Alixandra "Ali" Greenwood [Resurgence LARP] : "Dear Nat..." #4

Dear Nat,

You do not know how relieved I was to receive your letter. I'm glad to hear you are faring well, though I was somewhat sad to hear you have begun to drink again.

"How Characters Were Germinated" : Lunetta [Part Two]

Since posting up my original "How Characters Were Germinated" post, I have had several people ask me "So...if you were in a nation you didn't want to play, why didn't you change nation?" and I thought - while I have explained this to some people in person, I might as well follow it up properly in writing.

Anyone who has read Lunetta's earlier pieces will know that in my first Empire game, Matthias and Reynard (played by my then-partner and a mutual friend) died in battle. To be completely honest, once I as a new LARPer had come to terms with my IC (and OC) support network being pulled from under my feet, I probably should have changed nation. I didn't, due to a number of different things.

Alixandra "Ali" Greenwood [Resurgence LARP] : "Welcome Visitors?"

[Josée's Note: Hello! It's been a little while since I wrote anything from Ali's direction, and I thought I should change that. While her journeys last game were relatively uneventful (defending a tree; I simplify a bit but all in all that roughly covers the main goal) she did receive a letter from Nat (yay!!) in downtime. So I thought a piece about how that letter came to her would be quite good fun to write...and would introduce those not familiar with Resurgence to some of the finest NPCs the game has to offer...the hyperactive, hypertrading Imps. Also, yay for Doctor Who coming out at the weekend, as it gave me the the perfect metaphor!]
[Warning: Bad Language!]

Welcome Visitors?

Ali sat at the bar in one of the nightclubs (she was a doorwoman often given work orders for them) down Prince of Wales Road, one of the most notorious streets in Norwich for drunk and disorderly behaviour and scuffles, due to the sheer volume of nightclubs and strip clubs down its length. In recent weeks, due to the students at the University being on their summer holidays, the street had been relatively quiet, with only minor incidents; thankfully nothing tabloidworthy for once. This Saturday night...sorry, early Sunday morning, had been peaceful, for the main part. She'd had to manoeuvre a group of women, out for their mate's Hen night, out of the club in the very early hours due to a brawl over one of them shacking up with another's husband ("Alcohol, heh heh heh..." one of the less intoxicated members of the party had tittered nervously at her as she had escorted them out, "...it's funny the stories that come out...") but aside from that, all had been quiet.

Lunetta Sanguineo [Empire LARP] : "The Road to Holberg"

[Josée's Note: Big, big, big, big, big thanks to Will, Cerwynn's player for sitting with me on Google Docs and Skype to get this written in a single evening. (All the love!!) After 5.5 hours of work, I present to you, part of Lunetta's journey to Holberg.]

The Road to Holberg

The forest was dense, trees behind trees behind trees, each making its strange little noises. There was nowhere in the empire quiet like this place. It seemed like silence after a while, all those sounds merging into a quite  cacophony. Cerwynn stared out over the wooden walls of the Broch’s battlements, rubbing his temple. A hand reached down to the flask at his hip and hesitated there.

No, they need you.

With a sigh, he withdrew his hand and pulled his cloak over the flask, and turned back to the training grounds below him. Lynn was drilling the troop again, pairing them off to spar. She circled the grounds watching them clash. When one would relax his guard she would wordlessly intercede, raising his arm to the correct position and closing his grip more firmly, without so much as making eye contact. They were still a little intimidated by her, as fresh a bunch of soldier as their were, their thorn still red and raw, freshly branded on their cheeks, but Cerwynn knew he had made the right choice, she was the one of the few who were properly trained, and the only one who could keep them in line.

Alixandra "Ali" Greenwood [Resurgence LARP] : "Dear Nat..." #3

[Josée's Note: Okay, shipping Ali and Nat is apparently a thing. And has henceforth gained the name "Natalie" (Nat/Ali) which makes me laugh far more than it should!

Also, you should know your character is feeling low when the music you use for your muse are titled "Surely Someday" and "The Hanging Tree"! (Go check them out; Adrisaurus on YouTube!)]

Letter Date: 17/08/2014

Dear Nat,

I retract what I said about the new recruit. She's nothing like you. She seems only to exist to goad me over the choices I made last time we travelled together.

I wasn't going to put in writing the choice I made for the "honour" of joining the Paladins. I didn't feel strong enough to actually write out, in black and white, what I had done.

Lunetta Sanguineo [Empire LARP] : "A Somewhat Expected Journey"

[Josée's Note: I have had so many in-character letters flying around since I came back from Empire. I believe I personally have sent out thirteen or fourteen already, with at least three more to send over the next few weeks as replies come in! Because of Nora's reply, the next chapter of Lunetta's journey can be written: Oh yes, she's off to Holberg.]

A Somewhat Expected Journey

Lunetta stood in her bedroom, a large knapsack sat, half filled, on the bed. Giorgio sat behind her frowning.

"Priestess, you've repacked this bag twelve times in the last three days." He sighed. "Is it really necessary to repack it once more?"

"How Characters Were Germinated" : Lunetta [AKA "How Josée Became a LARPer"]

Unusual blog post, this one, as I have to thank a friend of mine for the idea. (And for the quote I have stolen for the title of this post!) On facebook, I saw a post (I hope she won't mind me partially quoting it!):

This is a behind-the-scenes question I always love asking fellow larpers, so: if it doesn't give secrets and spoilers away, who were your mythical, pop cultural, and trope-y starting points when you built your Empire characters? Somewhere I have a stickynote on my computer which I add to occasionally. It has people and quotes which were or later became inspiration points for my character.

I thought this was a really interesting post, but actually I couldn't add anything of worth to it. So I thought I would write a little on how Lunetta came to be, and if people seem interested, I might write a little bit about some of the other characters I have, and what brought them about.

Lunetta Sanguineo [Empire LARP] : "Unintended Admissions"

[Josée's Note: Another Lunetta piece, at long last! Last game (E7), Lunetta found out that Nora (Othneil's love interest and friend of hers) had lost seven members of her group in battle, a year to the day she lost Matthias and Reynard. She had written letters to Nora, and to Felix (who was caring for a Carta member in Tassato who was also grieving the loss of friends in battle) asking Nora to join her in Sarvos, and telling Felix that if Nora did not...she would be heading out to Holberg...where Nora was, and where the battle that fell all these people took place.]

"Unintended Admissions"

Lunetta’s eyes slowly opened, and she stifled a yawn. She smiled softly and rolled over. “Good morni…” her quiet voice trailed off as she saw the duvet still tucked neatly under the mattress. Her smile dropped and she half-heartedly chuckled. She had started to realise how accustomed she had grown to Felix’s presence around the Chapel, and momentary lapses of concentration such as the one she had just experienced made her stomach drop and her heart ache. She had received letters from him while on his journey, and each had lain under her pillow before the next arrived. It was childish, she knew, but it did help somewhat, for some reason. She pulled the duvet off, and sat herself up on the edge of the bed, pulling his most recent letter from beneath the pillow. This one…had been probably the most mature letter she had ever received from him. 

Alixandra "Ali" Greenwood [Resurgence LARP] : "A Change of Purpose"

[Josée's Note: Okay...last Resurgence went...interestingly. Ali had to face a lot of suspicion and distrust in the group following her decision to join the Paladins, and also the vitriol of Mia who was with her when she undertook the "Test of Mettle". By the end of the mission, she had walked off, ahead of everyone else and left them to figure out the stuff they couldn't share with her, without her. This scene occurs that evening.

Song List:

Wanderer’s Song – Adriana Figueroa (YT: Adrisaurus) [This is definitely the more positive side of Ali showing through; the focus on proving she’s more than what she seems to be.]

The Hanging Tree – Adriana Figueroa (YT: Adrisaurus) [The not-so-positive side of Ali, where all she can see is the darkness ahead…and those she cares about joining her in “The Hanging Tree”]

I’m Just Your Problem – Adriana Figueroa (YT: Adrisaurus) [May have given me the words to put to Ali’s thoughts towards the end XD]

A Change of Purpose

Ali turned to look at the clock on the bedside table. 3:17am she thought. Wonderful. It’s not as if I wanted to sleep, anyway. She tutted, sourly. Pushing herself up, she leant against the headboard. Sleep had not been as easy as she had hoped. It was almost as if her subconscious was aware that sleep was becoming her escape; her respite, rather than just something necessary for survival. She closed her eyes and sighed. Mere weeks ago she had been certain of the path she had chosen to walk. She had gone searching for the Paladins, with the aim of proving herself, and she had done so. It was not a random course of action. It was something she had sought out and actively tried to achieve.

Alixandra "Ali" Greenwood [Resurgence LARP] : "Dear Nat..." #2

Letter Date: 03/08/2014

Dear Nat,

I hope my first letter reached you safely. Are you well?

I write mainly to update you on the last week in Norwich, but...if I'm honest...I'm not quite sure where to begin.

I suppose my biggest news is that I finally took the Paladins' "Test of Mettle". And I've "proven" myself to them. And...I have decided to join them. Before you worry about what this will mean on your return, I did ask about the situation I will be in when you get back. The Paladin who accepted me told me he would "trust my judgement". So celebratory "welcome home" drinks on your return should still be fine!

A new recruit joined me for the trials. She reminded me of you a bit; she let her vices get the best of her too, and the NDF caught her and picked her out of it all. She's more irritating than you, though. She also has a fixation on food - and I am positive she was flirting with one of the Paladins!

There's a lot more to say...but I'm not sure I'm strong brave willing enough at the moment to go through all of that again in writing, yet. Definitely a "pub and enough drinks to black out" story, I think.

Please take care. Things are only getting harder back here in Norwich.

Ali.