Event Log: May, An Inauspicious Arrival

[faileas]

Event Log: May, An Inauspicious Arrival

I. Boaltinn (1st - 3rd) Boaltinn comes around again. A handful of Mirrorbound will remember the holiday from last year, but for others, it will be brand new. In both Residential Districts, bonfires burn in central locations through the night, frequented by the residents celebrating another summer come to Aefenglom. Curiously, while last year the bonfires seemed quite segregated by human or Monster, this year, there is more of a noticeable mix at each, and Mirrorbound are invited to join the games and festivities quite happily. Characters are invited to try and jump through the bonfire's flames to burn away any poor relationship experiences, be it romantic or platonic, past or present; to aid them in this, those at the Eastern Bonfire will give those participating rune-etched accessories to protect them from the fire. The city has quite a bit to offer for this holiday: shared rose baths at public bathhouses and pleasure establishments that increase feelings of friendliness and talkativeness, poles draped in ribbons meant to be danced around, wrapping a ribbon around the pole to bring good luck for the summer, food stalls whose offerings are meant to be shared, and fortune-telling set up by Divination students of the Coven, who can tell your day is going to go. To see last year's Boaltinn prompts, you can take a glance right here! Much of it, including the bonfires, baths, and entertainments will be similar this year, so feel free to use those in your top levels.

II. An Unusual Arrival (3rd on) A full year from the arrival of the first group of Mirrorbound, the 1st passes quietly, with no one showing up in the mirror-lined halls of the Looking-Glass House. Dates and times are important in most kinds of magic, and this is strange enough that some Witches of the Coven get together on the night of the 3rd to try a probing ritual, attempting to gather some kind of clues that could be useful in prying out the cottage's secrets. Boaltinn is the best time for such things, when the boundaries are thinner, and magic is stronger. Those who are awake that night at 3 am might notice a pulse of harmless silvery light that spreads like ripples on water throughout the whole city, originating at the Looking-Glass House, but nothing further happens, and the Coven receives no answers. Well, nothing happens in the Looking-Glass House. Before long, the reports start coming in: people are emerging from mirrors, regular old mundane mirrors, all over the city. Anything with a particularly reflective surface could be an entry point for someone from another world! Inhabited homes, businesses closed and locked for the night, pools of still water in fountains or the river, these unorthodox Mirrorbound pop up anywhere and everywhere, causing chaos for the City Guard (folks aren't happy to find strangers in their bathrooms at 3 in the morning) and the Coven both. Out of nowhere, a glint of light catches your eye; your heart thunders in your ears as your body moves on its own, your mind consumed with inspecting the source. Your reflection stares back at you, just as curious from the surface - a mirror, a pool of water, your most trusted sword, something fleeting that your mind can barely remember - then ripples at your touch. If you are one of these unfortunate arrivals, it's likely a rude awakening for you, to find yourself somewhere inconvenient, somewhere other than where you've been. It only makes sense to be confused. Hopefully someone finds you and explains to you what's happened to you. Resident Mirrorbound will hear a message from Miss Nessie shortly after it begins, a call to arms: "Dears, I'm quite sorry to disturb you, but it seems your fellows are arriving elsewhere than the Looking-Glass House this month! We're trying to track them all down for the usual welcome, but we could use a hand or several! If you could just bring them by the Coven, the usual spot, that would be lovely." She'll give her usual orientation and pass out Watches, but no doubt the Mirrorbound will be more helpful in this regard, with so many arriving.

III. The Goblin Market (All Month) Life goes on in Aefenglom, despite the addition of so many new residents. With the City Guard decidedly busy dealing with the sudden flood of break-ins (or, more accurately, break-outs?), the vendors of the Goblin Market find opportunity to set up their stalls more openly than they have since the crack-downs some months ago. They pop up all over the city, but clustered more often in the Residential Districts and the Harbor District, where there are even fewer law enforcement agents out and about to run them off. These sellers, while not as devoid of morals as those major players of the Black Market, still have very few compunctions when it comes to lying, cheating, fencing stolen goods, and misrepresenting their wares to unsuspecting buyers. It's also the place to find those things that are- not quite legal, shall we say. They won't say a word if you don't. If confronted, they are quick to pack up their things and slip away, however; they know this city and its hiding places a lot better than you do. With a brand new batch of what the natives assume are Mirrorbound, many undergoing rapid transformations into their Monster forms, many of the wares on display are potions: supposed cure-alls for aches and itches, calming draughts for the full moon restlessness, some even claim their brews can halt changes entirely! Some concoctions are meant to increase a Witch's magical ability, or decrease it, or provide them a finer control. They offer potions that they say will eliminate the need for a Bond, or temporary Bonding potions of their own that they claim are more pure, stronger, than the ones offered by the Coven. Claims are only claims, though. A few remedies for the pain of changing or some regular temporary Bonding potions can be found here and there, but for every potion that works, there are twenty more that have less than pleasant side effects. A brew that will cause everything you touch to turn to solid gold for up to an hour; a potion that will invert your sense of direction - trying to turn right will make you turn left, trying to go forward will cause you to walk backward; a potion that will remove all traction from your feet, causing you to slide around as if cobblestone are the slickest ice. Worse, some shadier vendors sell things more sinister, including a potion that gives you the appearance of being moderately to heavily infected by the Cwyld. Even if you don't drink any, the vendors are not at all careful where they're sloshing those bottles around, trying to show them off, and they all activate on skin contact.

IV. A Wilde Hunt (7th - 22nd) All Mirrorbound, temporary or not, are likely to feel it. Monsters are always affected by the full moons, but this month, it is more. Stronger. Instincts rise to the surface as the Sisters emerge full and visible in the night sky, and for many Mirrorbound, they are undergoing rapid transformations into whatever type of Monster they are meant to be. Curiously, the natives get along like they usually do, noticing nothing out of the norm, other than the increased agitation and restlessness from Mirrorbound Monsters. Monsters' aggression fades when the Sisters start to wane, but as the new moons approach on the 22nd, Mirrorbound Witches will notice their magical reserves overfilling, and will find themselves stricken with the overwhelming urge to use it, until casting spells, pushing one's magical limits, is almost a compulsion. Those who are not in proper Witch-Monster Bonds will feel it even stronger, with no stabilizing magic to consume (for Monsters) or avenues to expend magic (for Witches) other than casting spells. (For those who are interested, the Coven does offer temporary Bonding potions which can be used to help alleviate the effects somewhat.) The Coven Witches notice the signs, and they take decisive action on the morning of the 6th, the day before the full moons. So many Mirrorbound, likely to be so heavily affected by the lunar cycle this month, many of them coming into new features and abilities at a breakneck pace, only spells danger for the city. They barricade off a massive chunk of Wilde outside Aefenglom, largely free of Cwyld and totally bereft of farms, homes, and Wilder outposts. They invite anyone who feels the effects of the moons too strongly to control to come out for a Hunt. The hunting grounds will be open nightly to anyone who needs to work off restless energy or overflowing magic; all participants will be warned that their safety cannot be guaranteed from others, but they won't be able to harm bystanders out here. The woods are thick, with the river cutting through them, and full of wildlife. There is room to run and chase prey, or room to play with your developing magic. Play cat and mouse with your friends or Bondmates, or stalk a stranger. If playing games isn't your thing, there is something else to hunt out here as well. With the deep Wilde entering into Winter, this patch of land so close to the city is much warmer, and fearsome Shades have emerged to search for prey. These were once living beings, Monsters, Witches, or animals, who have been overtaken by Cwyld infection long ago, leaving them dead but for the infection, white-eyed and seeking out sources of magic to consume and infect. Anything could become a Shade, but the most common out right now are the ferocious remains of bears, wolves, and nomadic Arachne and Turnskins. If not killed, these Shades threaten the people of the Outer City, when they inevitably escape the barricade. Careful to limit your contact, though; anyone infected upon their return to the gates will be escorted straight to the infirmary.

Welcome to May's Fourth Wall event, An Inauspicious Arrival! The comms are now open to comments from all registered users and will be until June 1st. Current players, if you don't want fourth wall characters tagging your posts, just say so in your text. Fourth wall characters can use this post for their own network top-levels, or this post for log top levels. This event is game canon; threads from this fourth wall can be used as application samples later and current players may use these threads for AC. As always, be courteous to each other! Let the mod team know if there are any problems and we will handle things.

As always, please direct your questions to this thread!

Comments

eren jaeger (the small & less depressed one) | attack on titan | oarfish merrow

[ereh]

ᴀɴ ᴜɴᴜsᴜᴀʟ ᴀʀʀɪᴠᴀʟ (one tag-in only, please! first come, first serve!♥)

[ in the thick of night or at the crack of dawn, you might be asleep, you might be awake, you might even be getting ready for another day to pass in aefenglom. every house has a mirror, and most mirrors can be found to ready one's self in the bathroom. wash your face, get ready for a bath to leave the body crisp. 

until someone literally drops through the mirror headfirst into the sink, hits his head on the ciramic with an ugly crrk and flops sideways into the bath, empty or otherwise full. ]

ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴏʙʟɪɴ ᴍᴀʀᴋᴇᴛ

[ trying to sell eren bullshit is uneffective mostly because of the lack of application he sees in purchasing bullshit. a waste of time! unneeded lies! the boy's brows are profusely scrunched in a way that you wouldn't want a teen to keep— what if it sticks? do you even know happiness, boy? why such a frown? eren grunts (not that much has changed) and shoulders himself out of the merchant's way. they only follow to lure him with a vial: ahh, i know! "troubles", isn't it? troubles with, as the merchant lists: performance, stamina, size, and a promise that he could grow his prized possession by xxx. his first time? too young? or maybe you want to prank a friend or impress your partner when the big day comes—

except eren frowns and says, flatly and irritably: ]

I said I don't want your crap— [ and just to turn the insistent fucker away: ] I can turn bigger than that anyway. 

[ something tells the merchant that something is amiss. ]

ɪ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴇᴏᴘʟᴇ ᴀʀᴇ

[ eren has way too many questions and not enough time in a day to have them all answered. for however long this dream or what have you lasts, the new merrow explores into every new corner he could get himself into. he needed to get home, of course he did— but look at this place. with only simple features (thin red fins behind his ears and a silvery blue sheen of guanine under his eyes), the boy is quick to fast walk toward the first person to catch his eyes and rather aggressively tugging their sleeve, or even wrist back. not with full intention to be rude, but wanting the attention to be given rather than shrugged off.  

not at all mean, he only seems overly curious, if not a little brute in his execution. ]

Hey, tell me something—

[ his grip, though— it causes a literal shock to the person he touches.  ]

ɪ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ sᴇᴇ, ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ sᴇᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴅᴀɴᴄɪɴɢ

[ beyond the wall, you can't tell eren to stay behind when it came to quests, no. you fool. eren is all about trekking outwards with a group entering the autumn wilde and slums. he can't— see all that well. his vision his failing and blurring and constantly does he need to hold two of his gear's handles in one hand to rub at the sandy sensation in the other. many damn its are muttered and groaned in between, huffed and clicked while trying to maintain in walking distance of someone. 

a sound howls in the air, like a cry, a wail, and eren turns directly toward the sound to, without much thought, walk in its direction. ]

Shouldn't we see what it is?

ᴡɪʟᴅᴄᴀʀᴅ & ᴍɪsᴄ

[ 15 yo eren is a giant oarfish based merrow! they give off electric shocks and kind of suck at swimming in shallow waters because their muscles are underdeveloped .......... ref for water/full moon form, and any other possibilities & prompts could be done here! threads will be taken to his journal when the post hits captcha or when the comms are locked to members only if there's interest in backtagging! :) ]

ᴀɴ ᴜɴᴜsᴜᴀʟ ᴀʀʀɪᴠᴀʟ -yeets self into the most panic inducing option

[stopfen]

[The three bedroom cottage her and Trucy shared was a nice place. Sure, but the standards of the average Aefenglom resident it was small and cozy. And Mikasa would admit it was cozy, but she thought it was luxurious. It had been four months and she still wasn't sure what to make about it being free.

Because this place had more rooms than the cabin she'd grown up in, a bigger garden. Hell, it was bigger than the Jaeger's home had been. This would have been one of the larger bases if it belonged to the scouts.

All for the low cost, of having to chase the mice and pests out themselves. Something Mikasa had thought they'd done a pretty good job of, until she hears the noise. And it's not Trucy. She'd seen Trucy heading to the hall in the opposite direction of the third bathroom. Could hear in the kitchen.

So slowly Mikasa opened the door, wincing a little at the creaky hinge. Please don't run mouse or whatever you were. She'd rather catch you before you got into the walls. But then she sees the person folded over the edge of the tub. Catches a glimpse of the face for just a second-

AND SLAMS THE DOOR SHUT AGAIN.]

[ereh]

[ oh, fuck— ow, eren groans, a hand trying to wrap around his head and check for any bloody spots, none of the sort but its pounding and ringing. the door suddenly shuts and causes eren to jolt from the tub, sit up a begin breathing harder through the nose. calm down. where the hell. what the hell— ]

—? [ eren calls out, not entirely polite with his volume and wondering, now, if he's hearing things because of the blow. a hiss comes as he cradles the bruised temple of his into a palm, wetting his dry lips with: ] Who're you?

[stopfen]

[She was currently hiding behind the door, holding it shut tight. It was a nice door, a solid door, made of good wood. Because-

She knew that voice. The back and side of his face had been one thing, something she could explain away. Think it was someone else wearing the old uniform, it wasn't as though Eren's hair colour was rare. But the muffled voice that came through the door couldn't be.

He'd hear a small thud, something hitting the door as she leant her head against. Feeling that headache building up as thoughts raced around her head. Why was he here? Being the main one.

But she gritted her teeth, inhaled. Steadied her voice.] Should I be asking the person in my bathroom that? [Firm, with little inflection, almost blank.]

[ereh]

[ eren's mouth gapes as words bubble, an i'm that isn't entirely thought out and just a gut reaction to being asked his name.

then he actually stops and thinks, like a good boy. that voice . . . rang bells. it's a voice that he's heard for years beside him, if not developed. but mikasa didn't have a bathroom like this, for starters.

steadier now, he steps closer to the door, but from the side of the wall. can't trust being too close to that for him to bounce back with another question: firmer. demanding. still confused as balls but trying not to show it with a thick voice mask of bravado. ]

Did you bring me here?

[stopfen]

[He gets no response for a moment. But the door doesn't budge, even though he'd be able to see the lock, she was simply holding. Bracing herself on it as she tried to work out what to do. Until then, the door remains shut.

...

Though he does get a noise, as the handle twists again. A huff when the door cracks open. She doesn't open it fully. Just enough for her fingers to curl around the edge and hold it, so he couldn't open it more, or slam it back on her. Because after a few more seconds of deliberation, she pokes the top of her head around. Just enough for those large black eyes to peer at him, keeping the rest of her face hidden behind the door. Then after another second the thin antenna poke around. ]

Yes. Because I'd be surprised to open the bathroom door and find someone I kidnapped there.

[Have some deadpan. As she doesn't blink at him.]

Where The People Are

[wylderrant]

[ Maybe she catches Eren's eye because of the deep green she wears; maybe it's the antlers. Maybe it's the hooves and the fur. Whatever the reason, Iramaat pauses with a blink, glancing at him with a little smile. She likes meeting new people, so at least she's not brushing him off immediately. ]

Well, I can tell you a lot of things. You'll have to be more specific than that.

[ She pauses and then laughs and reaches out with a long finger to give one of his earfins a little poke. ]

Oh, that's adorable.

[ereh]

[ it would've been pretty much her everything at this rate (people with antlers? hooves? hello???) is beyond what he'd expected over the walls, but any wonder in his eye flattens when a fin, that extends to a long red ribbon of appendage earns a pointed lean away and a hand to swat her own back. not abruptly, but it's obvious he's trying not to be overly rude in his own defense, an older woman, civilian it seemed. excuse me???? ]

—Right. Stop. [ no more!! he clears his throat quickly and starts: ] The only thing that's keeping people behind these walls— it's a disease?

[ he seems to say it with incredulity. like they need a wall for that? ]

[wylderrant]

[ Iramaat laughs and draws her hand back, apparently not put out all that much by the defensive swat. Instead she just flashes him a smile and lifts her shoulders in a shrug. It's not her decisions. ]

Not just any disease. Highly infectious and it spreads through just about anything and everything - plants, animals, the soil... and once it takes you, you're well and truly gone. Seems a bit excessive, I know, but...

[ She cocks her head. ]

I suppose it's part of the reason we're here.

[ereh]

[ at least from what grisha would tell him about sickness from time to time in their home visits when eren tagged along— walls wouldn't keep it out. it's not something you can really see, right? maybe to keep it in if they needed contact? his mother had gotten ill with something plague-like, before she and his father married. he has a notion, but not enough of it. ]

What reason? [ from frowning, his expression grows all the more curious again. ] I'm . . . Not a doctor.

[ his father was, but how would he know even 1% of what he knew? ]

[wylderrant]

Well, it tends to infect animals and other living creatures and make them very hostile to us. So a lot of what we do is make sure such infected creatures don't get too close. Not to mention burning back the infection when we can...

[ Look, she's not an expert in the Cwyld, she just works here. ]

So being a doctor doesn't come into it.

wildcard

[jeanboy]

[ He's met with Eren, so that's actually kind of a relief even if it's not relief that shows readily on Jean's face. Now, the two of them are exploring this strange town with strange architecture, technology and even stranger creatures. There's just a lot to take in. Cautious boy he is, Jean is keeping his guard up in case any of the creatures roaming about suddenly decide to be unfriendly, but so far, they all seem to be regular people in irregular bodies. He's trying not to gawk at everything in sight but it's hard, given the metaphorical well they kind of come from (and he's painfully aware of how little they know now). Though he's gawking at things himself, he still sees himself as the more 'mature' one between them both, so he makes it a point to snap Eren out of it if he ends up staring in awe at something new for too long. Grabbing the back of Eren's shirt, he gives the boy a light tug. ]

Stay focused, idiot. We still have to find the others. They might have been dropped here too.

[ There's this odd itching sensation in his scalp, but Jean's mostly ignored it for now. He washed his hair a day ago. It shouldn't be itching right now?

As they move towards the edge of town, there's this fresh scent of water and the swooshing noises of the wind against the waves. It's nothing he's ever heard before. ]

[ereh]

[ eren had been a bit too busy gaping everywhere. this time, at a chimera (goat, snake and lion) spewing out flames to scorch skewered— what were those? the smaller people-monsters seemed to squeal for it and grab for sticks to blow and chew at their treats. sadly, eren couldn't actually see a damn thing beyond blurs of color and it was annoying. when did his vision get so bad? after a while of staying here. a few days?

he never had to wear glasses and could only assume it was from hitting his head on that tub. at least squinted helps clear out the imagery, but that just ends with . . . eren forcefully yanking at jean's sleeve to go a certain way. there was a bowl cut blond up ahead and eren is certain of what he's seeing. ]

What do you think I'm doing? [ moron, he mutters, and points at a blond in a hat that is definitely not armin. ] That wind's getting in your eyes, Jean.

[ the roaring winds and currents that— he can't even identify. ]

[jeanboy]

[ Oh, he heard you mutter 'moron', Eren. Jean lets out a displeased huff. This would usually be where he shoots back his retort, but Eren then calls his attention to a person in the crowd, and he turns his gaze to them in keen interest. Could it be one of their group?

No. That's clearly not right. There's both disappointment and confusion in his tone when he finally speaks. Jean crosses his arms. ]

What am I looking at ...? [ Who is that? To think this moron called him a moron! ]

Is that someone you know -- [ Eren? Making friends within the few days he's been here? No, that sounds fake. ] Or do you finally need glasses from hitting your head too much?

[ As fun as it is to be mean to Eren, Jean did pick up on his apparent visual impairment since coming here, how he's been squinting more and sometimes need a little tug to walk in the right way. It's actually a little concerning. ]

[ereh]

[ fucc u man he can totally make friends in a few days when pigs grow wings and fly away. lucky for them, that could actually happen in aefenglom. eren's eyes blink and he forcefully widens them, the doubt beginning to crease the bridge of his brows. ]

But— It's Armin. Isn't it?

[ jean isn't playing him like some fool? he won't say he can't see from here to solidify the actual fact (or insult), but, there's also the proof needed to solidify the fact anyway. ]

[jeanboy]

It's obviously not Armin. Unless you've forgotten what your best friend looks like.

[ At least, he assumes they're best friends from how Armin has clung on to Eren for as long as he remembers. Eren's best friend is clearly not JEAN!! They're barely!!!! Even friends!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway.

Enough with the jokes. Jean's tone takes on a more serious quality as he peers into Eren's eyes in a manner that is not at all strange. He's trying to see if there's anything different about them, but they look exactly the same. ] What's going on with your eyes?

[ They deteriorated way too quickly for normal myopia, so he's wondering if it's a concerning effect of being here. Maybe something that only affects titan shifters? ]

goblin market, naturally

[dirtdevil]

[ he already knew Eren was here, of course. he expected to run into him again soon enough, too—hard to avoid when he's like nine feet tall now (ridiculous). what he didn't expect was to run into what seems like another Eren entirely.

...god, are there two Erens now? please just kill him already.

this Eren is a little more his speed. there's still something a little fishy (rimshot) about him, but he's still far closer to matching the Eren in his memory. ]

Subtle.

[ right down to the big mouth. ]