Event Log: April, Tangled Terrors Part 1

[faileas]

Event Log: April, Tangled Terrors Part One

I. A Spreading Problem The request for help from the nameless city Underground comes at the beginning of the month through intermediaries - characters who have maintained good relationships with the city and its leader, or Wilders posted at the Northern Outpost. They have good reason to speak up. It starts within the herds of velvet wormipedes, horse-sized or larger worms that serve as food, pets, and mounts, making them an important part of survival underground. It was the farmers who first noticed it, and they theorized that it was caught and started to spread when they took the worm herds out to graze in an outer cavern. What seemed to be a new disease causing oily blackened skin and various mutations has been confirmed to be Cwyld, but the veil of protective moss that surrounds and protects the city did not react the way it normally does to the infected (by gobbling them up upon entry), letting them pass with little more than a shudder of recoiling movement. By now, they’ve isolated any infected members of the herd to the grazing cavern outside the city or put them down outright and burned the bodies, but as the days pass, the phenomenon grows only more worrying. Some proactive Mirrorbound who answered the initial call to investigate will have a head-start on the information, but the Arachne leader of the Underground, the Matriarch, is upfront about what they know so far. She holds a small meeting with would-be helpers where she lets them know that her Witches from the Academy were out in the tunnels branching off the grazing cavern within the last couple of weeks, practicing the method of leyline clearing that the Mirrorbound taught them some time ago to try and drive the Cwyld back. Their efforts were abandoned when the Witches’ magic malfunctioned and caused backlash, and their Monster guards with keener hearing started to pick up on a peculiar throbbing or pulsing sound from distantly within the walls. Any who are willing to lend a hand and investigate are offered whatever supplies they request, shelter within the City when they need to return to rest, and the assistance of any of their Witches and warriors as needed. The Matriarch thinks that whatever they find out there may be useful - or dreadful - knowledge for both their peoples. They want to know what was preventing the leyline from being cleared, and what this infection or disease is that is affecting wildlife and their own herds - curing it will eventually be a priority, but fact-finding has to come first.

II. Danger in the Deep (Underground) Branching out from the place that the worm herd were grazing when the infection set in, it becomes more clear that the situation is dire. This is not a normal, relatively slow-moving Cwyld infection, but something stronger and more sinister that has sunk its claws deep into the branching leylines. An oily black substance runs through the stone walls and floor of the tunnels in thick veins, dripping slowly in dark streaks, and the air in the tunnels feels heavier than usual. Far from showing any signs of the Matriarch’s people trying to clear the leyline, it feels even worse, more severely tainted. This only seems more likely when you start to encounter wildlife bearing the same kind of infection as the worms, oily black patches on their skin, aggression that exceeds the norm for their species. Bats and blind, white wasps and huge, glittering beetles have grown even bigger, and begun to mutate in unusual, grotesque ways. They’ll need to be put down - there is no getting past them peacefully, and no saving these creatures. Even if you don’t kill them, the infection will, as you’ll find - farther along, you start to find mutated, infected corpses as well, like oily smears on the stone and barely recognizable. And then there’s the sound, discordant in the quiet of the Underground. It’s difficult to hear at first, faint, but farther along when you get close to the walls, a distant, steady pulsing sound seems to chill you right down to your bones, as if the walls have a heartbeat of their own. None of the natives have ever heard it before, and if you have any citizens of the Underground in your search party, many of them with stronger senses are visibly scared, growing paranoid and agitated as time passes. Tracking the leylines, or the sound of the pulsing in the walls, will take several days of exploration, deeper into the tunnels than the natives remember venturing before, and those days will be plagued with danger and unrest. Keep in touch with your fellows in town as well, though Watch reception will be spotty - it will become clear that this is no longer just an Underground problem. a. Leyline Clearing It seems like a good idea at first to try and clear some part of the infected leylines, if only to cut the infection off from traveling further, as it uses the pathways of natural magic that cut through the earth like a highway to cover more ground quicker. It seems to move with each pulse in the walls, creeping a little farther along. The leyline in the Silent Forest outside the Northern Outpost, set on a path to healing last year, seems like child’s play in comparison to this herculean effort, though. Be careful, Witches. Even just one push of your magic into this infected leyline triggers a backlash that rings in your ears and wracks your body with soul-deep pain. Those who are un-Bonded, who have no Monster partner to help cushion the impact, feel it worse than those who are Bonded. But those who are Bonded, their partners can feel the pain too - lessened, more spread out over the two or three or four of you, but still intense. Even without touching the walls or the floor, the infection can spread through your magic, into you, your Bonded, and those around you if you cast the spell as a group. b. Infection Rather than settling into the body at first, this Cwyld settles into your magic, your soul, your innate connection with the world, whether you’re Witch or Monster. It’s harder to guard against it, even by taking the usual precautions. The side-effects are terrible; while the Mirrorbound in Aefenglom feel it too, all those symptoms are much stronger down here closer to the source. Trying to use your magic as a Witch (and sometimes your less physical abilities as a Monster) results in backlash, misfiring, or even a dangerous drain in energy. Reaching for one’s magic might be as natural as breathing for most Witches, but now it feels like trying to reach through a thick fog, sticky and cloying. Spells go awry, coming out as the opposite effect from the caster’s intention, or a completely different, unforeseen result (think: Wild Magic in D&D). Sometimes you can’t pull on your magic or abilities at all, and sometimes you wildly misjudge how much force to use, resulting in danger for those around you, especially in these tight, underground spaces. Interacting too much or too often with the tainted magic causes pain and fatigue at the very least, and for some even more uncomfortable effects, such as numbness of the extremities, temporary blindness, nausea or full unconsciousness. These effects are much more prominent in Witches, especially those un-Bonded, though some Monsters may feel similar, lesser effects on some of their abilities. Monsters are not immune, especially growing closer to the sinister source. Those who are Bonded to Witches can feel the strain the tainted magic puts on them, and those who aren’t, or whose Bonds aren’t strong, find that they feel the tainted pulse of the heartbeat in the walls acutely, driving them to paranoia, fear, rage, or even ferality. All Monsters on this mission will find that they’re prone to nightmares when they do try to catch some rest - the content of the nightmares varies depending on the person, but they’re all unsettling, and they all feature prominently the image of a blackened tree, the trunk bearing faces frozen in masks of horror, and the picture of gnarled roots reaching down, down, down. c. Tangled Ties As the Cwyld in the walls grows more prominent, taking on an appearance like thick, oily, veiny roots, tangled and twisted, so too does the Cwyld work to tangle the ties that bind you. Those who don’t, or can’t, keep their Bonded in close physical proximity may find that their Bond feels weaker, or perhaps it begins to only transmit negative emotions like pain or fear. They may find their Bonds shifting, or even snapping, tangling or twisting in ways they shouldn’t. All of a sudden, you might even find yourself with a completely different Bond, being drawn to a stranger or an acquaintance you certainly weren’t Bonded to before. If you didn’t have a Bond already, you might find yourself with one (or more) now - or a twisted approximation of one, as anyone who experiences this will soon find out that the magic isn’t quite what it’s supposed to be. It can’t be nullified as usual, broken off or switched back intentionally (though some days it might end up snapping to someone else instead), and down here, you only have each other, your Underground hosts, and a spotty Watch connection for help. All the infected wildlife seems to die out, as days later, your parties find their way close to the source of the pulsing in the walls. An entrance hewn out of the stone opens into what feels like a truly massive cavern, judging from the change in the airflow. The Cwyld is thick here, concentrated in what seem to be rough, blackened roots all in a tangle like a thick curtain. You can hear the heartbeat-like sound louder now, a steady thump-thump, thump-thump. Whatever lies in wait past that curtain of roots, you know in your gut that once you enter, you won’t be able to leave until the problem is dealt with. Resupply, recruit help, try to sort the snarled threads of your Bonds - it’s going to be rough from here.

III. Reaching Tendrils (Aefenglom, Northern Outpost) The Matriarch’s briefing is, soon after it’s given, relayed to the Coven and then to the rest of the Mirrorbound, through some of the Wilders or perhaps through other characters themselves. That, at least, is a good thing, to provide some kind of warning for what happens next. In far worse news, the effects of the malaffected leylines are not limited to the tunnels of the Underground, or even the nearby Northern Outpost. Somehow, just a few days after things take a worse turn down below and surrounding the Outpost, they reach as far as the city. The effects of the infected leyline overflow like a burst dam, tainted magic spilling out from the Cwyld-strangled Underground caverns and through their connected, invisible tributaries beneath the earth, stretching miles outward with each passing day. The Northern Outpost and the Wilde around it, being closest, are affected first, and it hits the northernmost parts of Aefenglom by the 10th of the month - proving just how interconnected completely unrelated places can be on Geardagas. a. Snarled Magics Wilder, Coven, and Mirrorbound Witches alike, anyone who needs to draw on the power of the world’s magic, find it feeling increasingly resistant and… unpleasant. Here too, Witches find that reaching for their magic is like battling through sticky, dark fog. It becomes more and more difficult to gauge how much magic is needed even for the simplest of spells: sometimes, you might try to cast only to have nothing at all happen, and other times, the magic bursts forth many times more powerful than intended, causing a dangerous drain on the caster and all sorts of hazards for people and property caught in the unpredictable outburst. Spells go awry, coming out as the opposite effect from the caster’s intention, or a completely different, unforeseen result (think: Wild Magic in D&D). Those with more experience or inordinate willpower may be able to push through, especially if they work together to cast group spells instead, but not without consequence; interacting too much or too often with the tainted magic causes pain and fatigue at the very least, and for some even more uncomfortable effects, such as numbness of the extremities, temporary blindness, nausea or full unconsciousness. Of course, one could simply choose not to use any magic, but how long can a Witch last without casting even a little bit? For those with Bonds, matters are even worse; a Witch is always expending some minor magical power toward their Bonded, after all. In some cases, the connection doesn’t respond well, causing paranoid and unhappy feelings, vivid shared nightmares or increased agitation, among other similar emotional side effects. b. Twisted Bonds Bonded pairs from the Underground all the way to Aefenglom will also feel the instability in their Bond increasing over the next couple of weeks, making it difficult to feel one another’s presence as normal. If the Bond isn’t treated with care and partners aren’t in close physical proximity often enough, the strain is even greater. In some rare cases, it might even… snap and shift, suddenly getting tangled up or twisted, your strings all snarled in the wrong ways. All of a sudden, you might even find yourself with a completely different Bond, being drawn to a stranger or an acquaintance you certainly weren’t Bonded to before. If you didn’t have a Bond already, you might find yourself with one (or more) now - or a twisted approximation of one, as anyone who experiences this will soon find out that the magic isn’t quite what it’s supposed to be. It can’t be nullified as usual, broken off or switched back intentionally (though some days it might end up snapping to someone else instead), and even the Coven’s most experienced Witches have no answers as to why. While use of magic is unpredictable for most, if not all, Witches, the Bond problems, however, seem to be affecting only the Mirrorbound. Seek out your new Bonded and make the best of it for now: you’re going to need each other’s support, especially if you’re a Witch unable to cast normally while the groups of volunteers in the Underground work tirelessly to make things right. Despite the onslaught of unstable magic and unstable Bonds, of unsettling feeling and a pervasive sense of wrongness, it's up to you to hold down the home front, helping where you can as the magical mishaps rack up and raiding the libraries of the Coven and Undermael College for research, no matter how it all starts to wear on you.

Welcome to Tangled Terrors, Part One! Proving that the settlements of Geardagas are a little more connected than they seem on the surface... This is just the first half of the event, but the negative effects on using magic and on Bonds will be present until after Part Two, when the problem is dealt with. These are optional, opt-in effects except for the difficulty in using magic if you're a Witch - and you can go more mild with that if you'd like, but it will be part of life for most of the month.

If you'd like to find some tainted Bonds to tangle with, we've provided a plotting header here! You can change up Bonds as often and as unexpectedly as you'd like. As always, direct your event-related questions here! And finally, the event plotting post is over here!

Part Two of this event will go up on the 17th, and will be an Underground locale-only event (meaning there will not be an Aef-focused prompt), dealing with the root of the newly-woken issue that plagues the leyline running between the Underground and Aefenglom.

Comments

[getting_better]

[ Her timing couldn't have been better. He really wanted something to eat, needed something to eat. His hands were shaking and knees were close to buckling under his weight if he hadn't already sat down. ]

You are an angel. Thank you.

[ As eager as he was for food, he didn't wolf it down and took measured bites and spoonfuls until his appetite began to rouse. ]

Things are a lot worse than we thought. Magic going screwy, and bonds getting messed up and crosswired - just making it back here as we did was already...[ He shook his head and rolled his eyes. ] We're going to need a better plan.

[adventageous]

[Alice smiles warmly in response to the gratitude.]

You're welcome. It's the least I could do.

[She's just glad that he was receptive to it rather than shooing her off. When it comes to approaching someone new like this, it could go either way.

The smile fades, however, when he describes how dire the situation was for his part of the expedition.]

I don't disagree, but I wish there was something to make sense of with all of this. Cwyld doesn't usually cause these sorts of symptoms and issues.

[Come to think of it, does anyone even appear infected in the traditional sense?]

[getting_better]

Usually, yeah?

[ He's been helping the refugees out long enough to know the symptoms at just a glance. ]

We have to throw 'usually' out the window if we're going to find a way around this. That being said, that's already been done for us though.

[ He sighed, then took a mouthful of water. ] Like how it got down here in the first place. That moss of theirs should keep it out so, unless this was always stirring down here or there's another entrance somewhere.

[adventageous]

[Alice, too, is familiar with how Cwyld usually behaves--she's healed enough minor cases and has seen the horrors of advanced infections thanks to the Evergreen Circle. That knowledge means that she knows he's right. "Usually" is absolutely not in play here.]

Either that, or the Cwyld itself has mutated or changed itself somehow to get around it. That could explain why people are being affected by it without showing any physical infection.

Which, given how little we know about it as it is, doesn't bode well for the Underground or for us.

[getting_better]

You sure said it, miss.

[ His appetite is roused and starts to eat more, taking bigger bites while his mind races through the mountain of information in his head. ]

Honestly speaking, I've been in a similar situation before back in my world so I have some ideas to deal with this.

[adventageous]

[That last bit catches her attention, and Alice tilts her head slightly with curiosity.]

I'm sorry that something like this is so familiar.

[She's speaking with experience on that one. It isn't one-to-one, but there's a lot here that reminds her of unpleasant memories from back home. It hasn't been a fun experience.]

What sorts of ideas do you have to counter it?

[getting_better]

A few bad ones and...one really terrible one. [ He rubbed his head. ] They're practical and effective, and I really wish I could add ethical to their descriptions too.

[ He sighed again, louder and heavier. ]

The immediate one is torch the ever loving crap out of the tunnels, but then we'd have to deal with the smoke. We could make a poison to kill the bugs and whatever plant life was contaminated. But that's incredibly dangerous without protective gear and would take time to make a poison like that. Blocking the cave systems off is another but that's just a band-aid solution. And the other one...well, I hope it never comes to the last one.

[adventageous]

[Alice listens to the suggestions and seriously considers the merits of each. He's right--none of them are especially good.]

And it's possible that blocking the cave systems may not even accomplish anything. The Cwyld has already broken through what was supposed to be an impenetrable barrier. I can't imagine a less-fortified one would halt it for long.

[Her sigh matches his.]

I suppose I don't really want to hear what the "really terrible" suggestion is, do I? [Although she anticipates he may share it anyway, so she steels herself for it.]

[getting_better]

No. No, you really don't.

[ And he's not particularly eager to share it either, mostly because it's what was done in the end. ]

And you're absolutely right. Collapsing the tunnels would also only hinder some of our movement and, honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if the infected creatures know of other tunnels that we don't know about so blocking one may just be like shooting ourselves in the foot.

[adventageous]

[Good that they agree on not discussing what is clearly the nuclear option, then.]

That's an excellent point, too. We're severely disadvantaged no matter what we do.

[Alice looks past him for a few moments, watching someone wrap a pucca's arm into a splint.]

Which leaves us with nothing unless we learn more about this situation particularly. So I suppose the expeditions and investigation have to continue for all of our sakes.

[getting_better]

That in itself is an option. Studying this new strain, but these damn insects aren't giving us much quarter.

[ He leans back against the wall after finishing up the last of the meal she handed to him, now just sipping away at the water. ]

If we could set up a station relatively distant from the camp where we could bring a sample for study, we may just find a way through this mess.

[adventageous]

Nothing about these tunnels are giving us any quarter. It's as if they whole system is trying to protect something.

[Something about the Cwyld has always seemed... not alive, per se, but certainly with a prerogative to spread and grow. Here, that seems especially true.]

Do you know of any researcher types among the people down here? I know how to heal it, but not much about how it works.

[getting_better]

[ He also suspected something about this strain. Something more unnatural than usual, but why mention it out loud and cause more anxiety? He's pretty sure everyone is thinking the same thing anyway. ]

I'm sure the Coven is going to send more than a few people here to investigate but, we need to secure the area first. Bringing a researcher down into the tunnels can't - shouldn't - be done until we can secure some kind of safety.

[ And once again, there's the rub. Their collective strength has been taken from them. ]

Sorry, I just realized I didn't get your name. [ Putting down his water, he raised his hand and offered a small smile. ] I'm called Bishop.

[adventageous]

Which brings us back to the original issue.

[It looks like they'll be fighting back infected wildlife for that much longer. It's by all accounts an unwinnable situation. Not that that deters Alice any. She's faced impossible odds before.]

Oh, I'm sorry. I should have started by introducing myself. [She takes the hand and shakes gently.] I'm Alice. It's nice to meet you, even if... things here aren't.

[getting_better]

[ He dips his head in sad agreement. ]

I appreciate you bringing this meal to me, miss Alice. I was prepared to soldier on until everyone else got looked at. A lot of guys a lot worse of than me.

[ He sighs. ]

God, this is why I kept saying that Wilders need training more intense than what they were given. They're a rag tag militia at best, and this situation needs soldiers.

[ He shakes his head, running his hand through his hair and down his face in frustration before realizing that what he said maybe misunderstood. ]

Sorry, I don't mean to demean them. They're doing their best and that's the most anyone has the right to demand. I just can't help but feel like, if I had been more vocal or really insisted that they be drilled harder maybe.....maybe they wouldn't be as injured as they are.

[ He can't help it. He believes in the need for a military, even if just a reserve unit for situations just like this. ]

[adventageous]

You're welcome, Mr. Bishop. I've been taken off of healing duty for awhile, so I'm helping where I can.

[Witches in the camp are rotating in and out based on the likelihood of magical backfires. Alice has been deemed too high-risk.

She looks back at the medical triage, then shakes her head a little at Bishop's words.]

It's easy to scold our past selves for not doing enough to be ready. [She's careful to steer clear of criticizing his assessment of the situation. She isn't sure she agrees, but she's also not sure she disagrees either.] But you did what you could, and none of us could have known the extent of what we were walking into. The best we can do is move forward, and when things are better we can re-evaluate.

Please don't be hard on yourself.

[getting_better]

[ He listens with quiet acceptance and reluctance. It's always the survivors or the "strongest" or "smartest" among the pack that carried this feeling. But he also started to realize that it was also his hubris talking, not just his helplessness and guilt. The situation affected him a lot more than he realized.

He nodded in agreement as her words sank in, though his chest still felt tight and ready to burst, the dull ache had lessened and his mind was getting a little clearer. ]

...Has anyone ever told you that you're really good at making others feel better?

[ And for the first time since he got here, a sincere smile cracked his grim visage. ]

Thank you. I thought I had my wits about me but, I guess I was wrong.

[adventageous]

A few times. I've had a lot of practice.

[Most of the journey with Yuri and the others, as a matter of fact. By virtue of her nature and experience, Alice had established herself as the soothing presence and morale keeper of the group by the end. She's been calling back on that ability quite a bit in her time below the earth, fighting against the unknown like she has.

And sometimes, it works better than she can hope. She returns the smile.]

You aren't without your wits. You're just stressed. We all are.

But I'm glad you feel better, at least for the moment.

[getting_better]

[ He returned the smile and finished the rest of his drink, now full and content he can begin the recuperating so he can get out into the field. ]

Are you a nurse or something? Nurses tend to have that aura of healing about them. [ A beat. ] 'Cept this one lady I knew back in the academy. She was always chewing me out for something, although to be fair I was in the nurses's office probably way too often for some of the same dumb stuff.

[adventageous]

I'm an exorcist, actually. But part of that involves being able to heal with magic, so I suppose you're close.

[She can't help but laugh a little at the latter part of his statement.]

And for what it's worth, I won't chew you out for any injuries resulting from ill-advised decisions. I'm familiar with the type.

[Her boyfriend, for starters. And herself to a large degree. How many times had she run off alone back home even when it wasn't safe to?

At least twice, both times resulting in coming face to face with the Big Bad.]

[getting_better]

An...exorcist?

[ He gives her a look from head to toe and the disbelief is so very clearly written all over his face....and maybe some slight concern. ]

Pardon me for saying but, you don't look the - [ Que sign of the cross and opening bible hand gestures. ] - part. Or at least what I know of exorcists.

she also uses bibles as a weapon in the game, as seen here

[adventageous]

[Alice is taken aback for a few moments, but not out of offense. Rather, she's gotten so used to having to explain the details of her work that she's surprised that Bishop not only knows what an exorcist is, but also its Catholic connotations. In a strange way, it's comforting. His world must not be too different from her own.

In response, she pulls out a cross from under her blouse to show him.]

I'm no priest, but I was trained by my father. He used to do work for the Vatican, before he...

[She trails off, her expression suddenly pained and distant. After a deep breath, she powers through.]

Before he died. Since then, I've been much more freelance.

w a o

[getting_better]

[ He flinched just a bit when the cross comes out, expecting something to happen but when that didn't happen, he sighed very quietly in relief. ]

Carrying on the torch, huh?

[ He doesn't bat an eyelash at the mention of her deceased father. Tragically, he's heard stories like that literally a million times to the point where he's almost run out of empathy for it. Almost. He's actually just gotten too good at hiding the feeling. ]

[adventageous]

Yes, I am. It's the best thing I can do for his memory.

[It's much more complicated than that, but really that's the jist of things. She's faced the same enemy her father did, and hopefully he can rest in peace knowing that things are taken care of.

The way he flinches doesn't escape her notice, however.]

Are you all right?

[getting_better]

Huh? Oh yeaaahhh! I'm fine, it's just...

[ He's a human turned pseudo-demon shapeshifter via a blood-ritual curse and prolonged exposure to holy artifacts that he hasn't been blessed for tend to give him the willies and bad headache. ]

...religion and I are like oil and water.

[ Not that he'll tell anyone else what he is anytime soon. ]