Day 5 - The Fae Queens

[jj jenkins d7. ✨ zozo.]

The endless night stretches on. A canon fires. And another. And another. And another. One face, two face, three face, four. They farewell you in the sky and vanish. Wounds sting, muscles ache, your stomachs grumble. Some tremble in the dark. This is not the same arena you entered, you know that for sure. Supplies dwindle and your bodies protest, craving proper sleep, a hot meal, antibiotics. Perhaps a soft duvet, the caress of a loved one back home. All you can think about is what you had, who you were with, and how all of it feels distant. 

You are lost.

At dawn, the pixies arrive dancing with the first rays of light. With them - promises of what you need. 

Come, they beckon. Come with us. 

So you do. Perhaps you are conscious in your decision, knowing precisely what it is you need and where to find it. Or perhaps you're not sure what it is that overcomes you - some sort of magic, a science unexplained. Or just pure desperation, your willpower long-gone. Whatever it is the Pixies lead you to, you are sure it is something you need. 

Through the morning you trek - away from familiar faces, through blight and forest, plants and moss, puddles and footprints in the dirt. And when you reach the Cornucopia portal, scattered with red flowers you're sure could only be a result of the blood you have spilled, you see lying around the mysterious archway three bags. Three children. One beautiful, terrifying queen.

Thorns sprout, trapping you and three others in here with her - nowhere to run now, no allies at your side to aid you. The pixies giggle with delight and flit away on sparkling wings. Your eyes lock with the other tributes - the bags - back to the tributes. There are four of you, but only three spoils to choose from. 

Pay your price, the queen demands. 

So you step forward.

☀️🍁❄️🌸

⇢ On DAY 5, all remaining tributes will be lured back to the Cornucopia by Folklore Pixies. There, they will be faced with one of the seasonal Fae Queens: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. To claim one of the three Queen's spoils (wrapped in unmarked, velvet bags) the tributes will need to kill one of the tributes in their four-person fight.

At the end of each round, each Fae Queen will attack all of the tributes in their fights (ooc, as per muttation rules) to encourage the sacrifice needed to claim her spoils. The Queens cannot be attacked.

Once a tribute has fallen, posting initiative order will determine the order in which a tribute can claim a bag. The first tribute may choose bag 1, 2, or 3. The second from the remaining, and the third whatever remains. The Queens will then fall back into the Cornucopia portal, leaving the tributes to their spoils.