White Chain (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
peace_keeper) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
daybreakacademy2019-02-04 11:01 am
peace_keeper) wrote in daybreakacademy2019-02-04 11:01 am
I will see you in Samura
Who: 82 White Chain and the Outlands Cosmology Class
What: Field trip!
Where: Dead Kingdom of Samura, The Outlands.
When: Early February
Warning: I hope you got a signed consent form from your legal guardian.
After weeks of talking about the voices of gods and the void between worlds and the King's Road and other such esoteric topics, it would not be surprising for even a studious student to still not have a good grip on what The Outlands were. They were a big place, after all. Far larger than the Earth, and far stranger.
Eventually, you had to just go there.
White Chain had been reminding her class of the upcoming trip for the last week, but it might still be surprising to see a large stone archway set up in the front of the classroom. It was covered in carefully carved runes, and would not have looked out of place in a wizard's tower or a crumbling dungeon full of goblins and beholders. It definitely looked out of place in a classroom.
Once the class was gathered, White Chain addressed them all with her hands clasped behind her back. "Once active, this gateway will lead to the dead kingdom of Samura. Samura was once a land dedicated to peace. A land of philosophers and poets. Such things rarely last, but Samura's end was not what you might assume. No one conquered it. No, Samura fell because of wars in neighboring regions. Refugees, seeking peace, continually fled to Samura until eventually there was not enough food and shelter for anyone. The result: Famine, riots, and collapse. Now, only ruins and bones remain. It is a somber place. It is also safe, and so an ideal place to first experience the outlands."
Each student was offered an emergency kit that included a signal flare, should they get lost, a lightweight emergency blanket, and a water bottle. She touched a rune on the gateway and a portal of shimmering light swirled into being before turning clear, and suddenly instead of seeing the blackboard behind the gate, you could see a starlit desert. "Are there any questions before we go?"
The Ruins of Samura
The first thing anyone noticed on stepping into the Outlands was that Samura was COLD. Breath fogged the near freezing air. The second thing anyone noticed that this was like no place on Earth. A desert of vividly purple stand stretched out to the horizon. Strange, alien trees remained here and there, stunted, twisted, and dead from centuries of drought and famine. Above, a sky impossibly dense with starts of a thousand vibrant colors lit the land almost as bright as daylight. The portal stood in the middle of what must have once been a beautiful plaza lined by building that looked to be almost as much sculptures of art as they were homes and businesses. Now, most of them were falling apart or just rubble, but a few remained upright.
The main street led away from the plaza towards a large cliff which appeared to have a waterfall flowing down it and the shapes of more buildings along the top. On closer examination, however, it became obvious that the "waterfall" was actually a sandflow, and that it was flowing up the cliff face. Indeed, there appeared to be an entire river of shifting sand that wound through the ruins of canals that criss crossed the ruined town.
Here and there, one could find bones. Human bones. Nothing lived here. Not anymore.
"Be cautious with the ruins. Some of them are quite fragile, and could collapse. We leave in three hours time. I will set of a signal flare by the gateway half an hour before we leave, and will leave the gate open until all students are accounted for. If you get lost, set off your flare and I will come for you as fast as I can."
What: Field trip!
Where: Dead Kingdom of Samura, The Outlands.
When: Early February
Warning: I hope you got a signed consent form from your legal guardian.
After weeks of talking about the voices of gods and the void between worlds and the King's Road and other such esoteric topics, it would not be surprising for even a studious student to still not have a good grip on what The Outlands were. They were a big place, after all. Far larger than the Earth, and far stranger.
Eventually, you had to just go there.
White Chain had been reminding her class of the upcoming trip for the last week, but it might still be surprising to see a large stone archway set up in the front of the classroom. It was covered in carefully carved runes, and would not have looked out of place in a wizard's tower or a crumbling dungeon full of goblins and beholders. It definitely looked out of place in a classroom.
Once the class was gathered, White Chain addressed them all with her hands clasped behind her back. "Once active, this gateway will lead to the dead kingdom of Samura. Samura was once a land dedicated to peace. A land of philosophers and poets. Such things rarely last, but Samura's end was not what you might assume. No one conquered it. No, Samura fell because of wars in neighboring regions. Refugees, seeking peace, continually fled to Samura until eventually there was not enough food and shelter for anyone. The result: Famine, riots, and collapse. Now, only ruins and bones remain. It is a somber place. It is also safe, and so an ideal place to first experience the outlands."
Each student was offered an emergency kit that included a signal flare, should they get lost, a lightweight emergency blanket, and a water bottle. She touched a rune on the gateway and a portal of shimmering light swirled into being before turning clear, and suddenly instead of seeing the blackboard behind the gate, you could see a starlit desert. "Are there any questions before we go?"
The Ruins of Samura
The first thing anyone noticed on stepping into the Outlands was that Samura was COLD. Breath fogged the near freezing air. The second thing anyone noticed that this was like no place on Earth. A desert of vividly purple stand stretched out to the horizon. Strange, alien trees remained here and there, stunted, twisted, and dead from centuries of drought and famine. Above, a sky impossibly dense with starts of a thousand vibrant colors lit the land almost as bright as daylight. The portal stood in the middle of what must have once been a beautiful plaza lined by building that looked to be almost as much sculptures of art as they were homes and businesses. Now, most of them were falling apart or just rubble, but a few remained upright.
The main street led away from the plaza towards a large cliff which appeared to have a waterfall flowing down it and the shapes of more buildings along the top. On closer examination, however, it became obvious that the "waterfall" was actually a sandflow, and that it was flowing up the cliff face. Indeed, there appeared to be an entire river of shifting sand that wound through the ruins of canals that criss crossed the ruined town.
Here and there, one could find bones. Human bones. Nothing lived here. Not anymore.
"Be cautious with the ruins. Some of them are quite fragile, and could collapse. We leave in three hours time. I will set of a signal flare by the gateway half an hour before we leave, and will leave the gate open until all students are accounted for. If you get lost, set off your flare and I will come for you as fast as I can."
no subject
They still think about us like kids. It's my first year here and I can't go anywhere without being watched.
no subject
no subject
[
to be fair they have some VERY LEGITIMATE REASONS]no subject
[She sat down next to him with her feet hanging off the cliff. What is a fear of heights? Can you eat it?]
I get that sometimes. From people who think that just because they can breathe fire or shrug off bullets or because they're a few years older than you, that makes them better than you.
no subject
I can breathe fire and I think you're okay, if that helps. [A beat. Give him a second to think here.] I think people only act like that if you let them. Until somebody shows them they're wrong.
no subject
You don't even know me. But thanks for saying that.
[Slightly more serious thought.]
I can definitely confirm that if you get in enough fights and keep winning them, people will eventually treat you more seriously.
no subject
It gets tiring, doesn't it? Having to keep proving yourself like that.
[Not that Naoki's ever had that problem. Just, yknow, asking for a friend.]
no subject
It's actually LESS of a problem at this school than my old one, though. No one took me seriously at all there. Kinda nice getting a chance to have a fresh start.
[She flopped back and stared at the stars for a moment. They really were pretty.]
Kohaku, by the way.
no subject
[He's pretty comfortable where he is, but his eyes drift up towards the sky anyway. It still feels weird, seeing the stars again.]
Guess it's not the worst place in the world. Food's pretty good.
no subject
[Military academy. Mostly boys. It was terrible.]
So this is kinda weird but like.
Aren't you cold?
no subject
[Not any worse than walking around the French Alps in winter, at least. What's he supposed to do, put on a coat? No thank you.]
Do you think it's always cold here? Or did we just come at a bad time?
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no subject
[They could probably ask White Chain but he really doesn't want to.]
no subject
played by the same personintimidating as hell.]No idea then. Maybe when people used to live here it was nicer.
no subject
[He takes the jawbone and throws it as hard as he can, watching it fly straight before arcing gracefully downwards. Hell yeah.]
Guess it doesn't really matter now.
no subject
[Pointed look.]
If you get haunted later, by the way, I'm totally saying I told you so.
no subject
Doesn't sound so bad. At least it'd be something.
[Naoki projects the confidence of someone who firmly believes he could beat the shit out of a ghost.]