Eachdraidh. Timeskip.

[selfimage]

LOKI COURT Unseelie INFO Overview, abilities & inventory TITLE None OCCUPATION Trickster ABLE TO FAST-TRAVEL Teleporting within the boundaries of Dorchadas RESIDENCE IN 2,701 tba RESIDENCE IN 2,702 tba MAJOR EVENTS HIGHLIGHT Description ( ✖ ) HIGHLIGHT Description ( ✖ ) HIGHLIGHT Description ( ✖ )

PLANS Mostly building a CR base. Reuniting with Billy Kaplan, possible adventures with Magneto, and building both of those relationships. He'll be possibly teaching some low-level sorcery to a few select students, depending on how the idea itself is received. Otherwise, he plans on traveling around to see some of the sights along Dorchadas (and further, depending). He'll be looking into the sorcery within the world, as well as various kinds of sorcerous explosives, and different kinds of poisons. He'll want to examine the political structure, myths and find out more of the details about the war itself. There may be some rebellions and messing-up-of-things included in this, possibly with anti-shardbearer sentiments. SUMMARY OF KNOWN DETAILS ✖ Part-time adjunct professor of illusion at a mage uni. Spreading the general illusion bits around town. Gaining some very interesting information from said exploits. ✖ Saber's super super super secret R&D project. There will be trials and errors. ✖ Possible dabblings with the Midnight Court. ✖ Rin, Johnny, Magneto, Zuko, Sansa, Sam, Maleficent QUESTS ✖ REDGATE | The Walking Dead TIMELINE OF EVENTS SPRING IN 2,701 (Mar, Apr, May) MARCH—Roc, the king of the birds, throws some awful snowstorms across drabwuld. Since Loki's a frost giant, he likely won't become a Lokisicle, but he'll try to find some creative ways to get people un-frozen. MARCH—Boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons. APRIL—Histrionic Loki with a crazy emotionally-driving harp in his dreams. He'll find it and destroy it. This also might be an interesting time for his CR, since he'll be a little more sensitive and vulnerable. APRIL—Boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons boons. MAY—Golden swans migrate, devouring and destroying. Loki will be capturing and collecting them to gain some wealth. MAY—Possibly beginning to find a place to settle after the monarchs leave. Teaching some low-level chaos magic to a few new faces that he's possibly bunking with. SUMMER IN 2,701 (Jun, Jul, Aug) OVERVIEW—Refining his own abilities (depending on his boons) and continuing to foster the chaos magic abilities of those who may be around him during that time. Also helping Billy Kaplan with his finesse. JUNE—Checking on some of the Jabberwock sites that are affected with the rot. He can't do much in regards to healing, but it'll be a good opportunity to meet CR with the people who may have a better those abilities. JUNE—pOSSIBLE MAGICAL TOURNEY?? Using magic? Probably not, but he's very curious to see what other people in the world can do, so he may check it out for observational purposes, and to see if he can learn any new tricks. JULY—The sudden violence wrought by the anti-shardbearer demonstration hits a head, and Loki heads to investigate. Possible meetings with Magneto about this, as well as Acts of Vengeance 2: Electric Bugaloo, but with more good intentions. AUGUST—That sure is a bazaar, Sansa. Insert domestic bazaar stuff here. AUGUST—Leathann's Festival of Lights. SCREW THAT, WE'RE GOING TO THE FESTIVAL OF SHADOWS. Domestic festival stuff here. FALL IN 2,701 (Sept, Oct, Nov) SEPTEMBER—The magic that allows everyone to understand Drabbish goes nuts. Loki has the All-Tongue and can translate. Who am I kidding? He's going to mistranslate everything for everyone. Enjoy your miscommunications. SEPTEMBER—Drunk. OCTOBER—Drunk. OCTOBER—Oh Black Shuck too. NOVEMBER—Rounding up some of the mages/sorcerers from the Leathann prison break—but he's more willing to make deals than he is to turn them in. He'll be looking to gain whatever he can experience-wise/magic-wise/knowledge-wise from the escaped criminals. He also isn't against rounding them up, depending. WINTER IN 2,701/2,702 (Dec, Jan, Feb) DECEMBER—Drunk hunt. JANUARY—Heading back to Caer Scima to blow raspberries at the Seelie from a long ways away. IT'S REBUILT, TAKE THAT, SEELIE. FEBRUARY—Murder mystery at the children's festival. SPRING IN 2,702 (Mar, Apr) MARCH & APRIL—Shit gets real. ref.

( codes by whambam )

Comments

SPRING 2,701

[selfimage]

— march, april, may —

mid-april; recruitment

[selfimage]

[ Loki had spent a lot of his time here and there in Spire Three, seeing what kind of services he could provide for Ariadne. he was housed and fed as a refugee, tearing bread with cultists and Unseelie alike. his intentions on staying weren't beyond the days that came after the prior ones, and when he saw opportunity, he would probably leave in pursuit. the situation itself was still sticky and still fresh in his mind without a current direction to head. there was a war, everything was political, and he had a game to play to make it worth it.

there were some things that he knew about this world, and a whole lot that he knew about magic. the rules seemed the same here, and even though he could stretch them a little, there were stringent limitations put on his abilities. each time he ran into one head-first, he sighed dramatically (even if he was alone). he had been here and there teaching the basics, and it felt nice to be among those of like-mind when it came to the finer points in illusionary.

he strays away from the on the day's schedule as a little act of defiance, wandering abouts to keep himself entertained. there was a shrine to the Black Shuck that always managed to get his attention. he stays a bit further, watching the cultists approach with whispers and offerings. ]

march 1st; it was a fiery and stormy day

[selfimage]

[ Loki had duties!! and there were a few things that he had to admit. one of them was that Ariadne certainly knew how to properly put him to use. he's been back and forth, here and there, getting to know the area and those that inhabit it. per his nature, Loki's always been adaptable. he had always been adaptable. throw him somewhere else, and he manages to make a little niche for himself, and he's found that the Unseelie have been more providing than most. he knew the heavy weight of the name "Loki"—even when it came to other universes.

in a place where all cycles were theorized to have begin, he's found himself more comfortable than he thought. despite all the battle, the blood, and the rebuilding, Loki feels a little less anxious than he has in months. no one knew him and he possibly could be in a prime place to knock down a few undesirable walls. he couldn't say that he wasn't finding himself a little more than pleased.

he makes an effort to talk to people, both cultist and Unseelie refugee. when he sees Johnny, he approaches without hesitance, tapping his chin thoughtfully. ]

A coin for your thoughts.

[ and a pause. ]

That's a lie, actually. I don't have any coins. But I'm curious about the thoughts part.

[fulminants]

[ Johnny's taking a break from burrowing deeper and deeper into the caverns, hollowing out a habitable place for Ariadne's refugees -- it's backbreaking work, figuratively speaking, and lately he's been eating his body weight in food to keep up with all the exertions.

He's seen Loki around, even if he doesn't quite know who he is; Ariadne has many people helping out with the Spire, and he's come to be familiar with those faces as he adapts to this world and all its curiosities. It's jarring, being on his own for the first time in a long while, but it's been exhilarating, too, with its ups and downs.

Johnny's sitting on rock, skipping pebbles over the flat, sandy ground when Loki approaches him. He looks up, then smiles briefly. No one's ever been curious about his thoughts, not really, and he hadn't minded, most of the time. ]

Awesome, isn't it? Being in a place where no one knows who you are. Not as fun, sometimes. [ He looks up at him, sizing him up. ] You got family here?

[selfimage]

[ ah, another who didn't know who he was. there's a nagging relief in his chest. ]

No, that is, of course, if you don't count the Unseelie. We're all one big happy family here. [ of cats, most likely. ] Kind of like the The Brady Bunch if The Brady Bunch had knives and Alice was the cloaked sorceress of the Black Spires.

[ please get that reference Johnny please get that reference Johnny please get that reference Johnny. ]

[fulminants]

[ Johnny's eyes widen, then he laughs - oh he got it, he definitely got it. It's amazing to know that someone here at least knows some pop culture; he's tired of getting blank stares whenever he makes cracks. ]

I know, right? All that's missing is one of those housekeeper uniforms, and that big hair.

[selfimage]

[ thank all the appropriate gods that he gets it. ]

Ah—you know—I'm sure we can find someone to fit the bill. Not for lack of hairspray, of course.

[ and he looks satisfied with himself, giving Johnny the once over before taking a seat beside him. he's just going to get comfortable here for a chat, don't mind him. ]

And you? You said something about family?

[ that he brought it up unprovoked makes Loki curious, so why not ask the same. ]

march 3rd; the comeback kid

[selfimage]

[ overall, it was impressive how Hiro managed to adapt himself. after the battle he had run forward like he had nothing to lose, and Loki had watched him tumble down the road of figuring-everything-out with mild interest. in a former life, he would've paid him no mind, brushed him beneath the table uncaring of his more impressive qualities, but that had long past.

there were little bits of Hiro that reminded him of something that he had lost along the way. it brought both bitterness and wonder each time he did something to make things a little bit better. he was good at it, certainly, and he did it in his own way that was, well, anything that was a synonym with the word impressive. he left Hiro to his devices, mostly, letting Jason chase after him when he ran into traffic. Loki always kept him in the corner of his eye.

he was watching the construction of Spire Ten, and when he turns his head he says: ]

How would you like to learn a magic trick?

[zerotohiro]

[He had leveled out over the last few days even from when Loki had come to see the spire days ago. He had plenty of projects to keep him busy, plenty to keep his mind moving so he didn't have time to dwell on things like everything he'd disclosed to Loki before, or the fact that recovery of Baymax isn't as easy as anticipated. He's standing next to the god, watching the construction with a swell of pride and occasionally shouting out corrections much to the crew's chargin. Being bossed around by a 14 year old, while not entirely unheard of, is still probably not what they're used to.

In the end though Loki asks a question and he looks up]

You mean like pulling a rabbit out of a hat, or real magic?

[selfimage]

You're discounting pulling rabbits out of hats as real magic? Come on! [ he really only looks mock offended. ] That's almost as bad as telling me that a coin really wasn't behind your ear.

[ his gaze goes back to the builders and the sorcerers that were put under Hiro's direction. ] I could argue that. What makes you so sure it's a trick of the hand? [ though he does sound a bit intrigued. ] What makes you so sure of your perceptions?

Magic is very interesting. It's based on belief, very concrete belief. If you play it right, you can open yourself to quite a lot of possibilities by the flick of the wrist. All you have to do is know when and how to lie.

[zerotohiro]

Uh huh. [But it's a good question and it's one that causes him to pause and really think. What did make him so sure of his perceptions? Nothing here made sense compared to what he already knew anyway.]

Sleight of hand is one of the only magics that could be based on science. [There's a point.] With sleight of hand you have to take a lot of factors into consideration like the perception of the human eye, physics, and even light. It's the only magic that has a solid answer to it, so that's how I know it's something real.

But those other things…you're talking about actual illusions aren't you? [The look he gives Loki then is something that's very close to outright saying "we both know we're good liars." Truthful or not, he's playing right into Loki's hand hook line and sinker. He's intrigued beyond belief of what sort of magic can be weaved just from manipulating words and ideas, but he's trying not to let his curiosity show too much.

It's failing spectacularly.]

Isn't the problem with that then convincing everybody else to believe the lie?

[selfimage]

All magic is based on Midgardian science, and that's because the rules of the universe are always constant in both. You might call them a little the same. [ specifics there. "Midgardian" science. they had different methods in Asgard, but it was a tad more difficult for human comprehension. even though the gods looked liked humans didn't mean they experienced reality in the same fashion. ] That's where the lies come in. It's easier to lie to someone's perception than it is to lie cosmically—but both can come hand-in-hand. If you pull a rabbit out of a hat, magic or no, someone is still seeing that a certain way.

It's kind of the same thing, but instead of simply taking those factors into consideration, you exploit them. People see what they want to see, you just have to make them see what you want them to see.

[ there were still some barriers there, but he could break them down easily. it wasn't just about science versus magic, but utilizing the same vibrations and patterns to produce a desired result. seeing anything as separate never did anyone any good. ]

march 2nd; the golden boys

[selfimage]

[ Jason and Loki had seen each other in passing while going about their own respected duties. there was the mutual hand off of Hiro (which Loki mostly left to Jason, who was coincidentally more responsible with him than Loki was, go fig), and the occasional dirty joke at the dinner table.

it was easy to see potential when he saw it. he knew those people that were akin to the same ability, those that were chaotic in practice, and those that were impulsive and feared for their capacious nature. with Drabwurld in the state that it was, and the Unseelie scrambling to get themselves on their feet, Loki found that there were a few things that he could foster. he approaches Jason off schedule for a chat. after some dumb, pointless small talk. he leans his head closer like he's about to pass on secret knowledge.

and he kind of is. ]

Wanna learn something cool?

[uneulogized]

[The pointless small talk had been pursued in part because of the people around the Spire. Jason has little patience for that crap, preferring to jump into the middle of a conversation rather than really moving things through the niceties. He imagines that in time, the people around here will notice that.

But they haven't yet. That's the important part.

He eyes Loki curiously with those words, and then he motions for Loki to follow him. There are less prying eyes if they move, making it so that snippets of their conversation aren't overheard.]

How cool are we talking?

[selfimage]

[ Loki follows him at a casual stroll, keeping the pace easily as he tucks his hands in his pockets. ]

On a scale of eh to supremely awesome? Ten the best, one the more unfavorable part of the spectrum? I'd say at least an eight. Probably a nine if you want to play it right.

Usually different kinds of people have different affinities for different kinds of magic. It's kind of a to-mae-to or to-mah-to thing. There's elemental—and then we get into the more abstract. That's what I do. Illusion, mostly. You know, trickery. The kind of thing that no one likes.

[ and it's true, no one really liked being duped (Thor most of all, but that was a story for another time), and Loki's abilities were exactly that. he was supremely good at being annoying and pissing people off. ]

[uneulogized]

Wow, the god of mischief has a penchant for causing mischief. That one's new.

[Still, he's following what Loki's saying. Jason wonders if he really has a gift for that. Picking up fire magic was as easy as breathing. The destructive quality of fire was something that he took to rather easily, fire forming over his hand readily enough. He intends to learn more from Lemina, but it's only a matter of time.

He just hopes he isn't dragged into that stupid magic guild.]

But see, I get elemental. Make something burn. [He waves a hand at himself.]

It's obvious I can do that. What you're talking is more abstract. [But Jason isn't saying he doesn't want to learn.]

[selfimage]

You'd be amazed at what people make of the same song and dance.

[ there's a hint of amused irony in that, but it's dismissed as he continues. ]

Making something burn is easy. Put some magic words and focus a little and—bam! Forest fires.

Illusion, the abstraction, takes more finesse. It's more challenging. Harder to control, of course, because like all magic, it's about a thought and making the thought real. It's just less of a spark and more of a carefully woven lie. A lie so well written that fools the perceptions of others.

[ as if to demonstrate, his hand comes from his pocket and drags along beside them in the air as they walk. for a moment the reality around his fingertips ripples, small green tendrils flickering and catching. he snaps his fingers and in a split second it looks like they're heading in the opposite direction than they were walking. ]

beginning of april; magic hands

[selfimage]

[ so.

so.

everything was terrible. wait. maybe he was exaggerating.

no. no—everything was absolutely positively terrible. there were times when Loki felt the constraints on his powers more than others, and this was definitely one of those times. Saber had requested that they get things moving—something something technology and magic something—is what he had heard (which meant he heard exactly what he wanted to hear).

Loki agreed. giving the Unseelie an advantage was in his benefit, so there was no reasons not to. it was something that he could also find use in, as well as expand a little bit of influence in terms of his own abilities. plus, pushing the boundaries as far as he can was totally up his alley. loosening the grip of fate on everyone—including himself—in the process.

he had met up with Lemina in a brief exchange of ideas. some kind of battery was needed to harness some of the more creative ideas of the group. while that was simple in idea, it was a little more difficult in practice. it made the lack of Midgardian technology a tad frustrating.

he holds up a little jar that he's made, runes scrawled across the rim of it. ]

I thought that we could capture a bit in here. Like a contained spell—harnessing the energy will have to come later, of course, but for now ...

Well! Baby steps!

[fliesbynight]

[Technology isn't Lemina's strong point but this? Totally her area. There's no way they can fail! At least that's what she says in all of her bravado. In truth, having her powers limited is driving her up every wall possible.

But runes? Magic? That she can do. She follows along well with Loki's idea and sees no issue with it. Sure, they don't have an idea of how to harness it once its in the bottle but, well, like he says! Baby steps. They'll have some sort of inspiration once it's done.]

Lightning in a bottle right? Perfect. You can't ask for a better battery than nature's own powerhouse.

[For her part, Lemina has been carefully crafting a glyph that will send the lightning into the bottle. She has light magic but without access to it, she has to do things the old, hard way. It's frustrating but she can deal with it.]

Okay. I've made it so this glyph will activate once its contained in the jar. Then bam! Lightning trapped inside of it in a repeating loop. The loop can last for weeks. Not bad, huh?

[selfimage]

[ Loki takes the jar from her to inspect the glyph. it's not so different than the runes he uses to contain things—the magical loop leaves him a little dubious, but his relics only work for a certain amount of time before they don't. he doesn't want to find out what happens to a lightning spell when a relic goes poof.

he turns the jar in his hand. ]

The key is having enough finesse to guide it into the mouth. [ he unscrews the top. ] Otherwise we'll be down one magical jar.

[ and thus, two magic users were needed. ] Which begs the question ... How do we stop the loop?

[fliesbynight]

I can just reverse the glyph. It should work just fine.

[Of couse she's never done anything like this before but she doesn't want to look bad in front of another magic user. If worse comes to worse, canceling it with the opposing glyph should work out just fine.]

How long will your runes hold out?

mid-april; don't you ever tame your demons

[selfimage]

[ Loki didn't notice it at first. it snuck up on him, sang to him gently when his thoughts would circle back to the forefront. the tunes he was humming would start to conform to the phantom strum of the harp, and when he noticed it had already drawn him into its grasp and coiled sinister fingers around his heart.

it sinks in, closing his ears and dimming the clamor around him. his thoughts turn inward, circling frantically in his head until he can't decipher his original point. after that it's the stress, the beat of his heart against his sternum and the shallow breaths. he keeps himself tucked away, traveling around corners and through shadows, cloaking himself in invisibility and conveniently eavesdropping around those at the spire.

they're conspiring against me.

every word took a sick turn, misshapen and malformed until he had convinced himself that no matter what, eventually, these people would turn on him. the Unseelie cause would be one that would damn him. he has to do something, anything to stop it. so he does what he knows how to do best, he starts moving pieces.

he's heading into the town around the spire, shrouding his anxiety in hubris until it was clear that the look on his face wasn't the same charming trickster that once presented himself to the spire's aid. ]

[uneulogized]

{For Jason, it's more than the facial expression he carries now—it's the absence that comes before it, the times when Loki slips off into shadows and disappears, when he reappears unexpectedly, and when he seems to becoming someone else. That behavior has no place here, not among Ariadne's followers and not in a time when it doesn't benefit him. Perhaps more importantly, Jason recognizes it because he knows what it's like. It is a thing that is easy to recognize in another because he already underwent it himself. The difference is that Jason tends to target and focus on things, picking an object in a tunnel and running after it.

Loki, he's not surprised to find, doesn't do that.

Jason doesn't bother tailing Loki, instead sliding in front of him and quoting a play he remembers from long ago:]

Cold fearful drops stand on my trembling flesh.
What do I fear? Myself? There's none else by.
Richard loves Richard; that is, I am I.
Is there a murderer here? No-yes, I am.
Then fly. What, from myself? Great reason why-
Lest I revenge. What, myself upon myself!
Alack, I love myself. Wherefore? For any good
That I myself have done unto myself?
O, no! Alas, I rather hate myself
For hateful deeds committed by myself!
I am a villain; yet I lie, I am not.
Fool, of thyself speak well. Fool, do not flatter.

[selfimage]

[ the anxiety comes with his own brand of victimization. for all the things that Loki did to himself, it was easy to find reasons that others had forced upon him. a steady finger outward beat a steady finger inward, and the desires and words that he had heard just before he had claimed his new body came loaded with growing resentment in his mind. of course he couldn't change, of course he couldn't be anything different—they wouldn't let him.

the message is there, but as for whether or not he's willing to hear it is a different story. ]

Shakespeare was never really one of my favorites. Or do you fashion yourself an actor?

[ he says dryly, as if the words themselves were barbs remarking on questionable taste. his head rolls back to look at him fluidly as if he's finding a reason to be bored.

there's a turn on his toes as if he's going to ignore him and make his own getaway. as if the conversation itself is hardly worth the effort itself and then he stops dead, the hairs on the back of his neck raising to a prickle. ]

Ohh, let me try. "Now is the winter of our discontent. Made glorious summer by this sun of York!" So uncultured, little Loki.

[ the voice comes from somewhere. echoing from the stone walls and bouncing until it was scattered enough that it couldn't be placed. Loki puts a hand over his mouth, as if he's unsure whether or not they came from him or somewhere else. ]

Damn ... me.

[uneulogized]

I'm sure that asshole bird would've liked that last month, [Jason says, referring to the line rather than what comes next. Instead, he straightens up and becomes alert, watching Loki carefully. Is this a matter of split personalities? Will he be learning something new about Loki right now?

In a way, he's immediately reminded of Harvey Dent. He could be of two minds, and he allowed himself to be ruled by nothing more than a coin. Jason had pitied him. How couldn't he have? Although he hated him for the murder of his father, he learned that the loss of control was unbearable.

Jason now knew that familiar loss of control. Last month, he had it five times more than ever, but he always had a little hint of it here and there.

At the moment, he was calm, but there's always something red and hot behind Jason's eyes, ready to strike up and burst outward. He tries to hold it back, focus on Loki to see what may come next.]