Munetsuchi

[Apollymi]

Munetsuchi, 'A lake without heat', is a sky island in Chaldea which counts as an empire. It is run by a Empress who claims a direct link to Celestia. In truth, she is one of many discarded demigods who has the power to enforce her will. This place is one of magical aptitude full of mythological creatures and wonder. It is a utopia run by logic and level-headedness.

Within the enchanting realm of Munetsuchi, traditional Japanese buildings stand as architectural marvels, seamlessly blending with the natural surroundings. Elegant wooden structures adorned with intricate carvings and graceful curves reflect the refined craftsmanship of its builders. Delicate paper shoji screens invite soft rays of sunlight to filter through, casting a warm and soothing glow upon tatami-covered floors. Pagoda roofs with upturned corners reach towards the heavens, a symbol of spiritual connection and harmony. The air carries the faint echoes of laughter and conversation from bustling teahouses and merchant stalls, where the vibrant tapestry of daily life unfolds. Lanterns gently sway, illuminating narrow cobblestone streets lined with wooden storefronts, their facades displaying exquisite artwork and calligraphy. Munetsuchi's architectural tapestry weaves a story of tradition, history, and the timeless elegance of a bygone era.

[Bloodedge]

Broad daylight in the sky above Munetsuchi, there appeared to be three falling stars. Sadly, it was but the beautiful visual applied to three people descending from a hellish scene. Charlemagne of the Holy Templar Order of Aincrad had ended his wedding and coronation as Holy Emperor with quite a bang. Well... bang was one word for it. In truth, any 'bang' to be noted was the one which sent him rocketing out of the floating fortress alongside two of his comrades.

Astolfo, the pink-haired male in a skirt, would not be useful at all. He'd been drained almost dry by that damn succubus of an executioner, and hardly even knew where he was. In fact, he almost seemed to be enjoying the fall. He was trailing behind Charlemagne a bit. Obviously, he'd be no help... but perhaps Charlemagne was in luck. It seemed he'd soon be landing in a lake at terminal velocity. How lucky Charlemagne was that he'd be buried at sea without any effort.

[Apollymi]

Those falling stars would shine with quite a bit more vigor than normal. Among the three falling was a Elafia by the name of Anais. She'd not know this would happen. She'd been enjoying a rather emotional wedding and then suddenly the tides had changed. Charles was being called some sort of traitor against the Holy Father. The Holy Father had decided to take on his form and then suddenly, she Charles and Astolfo were falling due to the mechanizations of isabella Valentine. Strangely, Anais didn't think she was truly meant to be harmed in this endeavor, only included. After all, she was pretty certain if their comrade Ivy actually wanted her dead, she'd have been sliced to ribbons long before she'd gone tumbling out the side of Aincrad. Ah, yes but there was no time to consider this... they were falling. And while they were approaching a large body of water, they were still falling way too fast.

She pulled her hands together, almost as if in prayer, but she wasn't praying. She was creating and protecting small candle flames. And blowing them out into the air. One for herself, one for Charles and one for Astolfo. They came into being in the form of large white stags and though they couldn't naturally fly, their movements placed them beneath the falling group. They were solid enough to slow their descent, so that while they'd hit the water hard, it wouldn't end any of their lives. They wouldn't last a terribly long amount of time either, just long enough to drag them towards the nearest shore for their own safety. How strange it must have looked for three creatures of incandscent flames to descend beneath the surface of the water... only to emerge a short while later as if they were normal creatures grazing.

[Bloodedge]

Irrespective of how he felt, Charlemagne would not be dying just yet. Due to the intervention of Anais ensured that all three falling members of their group would have a slowed descent. Rather than being crushed on the surface and buried in the depths, Charlemagne was taking a dip from the back of a magical stag. Lovely. Or... could all things only be the opposite now? Charlemagne couldn't even be satisfied with the quick thinking of Anais; he was rather busy breaking apart at the seams... both figuratively and literally. By the time he was brought to shore, Charlemagne looked like some glitchy program. Various spasms across his body had individual parts fading in and out of reality, all in a very painful way.

Meanwhile, there was a slender male figure watching the skies since before those 'falling stars' even descended. He appeared to be a nobleman with shoulder-length, pale blue, asymmetrical hair. He had pale skin, light purple eyes and a small mole under the left corner of his mouth. His attire consisted of a white collared coat with long flowing sleeves, dark blue lapels, and gold trimmings decorated with a number of embellishments worn over a light purple kimono and white pants. He also had black and golden armor on his right shoulder, white and purple gauntlets on both arms, black gloves, and a large golden rope around his neck. Some peculiar-looking blue gemstone hung around his right hip by a thick, golden rope.

What was this man doing as he watched? Well, he was sitting at a small restaurant, turned in his stool to face away from the bar. His right elbow rested atop the counter while his right arm lay over his lap, that hand holding a large cup of bubble tea. This was about the time he expected a certain someone to be passing by this very restaurant, but he seemed to simply be out for lunch with a companion. "They say falling stars seen in broad daylight are a sign of something else. This one is funny. Those don't look much like real stars at all," he said somewhat cryptically.

[Apollymi]

The group at large was dredged out of the water after falling from a great height. Of course, the first to recover enough to do anything was Anais the least compromised of the group. Immediately after catching her breath and expelling a large amount of water, the white stag she rode dropped her at the edge of the tree line. She needed to conserve energy so when she could walk hers was the first to disappear. She'd go on to set up an active barrier for the group, including Charles who seemed to be suffering quite a bit. She looked over his body as small flames began to flicker about, and arranged the barrier in such a way as to stabilize his condition. "Stay with me, Charlie. It's going to be really difficult if you don't try and hold yourself together!" she explained. Of course, she was mostly uninjured and the strength of this particular version of her power, would also allow Astolfo to quickly regain himself. With another hand on deck, Anais could properly figure out if she as capable of treating Charles, but as she sat at his side, she was certain of one thing. She'd never seen an injury like the one which was plaguing him now. The hit from Ivy was one thing... but his shattered look was something else completely.

At the same time, at that little stall, there was another person. Well, person was a loose definition. She had fair skin, purple eyes, thigh-length muted pink hair, that was tied at the bottom. Also tucked into those strands were furry pink ears pointed downward, though pierced so they didn't hide. The overly ornate earrings she wore, were globe-like purple gems surrounded in gold with an almost eerie glow to them. She was wearing a stylized version of a shrine priestess's outfit with a short skirt that showed long legs tucked into a stool. She had on an ornate headpiece to go along with the rather notable ensemble. "Umu! A falling star whose light never dims, would make for a real-page turner... I find myself dreadfully curious~" came a statement almost flirtatious as a piece of fried tofu was passed between her lips. She'd looked over her own shoulder at the falling light, knowing exactly what it was.

Just the same passing this pair by was a different sort of person altogether. A girl with long purple haired tied up in a neat bun adorned by flowers. She wore a white kimono also decorated by the common fare of flowers. A young maiden with an obi of red and eyes which were a uniquely clear shade of blue. She walked with her face tucked behind a fan, but still, she couldn't help her newest habit of people watching and then... she was rather suddenly distracted by the falling stars. Those didn't feel like stars and they also didn't look like them. And then she'd heard the conversation between these two people at the food stall, she'd found herself paused nearby to hear out everything they had to say. Her own curiosity causing her to eavesdrop just a bit.

[Bloodedge]

Charlemagne was... probably dying. He had no knowledge of what dying felt like, but he assumed this was probably it. In the past 24 hours, he had his first several experiences feeling his own mana without consciously channeling it. Here and now though, he wished it was something impossible to feel. He was breaking apart on a spiritual level, and he could feel every single crack as it expanded. Anais came to offer healing and stability, but what was it all for? Ah, mostly his back which had been damaged when he was blasted through a fortified wall. That would have helped him physically, but he couldn't even feel it over everything else. "Ana..." Charlemagne groaned after she spoke to him. "This is trying," he finished. Whatever this occurrence was, it was not something Anais's ability would help him with. Astolfo was starting to regain some sense of self, but he wouldn't be very helpful to the situation either. . .

Ah, but help was in the works back at the city. Two people who were a bit eclectic even for this place were enjoying a conversation with much purpose. The fox-eared woman expressed her curiosity in an interesting tone. "Lady Guuji, curious? It sounds almost like you're about to have another weird and wonderful idea. I'm on board as always, of course," he said between sips of tea. Their conversation was surely being heard by a very specific individual... as it should have been. Those 'stars' were special; they required attention. Knowing the proper attention had been acquired, the blue-haired man stood. He'd be walking slowly, 'coincidentally' past that purple-haired girl while speaking. "Sometimes, what appears at first to be nothing but a passing breeze can ultimately be that which alters the course of events... Fufu~" By the time these words were spoken, he'd stopped right in front of the listener. He'd be looking straight at her, offering the very cup of bubble tea he'd been drinking from. There was... something special about that tea, whether anyone took note of it or not. For starters, it had a flavor profile that couldn't be found in this country ─ maybe in this world as of yet. Beyond that, it boasted the strange ability of regulating mana flow in the most interesting way. If that girl took and drank the tea, she'd find her mana streaming throughout her body like pure water, even offering a sense of coolness as a result. "You know... If you throw fallen flowers onto the stove, the searing heat infuses them with one final spark of vitality, and for a brief moment, they radiate a more glorious glow than the flames themselves... it was a short life they lived, but it was by no means a wasted one."