redacted ★ party at the haunted m*nsion

[infreefall]

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[infreefall]

[ you can't come to a haunted manor and not be appropriately dressed.

anyway ochako stops long enough to wave up at rabbit and mob before bouncing away to explore the first floor. when you're locked in an attic for the entire mini-event you miss your chance to properly explore, okay. and this is so cool. a real haunted mansion!! ]

I'd say we should tell ghost stories, but we kind of lived one last night, huh?

[dianxias]

I think ghost stories sound fun! Perhaps the ghosts that were here yesterday are still lurking about, curious as to what we might tell them.

[ unfortunately for us all xie lian is in his halloween costume also! ] Ghosts do always tend to be the nosy sort!

[infreefall]

[ she sees xie lian and just. stares at him for like a solid minute. this is. so funny.

but she also has a very serious question for him: ]

Do you arm wrestle?

[dianxias]

[ ... ]

Ah? Well, has it changed any, since I was younger...? [ he puts his elbow on the closest flat surface and wiggles his fingers. ] It's been a long time, but perhaps there was someone...

[infreefall]

[ ochako does an excited little hop and heads right over, setting her elbow on the side opposite of xie lian. ]

On three?

[ she will lose instantly. ]

[dianxias]

[ oh no. ]

...Are you sure? [ but he holds out his hand for her anyway.... ]

[infreefall]

Yeah! My shoulder's pretty much healed, and this is my other arm anyway, so it'll be fine.

[ she's so excited. why is she so excited. ]

One... Two... Three!

[ ochako is probably stronger than the average girl her size but she is, still, just a teenager and not a martial god. ]

[dianxias]

[ she's so... she's so excited, xie lian can't deny her. he is also instantly fond, because ochako is a heroine who takes right after her new weird god grandpa. kids these days are so energetic.

.... also he'a martial nut, too, so! of course he's gonna arm wrestle her. he grins.

and, as she counts...xie lian puts about... maybe 20% of his strength into it. she can feel the strength of her arm, which is impressive, but - yeah it takes him like two seconds to smack her arm down. ]

Ah. [ oops. ]

[infreefall]

[ and she's down! ]

Awwww, I didn't even stand a chance! [ she knew this and did it anyway. ] But I'll keep training until I can beat you someday, Xie Lian-san!

[dianxias]

[ xie lian beams and claps his hands together, clearly delighted by this answer! ]

Yes - that's the spirit! I look forward to that day very much, Miss Ochako! You're quite strong for your age, so I'm sure it won't be long at all!

[ xl you are a martial god. ]

[infreefall]

Well, I still have a long way to go. But one of these days, you'd better watch out!

[riegan]

(Look, she did good,)

Maybe we could do some training together.

(You know. That upper body strength that comes from practicing archery and all.)

[riegan]

(Golf claps.

Is he surprised? No. The way he sees it, Xie Lian is just older and definitely a lot stronger than one would expect and Ochako is, well, just a teen so!! It was pretty clear who would win to him.)

[supremity]

[ Hua Cheng is vibing, wearing his salvaged costume - it's a little dirty still, and has a set of claw marks and various tears in it that actually sort of... lend to the aesthetic? There are bandages visible underneath, but still, San Lang sexy. He's lounging on one of the, like, broken lounges.

Ignoring the bubbles. ]

I could certainly tell my fair share of authentic ghost stories. [ hums ]

[infreefall]

Authentic how? What happened yesterday, you mean?

[ me realizing that ochako still has no idea what hc or xl are, ]

[supremity]

[ Xie Lian, that's fair. He's not going out of his way to tell people that. Hua Cheng?

He laughs a little, lolling his head. ]

Ah, no. I'm a ghost - just a little more alive while here in the Realm.

[infreefall]

[ she blinks in surprise and just

leans over to poke him? as if to confirm this? ]

So how's that work with you two?

[supremity]

Hm? Gege is alive. [ Placidly allowing her to poke, it's mostly obvious where he was injured yesterday, considering. ] I'm a high-ranking ghost, so I do have a physical form, rather than something see-through - is that what you mean?

[infreefall]

How can a ghost have a physical form? [ poke poke. ] Isn't that, like, cheating?

[supremity]

I earned it. [ vibes with the pokes ] Some spirits are able to manifest a physical form through other means - age, sometimes, but there's any number of ways available to us - but every few hundred years, thousands upon thousands of ghosts gather to fight one another for the right to become the strongest kind of ghost.

[infreefall]

[ ochako stops poking. her voice lowers to a grave whisper. ]

Ghost tournament?

[supremity]

[ Hua Cheng glances over the top of her head at Xie Lian, clearly amused, before he sits up properly. Somewhere in the background, his ill-behaved spinosaurus claws something up.

He ignores it. Leans in closer to Ochako, dark eye twinkling. ]

Within Mt. Tonglu lies a volcano that's been active for hundreds, if not thousands of years - the Kiln, as it came to be known. A long-empty city sits in the shadow of its peak, having been laid to waste by the volcano itself, nothing but ashes and the lingering resentment of its citizens.

Every few hundred years, every ghost - every ghoul, spirit, demon, monster - will feel the Kiln opening up, coming alive again. Like the Realm, it's a place of power, made that way by the torment that the volcano created, with every ill intent every malevolent spirit may possess. They are drawn there in droves, and few are able to resist its pull.

1/3

[dianxias]

[ xie lian nods along with this from behind hua cheng, where he's trying to entertain his spinosaurus. ]

Mm, mm! That's right. And when it starts, a great ripple echoes through the famed Ghost City, where ghosts reside... and they begin to howl and wail, becoming overcome with the desire to ...


To....

2/3

[dianxias]

[






xie lian suddenly seems to remember something. ]

[dianxias]

[ smoothly clears his throat ]

--To, erm, fight uncontrollably, and tear each other apart!