World Tree MUSH

    A lone van passes along the dusty roads of a fairly no-name world of little import. It's just a little bit past 'medieval' in terms of the world's timeline, and the world itself is fairly mundane. The van, a grey 2003 Ford Windstar putters past horse drawn wagons at a perfectly legal speed as the driver, Morrigan Lor'osa mumbles to herself about 'sudden magical bullshit' and 'can't believe this place is so far out in the damn boonies', while Mary Contrary sits on her shoulder, displaying a hologram panel in front of Morrigan to act as a GPS.
    "So, yeah, this happened and no one saw it coming." She says to her passengers; "Apparently some no-name nation in the middle of nowhere on this planet in the middle of the sticks suddenly developed magic. Naturally this is making all their neighbors jealous ay-eff, and they want to know why. So yeah, I'm glad I'm not looking into this alone."
    Mary tugs gently on Morrigan's ear.
    "Sanctuary is nearby. Should I do the thing?"
    "Oh, Justina's around? Lovely, do the thing, Mary."
    Mary opens up a comm-line to Minerva in orbit and relays the basic situation aaaaaas...
    The van pulls into the nation of Veldora. This is where things start to get uh...
    Well the road is paved now. And everything seems more verdant and lush as the van drives through farmlands BRIMMING with life and crops. But Morrigan keeps driving. It's about another two hours before the van pulls into a densely populated city, and from the looks of things, in a short span of time the city has been build up. Stone and brick houses line the neatly lined streets and avenues, and even in the poorest, slummiest, parts of the city, people are ALL dressed in finery and opulent regalia as the party drives past a sign.
    'Welcome to Enrisi: City of Dreams'
    "... Subtle." Morrigan grumps as the car pulls to a stop in a town square.
    "Alright crew! Info gathering time! Do your best and make us proud, go go Special Team Magic Investigation Force~."
    Morrigan swings open the driver door and steps out of the car.

    Dante is relaxing in one of the seats as he checks Ebony and Ivory. His sword Rebellion is resting in the back of the van.

    Listening to Morrigan, he bobs his head. "Kinda weird. I didn't expect a paved highway, much less cars and stuff." He says, as they pull into the city. It's weirdly modern, all things considered. "Did some guy get zapped here ages ago and bring a bunch of modern shit with him?"

    When bid, Dante hops out of the van with his guns and sword holstered and slung to his back, coat trailing behind him. "It just me or do these folks seem a bit uh...fancy?" He wonders. "Like, dressed way too well for the slummy part of town."

"I will never get used to this," Neviah murmurs as the van trundles down dusty roads that seem hardly to accommodate such a thing. The gap between technological eras - a van of the early 2000s, a world of a far earlier age - seems as though it should catch the professor squarely between the two. It doesn't - the car just feels like an odd throw-in.

Then again, most things are odd throw-ins in her line of work. The entire World Tree is an odd throw-in that has consumed her academic life. And this is no different.

"That implies an outside incursion," the professor muses from the middle seats, where she's got a notebook open in her lap and is leafing through it, glasses pushed up to let her squint through. "Magic does not simply appear spontaneously - not without a cause. If it has never been known around here before...."

The bumping and jolting pass. The road is paved now. Neviah takes notes the whole way along, hand surprisingly steady despite the transit of the vehicle. She's taken notes on much bumpier rides - horses and carriages will do that, after all.

She gives the sign a look, squinting, before exhaling and hopping down from the vehicle. Tucking her notepad away, she takes a moment and assesses the area.

Her first stop: Whatever passes for a higher-end cafe or inn in these parts. She'll politely order a tea, smiling gently as she does and just casually settling in among the customers.

Only after placing an order will she banter: "Is Enrisi always this lovely? I've visited many cities before, but I am rather new here. It's quite remarkable."

    What a long, strange trip to get to this land of wonders and magic! They drive, and they drive, and they drive...

    ...And when they get there, a somewhat familiar face is already there, dressed in what may be the single most garish outfit any of them have ever seen, a brilliantly colored hoodie and skirt with equally obnoxious high socks. She doesn't have a hat, but that's just going to make her pointed ears stand out all the more, especially if most of the natives are humans.

    She's currently taking a nap on a park bench, but it's not like they won't notice her and can't kick her into helping. Maybe with a promise of a ride back instead of having to try and find a vine or something of that sort.

    For once, the head of the Shuzenji clan is not riding in the Windstar. No, this is official business on the order of the Emperor of Arashi-no-Moto, and nothing less than a proper vehicle will do. So Matsu, and no fewer than two of her attendants, have arrived in a proper carriage. It is, in fact, not far across the town square from where Morrigan stops, and Matsu is just disembarking herself when Morrigan does. The tiny miko strides across the square at a brisk pace the moment she spots that familiar vehicle; for once, there is a noblewoman's fan in her hand, ornate and bejeweld, but she keeps it shut and gives a very un-noble greeting when she comes in earshot.

    "Hey."

    One of the attendants looks a little taken aback by this lack of decorum, but the other one mantains a perfect poker face.

    Neviah gets a nod of greeting from the white-haired girl, and the Son of Sparda a more familiar, "Dante." Then she says simply to Morrigan, "Do you have any suggestions? I think my attendants will at least be more comfortable here than normal, but I'd appreciate clues on where to start."

    Four days prior.

    "Captain, I'm getting some odd reports from one of the less-traveled Branchs." reports Minerva. Justina shifts in her seat, hooking legs over one armrest and leaning to look at the screen Minerva's using for her 'face' at the moment. "... set a course, we'll observe from a distance."

    Now.

    "Captain, I'm receiving a call from Mary Contrary, shall I have a Doll deployed?" The half-elf stands from the captains chair. "Yes... tell Mary to expect us. Prep Peregrin for deployment... it's been a while since they've seen any action." She turns, and strides over to the rig that allows her to use the metal golems.

    On the surface, as Morrigan's van pulls up and parks, perfectly legally, a flicker of blue-white heralds a spell seal weaving into existence. It expands out and then rises from the ground, leaving a slender and spindly Doll standing in its place. After a moment its optics light up a dull orange, it runs off a rapid sequence in elvish that is basically 'I am starting up, please wait.', before the optics shift blue-white and Justina's voice comes from the speaker mounted at the bottom of the 'face' where the mouth would be on an organic. "I am not... really... a people-person. I will attempt to use the sensors on this frame to measure local magical energies." she states, before proceeding to do so.

    "They sure do seem very fancy." Morrigan mutters to Dante as she locks her car up. "You'd think the edge of town would be the poorest part and yet..."
    And yet people are walking tiny dogs, pushing babies along in carriages, and everyone is dressed like they have gold to spare.
    "Godspeed, Neviah." Morrigan says as the Scholar goes off into the nearby inn and tavern. As she orders her tea, she's rewarded with a fragrant herbal blend and a kind smile from the innkeep.
    "Ah, it's only just been in the last year that the city really boomed." He says; "Our queen has wanted to expand a bit, and the new projects to build up the cities have been going so well. Even small businesses like mine have been given a fair amount to work with and grow, and the neighborhood has gotten so much better..."
    And there's Matsu.
    "Matsu! Yo!" Morrigan greets back about as refined and noble as a trout, while Mary at least does a curtsey from where she stands on the Warlock's shoulder.
    "I'd say the inns and taverns are a good start, but it looks like my associate beat us to it. "Next bet would be if we can find any local adventurer's guilds or religious establishments I'd say."
    This is about when Justina beams down.
    There's a brief commotion and her Doll gets some stares for a moment before... People actually move on with their daily lives as though this was not too huge of a surprise.
    "Oh PERFECT, Justina, it's great to see you, your skillset is just what we need...ed..." Morrigan trails off as she peers around the Doll to see Magilou sleeping on a bench.
    "Mary, do the thing."
    Mary proceeds to flit off Morrigan's shoulder, land on the bench, and poke Magilou on the cheek.
    "Hey. Hey. Heyyyyy. My Master says if you help us she'll give you a ride."

    This is when EVERYONE will probably notice the wagon that comes rolling down the street. The wheel is absolutely busted, so the driver has it floating on a magical green floating disk.
    Thing is the driver, is dressed like a farm bumpkin compared to everyone else in the city as he floats his wagon of produce and fresh greens into town.

    Magilou will bat a hand at the prodding at her cheek, but it will get her to sit up. Her hair seems remarkably resilliant, at least, not in awful shape for someone who was sitting outside. "Wha.." She'll start, before taking in the sight of people not from here.

    "Oh, you decided you'd come all the way out here for the aid of Magilou? An excellent choice, of course, no better witches exist anywhere in the Tree! ...What do you need help with, exactly? And I better get lunch and a ride."

    She'll hop to her feet, at least, glancing over at the driver, humming. "...Kind of a lame and boring job for someone who can do magic like that, huh?"

    Dante grins and waves at Matsu, "What's up?" He greets the priestess. "it's been a minute, how've you been, Matsu?" He has...honesty no idea who Magilou and Neviah are, but whatever. Not important, he'll handle that later.

    The driver of the wagon gets Dante's attention, as he wanders on over. "Fresh produce, bud? You from the farmland?"

    Justina stands inert, much like a statue as the optics on the robot flicker through various shades, emitting a few electronic 'grinding' sounds. Right up until the wagon comes floating in on a green disk. The robot's head snaps to looking at it, eyes flickering rapidly as they scan the spell lattice. "Facinating, a local version of Tennhauser's Transport Platform." she muses, glancing to Morrigan. "Tenser's Floating Disk to you, I suppose. The source of the magic is eluding my scans however. Something seems to be masking the origin." she adds then resumes scanning the spell as Dante talks to the driver.

Neviah makes sure to give Matsu a nod in passing before descending into her usual patterns of investigation. This is not the first time she's done this sort of thing.

Ever one to appreciate a cup of tea, Neviah - dressed classily enough that she actually blends in, to a degree - sips her drink as she listens to the innkeeper's conversation. "Interesting," she remarks with a flick of her hair and a gentle smile. "It sounds like something must have changed for the better, didn't it? That's remarkable."

Perched within sight of the window, she gets a view of the wagon rolling in. The scholar tilts her head and blinks quickly.

"Well, that's interesting," she muses, eyebrows rising as she looks back to the innkeeper.

"I've never seen someone do that to a wagon before."

It's a lie, of course - Neviah's seen magic in action a lot. It's simply an invitation. Explain the neat thing to the silly tourist.

    "Busy," is Matsu's reply to Dante. "I have ceremonial roles among the Shuzenji for certain clan festivals, apparently."

    What Morrigan says, however, gets the young healer thinking. "Religious may not be the best choice for me. Adventurer's Guild..." Matsu taps her chin with her fan. Tap, tap. "...They'd never buy me for an adventurer. I'll have to pose as a client." Somewhat ironic, given her solid healing ability. "Mei. Sakura. We're going to the adventuer's guild. We'll pose as being out-of-towners looking to hire. I don't have an idea what for, so..." The older of the two smiles a coy sort of smile. "We'll be evasive while plying them for information, Lady Shuzenji~. That will give you ample time both to listen, and conceive of a cover story." Matsu nods once, then turns and... pauses.

    "...which way is the adventurer's guild?"

    "It may be lame and boring, but when your wagon wheel breaks on the road to town, it gets the job done." The farmer replies to Magilou with a chuckle as he slows his cart to a stop. "Yessir." That's to Dante as he props his hands on his knees. "Just stopping into town to sell this harvest here. Things have been good since the new golems irrigated my lands for me."
    Wait golems?
    "I see you've all got yourselves a fancy model too." He says nodding in Justina's direction.
    "Huh." Morrigan muses rubbing her chin. "So that is Tenser's Floating Disk, but even a spell like that requires at least a while to learn and a few minutes of prep time to cast." The warlock considers.
    Meanwhile back at the inn... The inkeeper peers out the window.
    "Ah, looks like Jacob's wheel went out again. He really should get himself a new wagon instead of rely on that spell so much. I know he makes the money. That's a pretty simple spell though, very handy if you have a lot to carry and don't need to get anywhere in a hurry."
    Morrigan however looks to Mary for an answer. Mary pulls up a map and shows it to Matsu.
    Matsu and her attendants shouldn't have too much difficulty with the neatly laid out streets to find the guild a few blocks away and... The place looks um.
    Well it's probably the only building that's looking run down and on harder times here. The attendant at the desk nearly jolts out of her seat at the sight of someone walking in.
    "U-um! Hello! Welcome to the Adventurer's Guild. Ah... Most of our adventurers kind of quit, but I'm sure I can find someone to help you. Maybe?"

"Well, that's interesting," Neviah remarks with a blink as she watches the magic wagon go by. The curiosity in her face isn't the least bit feigned.

She looks back and picks up her tea, taking a sip and keeping her movements and attitude carefully controlled but unfailingly polite. "I didn't realize magic was so widespread here," she muses to the innkeeper with a pensive smile. "Is that usual? Perhaps I'm just unused to it - where I come from, magical abilities are really quite rare."

Her expression widens to a smile. "You must be most fortunate, to have so many who know how to use magic."

    As they approach the desk, Matsu flips her fan open, and brings it up, a practiced gesture to cover the lower half of her face. Entirely a necessary skill in the Imperial Court, and one that will serve her well here. The elder of the two attendants tilts her head slightly at the attendant, then looks to Matsu as if taking a cue; red eyes meet brown, and the young miko nods as if giving assent. And then the woman turns back around to the receptionist and smiles. "My deepest apologies for startling you, miss. We are here on behalf of Clan Shuzenji, an off-world nation. We had thought to hire adventurers from such a prestigious city, but pray tell, what has driven them off?"

    Magilou will make a show of giving a closer examination to the spell and to the cart, hmming to herself. "You run into any trouble with the golems? Did they run berserk and kill anyone yet, or just do your irrigation?"

    Yet's doing a lot there, as Magilou bends under the wagon to take a look, then straightens. She's also going to try and palm an onion from the cart, sneaking it up her sleeve if she can manage, just in case Morrigan doesn't actually buy her lunch.

    "Did you cast this spell by yourself, or was there someone or something that helped you, anyway? It seems like good work."

    Dante bobs his head in a nod, "Yeah, I can kinda do it too." He demonstrates by jumping into the air, and then SPROINK! A glyph causes him to bounce off it in a double-jump! Landing on the ground with grace, Dante does a 'tadah!' before grinning at the farmer. "This place is pretty boughie, don't you think? I don't think I've seen a single person who wasn't dressed for the opera since we got here. What's up with that?"

    "I am no golem, sir. This is a proxy vessel for my soul to inhabit." explains Justina. "While similar in basic properties, this body does not have much in the way of autonomous action, nor a soul-stone of its own." Justina then returns to scanning... she really isn't into the whole 'talking to people' thing, outside of correcting them when they misunderstand something about her tech.

    Hopping off his cart, the farmer beams rather broadly, looking pretty smug.
    "Ayup. Cast it myself. Said the words, did the ritual and errything." He seems proud of himself as he replies to Magilou, not noticing an onion going missing, before cocking a brow at Dante's display and whistling. "Son I'm alright at the magical arts, but that's just fancy." As for the clothes though he rubs his chin. "Well when everyone's well to do... I mean even I have a set of 'nice clothes' back at the farm.
    But then Justina corrects him.
    "--buh. Well sorry ma'am. I thought you were one of the fancy new models." Pause. "And no, the golems haven't gone berserk." That's to Magilou again.
    For the record, Morrigan never said she'd by Magilou lunch.
    Neviah however gets a nod from the innkeeper.
    "It's pretty normal. Everyone around these parts can do at least a little magic since the new state religion kicked in."
    Meanwhile back at the Adventurer's Guild, the guild girl, a young lady in her mid-twenties bites her lip. What drove off most of the adventurers?
    "L... Lack of work mostly. But if you have a job for us I can check the roster to see who's still available. What kind of job did you have in mind? Most people can exterminate most pest monsters on their own without us now though, and we haven't had anything much bigger than that in a long time with how... Prosperous the nation is. --I mean it's a good thing for the people, just not so much for adventuring types."

    "Don't be hard on yourself, my dude. My mom was a witch, but I think my brother inherited the knack for the mystical." Dante says with a modest chuckle. "The economy must be busted 'round here." He scratches his head. "You notice anybody ever have to spend smarter? Not splurge on anything?" He asks. "How ARE your prices for produce anyways?"

Neviah sips her tea, figuring she's got an interesting thread of exploration going here. Especially as the innkeeper drops a hint --

"A new religion?" she asks with a curious cant of her head and a pensive smile. "I hadn't heard about that. What's it like?"

There is, behind the simple outward curiosity, a flutter. A small stirring of hope. Neviah, a cleric by training, can scarcely use her own magic - a weakness ingrained by a lack of known gods from the fractured remnants of her world of origin. If this magic does originate from her world, then--

    Magilou decided that Morrigan owes her lunch however, so she's going to hound her over it later.

    "Oh, that's good, then. It's always so annoying when the toys run rampant, yes? But when did you learn how to do this kind of ritual? Is it.. like, a form of worship, or does a familiar help you, or do you have to offer any kind of sacrifice..?" She's coming to her own conclusions about the sorts of things they should look into, dusting her hands off for the moment. Nothing up her sleeve at all; the bulge of the onion doesn't really show.

    She starts to tap at her foot, trying to divine the type of magic that the farmer's used from the disk whether or not he'll elaborate to her, though she'd probably be better off just asking for a demonstration.

    "Lack of work," the woman repeats, frowning thoughtfully. "No greater tasks to keep the experienced blades working, and no lesser tasks on which to raise more... goodness, that is dire." It is here that the younger of the attendants speaks up; playing up her relative (apparent) lack of experience to ask a more forthright question. "Whatever could have caused such a change? The fighting strength of a novice sellsword is not typically in reach of an entire populace, even an advanced one." Matsu's red eyes dart to her, then back to the receptionist again, quietly watching the woman's reactions. Of course, her knack for body language and discerning what is being 'talked around' alongside what is talked about, pales next to that of her attendants. But she can watch and listen.

    Without a word, but plenty of metallic clanking from metal feet hitting paving, Justina turns and starts to follow something, eyes locked to the ground and walking along to a street lamp, then crossing the road. Apparently she's tracing out subterranean power lines, or something.

    "Well I think my prices are pretty fair." The farmer muses, motioning for his wagon which has a price list painted on it. His prices are a little high but still 'modest'. But his harvest is so bountiful that he has a LOT to sell and will probably go home today making a killing.
    "Nope, no sacrifice, and I learned it the same way everyone else did, I swore allegiance to the new church and I could just do it."
    That sounds... Odd. Especially as in the inn Neviah gets a little more info from the innkeep.
    "Mmmmhm. Ever since this star fell from the sky it's brought anyone who worshipped it really good fortune. The Church of the Fallen Star sprouted up pretty quickly after that."
    Funny thing about that as Justina follows what she's following.
    She'll wind up right outside a church looking building which seems to be the origin of it all, like a power plant supplying magical energy to the surrounding neighborhood.
    And at the Adventurer's Guild, the guild girl sighs. It is a weary, beleagured, sigh that says she has no reason to be disonest, she's so weary.
    "The new church gave everyone the power to handle their own problems, I guess..."

A fallen star did all this?

Through the brief flash of hope, Neviah tries to cross-reference what she's hearing with what her notes have to say. There's so little known about the faiths and magicks of what's left of her world that drawing on that knowledge base is futile. Internally, she finds herself pulling out mostly blanks.

She drains her tea and closes her eyes a moment, then lowers the cup with a gentle smile as her eyes open again. "...This was very refreshing," she thanks the innkeep. "Thank you so much."

A mystery. A mystery she'll need to spend more time here to figure out.

    Dante looks at the prices. That much for a watermelon? Jesus Christ, might as well charge a literal arm. "New church, huh?" Dante perks up at the farmer. "Any idea where it's at?"

    "Aah, yes. I'm sure that this is a completely fine thing to be worshipping." Magilou will say, distaste clear on her face, a breath escaping from her as she does. But she's not going to get into that too much. "I guess I'd be interested in seeing where this church is, too." So that she can think about burning it down, mostly, but it's still a good thing to gather more information before she just assumes the church is probably committing some kind of horrible acts.

    The new church.

    Of course, the place most likely to take issue with Matsu's very existence, for multiple reasons, is going to be the one they have to investigate. Behind the fan, the young Shuzenji head frowns softly. But by the time she folds that fan up, the frown is gone, her face neutral. "Sakura. Mei. We must investigate further before We settle upon those We shall hire." The elder bows her head politely, giving a smart and instant, "As you wish, my lady." She then turns back to the guild girl and offers a more apologetic smile. "Forgive me, but it appears my lady wishes to investigate all options. It is possible we may return, but I can make you no promises."

    "A church... as a Primus Nexus?" she muses after arriving at the doors. "This bears further investigation, I should inform the others." She marks the location for Minerva to add to local area tracking, and turns back around to retrace her steps and rejoin Morrigan and the others who didn't go off on their own thing.

    On arrival she makes sure only her companions can hear her, if she must gather them close she will do so, and relates what she found.