growing louder... the sound of Achamite guard boots on the cobblestones, responding to reports of potential aions fighting in the street.

Damn it.

Hayame grits her teeth, her forehead aching and the bruise already beginning to form beneath the surface of her skin as she keeps her blade held out in front of her... but it wasn't a match in a long, drawn-out clash against a proper sword. Not even much of a short clash. And with his speed... she doesn't have enough arrows left to try and get enough past his unnatural defenses to bleed him dry. As much as it galls-

She uses the moment he wheels back to gather her hind legs, build up the strength... so that she can leap over him when he comes in swinging low and wild, a hoof perhaps glancing against his skull in the jump. As much as she wants to push it, attempt to see if there were chinks in the system, some way to punch her arrowhead through his throat...]

A coward in one thing a coward in all!

[She can't resist the insult, the way it burns to see that the guards approaching seem ready to at least defend their Kenoma or at most join him in the hunt. As much as she hates it, knowing that to retreat is also cowardly... she cannot die against such unworthy opponents as these. She can't. Not before she's had her revenge.

... So she turns tail, trying to take advantage of landing a hit to put more distance between them and his unnatural speed, galloping away from the chaos they've left in the once calm market in search of the closest hidden place where she might redon her glamor, if not her pride.]

[devilmancrybaby]

[ He snarls like an animal when her hoof gets him in the back of the head, whipping round to go after her, but he's not fast enough; she's already covered too much ground, and his head may be spinning a little...

Gritting his teeth, he clenches one of his hands into an angry claw like a teenager who thinks he is afflicted by dark powers. Except he is actually afflicted by dark powers, unfortunately.

Some of the Achamite guards hurry over to him, and he waves them away impatiently, calling after the ones pursuing Hayame to not waste their time. None of them are mounted, they won't be able to catch her by chasing her directly. He stalks away with some of the guards still trying to talk to him, his own pride seriously in need of some nursing. ]