☆ Event: Fright Night

[moustre]

Event Log: October, Fright Night

I. The Mist It starts in the middle of the night. As the bells chime for 3 am, a slow fog creeps across the city from all four cardinal directions, swirling low to the ground, shining purplish in the light of the twin moons. It goes without notice for a while, an oddity, easily brushed off as too much rain and the changing temperatures turning it to mist over the cobblestones. The first ones to get caught up in it are the night workers, the drunks leaving the bars, the sailors returning to their ships, anyone out on the streets when it begins. In most cases, the effects are not instantaneous - it takes a little time to sink in before… a. The Transformations Even if you don’t find yourself out on the streets in the middle of the night, the mist creeps its way into buildings through cracks and openings, until exposure is almost guaranteed for everyone in Aefenglom, and even some just outside the Bright Wall in the Outer City. Though a lucky few, Mirrorbound and citizens alike, will find themselves wholly unaffected by the substance and will retain their physical forms and their own right minds, many more find themselves bent to its whims, changing in ways that could never have been predicted. There is little rhyme or reason to what changes occur or how - some simply wake with new parts, uncomfortable, while others run from their homes, panicking as wings tear painfully out of their backs or claws burst forth from their hands. The mist does not discriminate. Humans and Witches find themselves gaining the parts of Monsters, or even creatures that live outside the Wall. Monsters gain parts that don’t match up to their species - Arachne with wings or gills, Turnskin with antlers and Merrow tails, Puca with the teeth and claws of predators or the horns of unicorns or the scales of lizards, such strange sights become more and more common as morning approaches slowly. Mirrorbound may find that they can even gain the features and mannerisms of creatures from their home worlds. It all seems to happen wholly at random. These parts may not even last; plenty of citizens lose their new additions after just hours, only to gain new ones in the meanwhile. In the dark, wee hours of the morning, the city erupts into chaos. b. Widespread Chaos There’s no chance of peace tonight. Some may be lucky enough to escape the mists or its effects somehow, but the vast majority of the city hasn’t -- and it’s telling, from the sounds of people in the streets, that no one’s particularly happy about the turn of events. Many are in pain, many are blind with panic and upset. How could this happen? What’s going on? Many of the shouts attribute blame to the Coven allowing the practice of at-times experimental magics, while others turn it into anti-Monster sentiment, claiming the Monster population wants them all to suffer the way they do. Other tinfoil-hat-ists spread their conspiracy theories loudly, laying the blame squarely on Dorchacht - retribution for the Monsters the Mirrorbound stole from their city. This is an attack, they shout! The actual truth remains to be seen, however. There are plenty who don’t care about the truth and pay little attention to the rumors. They’re opportunists at heart, and a city in chaos is good for lining pockets. Some less-affected and less-moral citizens take to the streets of the Shopping and Aristocratic districts, throwing rocks through windows, banging down doors, looting shops and the houses of the wealthy of whatever valuables they can carry with them. Even a gang of kids from one of the orphanages in the Harbor District, sporting their own mismatched new features, can be spotted roaming the city, looting stores and homes, stealing from people incapacitated in the streets. They can’t pass up an opportunity when they have so little to begin with. c. State of Emergency Parliament, in contact with the Coven, is quick to declare a state of emergency in Aefenglom. A magical announcement rings out all through the city, loud and impossible to miss. Those who can keep it together are called upon to help find some sort of order before things devolve too badly and more damage is done than can be fixed. People will get hurt if things continue like this, they could even be looking at casualties. Those who have learned healing magic are asked to report to makeshift first aid stations scattered around the city to help those dealing with more violent, bloody transformations. Anyone with prior law enforcement experience are tasked with helping contain and stop the looting and the muggings. More still are called to try and figure out some way to get rid of the mist, or reverse its effects. None of the assignments are mandatory, plenty are unable to assist as they deal with their own afflictions, but any help is greatly appreciated.

II. Damage Control The chaos of the first night dies down somewhat by noon the next day. The air of forgiveness and cleaning up for the new year that was present at the beginning of the month is gone as the violet mist still spreads, wreaking havoc with the citizens of Aefenglom. Human citizens take it worse than the Monster half of the city, but one of the side-effects hits the Monster community harder. It quickly becomes apparent that the effects of this never-before-seen magic are not only physical. Fights break out over anything from minor slights to things worth fighting about, blossoming from a few thrown punches to all-out brawls that spill into the streets. Anger and agitation increase in most affected citizens, and you can cut the tension in the air with a knife. Relief efforts have to be redirected. Some can keep it together just enough to go about their daily lives as best they can with their new ‘additions’, but others rapidly start to lose their minds in ferality, even those with strong Witch-Monster Bonds. Miss Nessie is quick to whip the Coven into action to help preserve the peace as much as possible. There isn’t enough room to contain so many feral citizens, but they try to make do. All available Mirrorbound, Witch and Monster, who are able and want to help contain the people of Aefenglom or each other are taught a simple knock-out spell, or given slips of paper enchanted with the same, to literally knock some sense into the ferals. It won’t hurt them in the long term, but it will give them a time-out and help pull their minds out of their pits of animal instinct. Plenty of citizens will be thankful for this. That doesn’t mean everyone is happy to see the Mirrorbound around town. They may notice that they get more scowls while they’re out and about, more whispers and dirty looks. They come from humans the most, but especially the wealthier people of the city, dealing with their own share of terrible transformations, who mutter under their breaths words like, “Knew they would bring trouble with them. Knew it right from the start.” Known Mirrorbound may find themselves being kicked out of higher class shops in the Shopping District, or even spit on in the streets. Poorer citizens, especially Monsters, see things differently, however: they’ve seen the refugees from Dorchacht, they know what was done for some of their kind. They’ll admit that the Mirrorbound have brought trouble with them, but a little trouble isn’t always a bad thing - sometimes you’ve got to shake things up and disturb the status quo. Though they’re dealing with bizarre changes and an increased risk of going feral, they have faith that the Mirrorbound will help solve this problem. Of course, this difference in opinion just means both sides argue louder and fight harder.

III. The Refugees For those who’d found themselves rehomed, mostly Monsters and what few Witches came with, this is not what they had expected from a “full moon”. They’d been warned that certain urges would be stronger, that magic could wax and wane like the moons themselves, but this? This rampant disorder, the odd turning present in so many citizens and Mirrorbound alike, the Coven and Parliament’s bid on attempting some sort of damage control--? Is this what they left Dorchacht for, from one far too controlling city to one that didn’t seem to have any control at all? They aren’t in chains, at least. They can choose their Bonds if they’d like one. But it’s put them on edge enough that some linger by the docks, both wanting to leave to someplace “safe” in their eyes and wishing to stay. The latter wins out in most cases, seeking to help the Mirrorbound as they were helped themselves, though they may be suffering from the mists themselves... oddly, they seem to be more aware of themselves in a way that the natives are not, likely learned behavior leftover from Dorchacht to keep themselves in check; the compulsion spell had only helped compulsion, after all, there’d been a genuine want to remain secure and safe in their minds even with the situation as it was. Unfortunately, there’s plenty of locals who see the refugees as part of the problem -- before the Mirrorbound, before Dorchacht, Aefenglom had been fine, and in continuing these thoughts, they’re not... the friendliest to outsiders. Some are more likely to retaliate violently with new-found additions to their physiology and skillset when the refugees attempt to help, with whispers, conspiracy theories, and nasty rumors all the while spreading at a rapid pace. As bad as Dorchacht had been, maybe they had a point about the strange, suggestive magic used across the city. Maybe it’s something Aefenglom should look into too, during the fuller moons, should this be the beginning of something worse as the new year rises at the end of the month. But hopefully -- and this is the hope of all -- it simply remains a one-off, freak happening at the end of the year, and they pray the new one fares better.

IV. The Aftermath Thanks to quite a bit of Mirrorbound assistance, the city is still largely in one piece by the end of the day after the full moons. The mist, an unstable alchemical compound, eventually breaks down into nothing after a day or so, and the effects all fade or reverse, leaving everyone in their normal bodies and feeling clear-headed as the moons start to wane again. There are issues of property damage, stolen goods, and political discord to deal with, but the hardest to handle is perhaps the guilt of those who went feral and attacked their friends and loved ones. Samuin preparations continue with an unusual gloom hung over the city as clean-up and reparations commence. While before, though, humans and Monsters could often be found on the bridge over the River Temese, making amends with one another, the activity almost entirely ceases, leaving the bridge empty most days from now until Samuin.

Welcome to October's event log! This event takes place ICly on the 12th, 13th, and 14th. The Questions thread can be found HERE! Please help us and other players out by putting the subject(s) of your questions in your header! Investigation briefs will be going out soon on the OOC Sign Ups thread to the teams who were chosen by RNG, so keep an eye out for that. And as always, while we do encourage you to use this log, you can feel free to thread things out on your own log or elsewhere.

Comments

[showsnopiety]

[She knew he wasn't, which was why she only gave him a rather calm look. The song is lovely, and it's not one she knows. And in its own way, it's soothing. But...well, she's not surprised.]

Likely not. But one song may not do much. We may just have to sing more before we go to the Coven and deliver him into their hands.

[halfheartedmagician]

[It's painfully slow and made worse by the fact that every step clearly sends jolts of pain through Newt, each pained gasp and grunt digging into his chest like needles. For not the first time Asra wished that he was stronger, more powerful, something so that he could simply wave a hand and make this all go away.

But instead he could only keep up a low murmur of reassurances as they finally reached the barracks.]

Newt... [He swiped his tongue over his lips absently and tried to catch the wizard's eye.] We're here, it's alright. [He knew which was the other man's without needing to ask, having seen Greg outside often before. He didn't care much if the door was locked either, forcing as much magic into it as was required to make sure it was quite quickly unlocked. He'd fix it later, once Newt was inside and wasn't... whatever was happening.]

We're here. I'm... I'm going to get you to lie down, alright? Then I'll take a look at you... I wish Julian were still here.

[bloodypath]

[It's enough to curve his mouth into a smile. As frustrating as this night has been, something as small as alleviating Edelgard's aching gums is hardly a consolation, but at least he could do something.]

[Hubert's fatigue catches up to him the moment he sits, and he pinches his eyes shut with a quiet sigh of his own. He needed to rest; he needed to do a lot of other things that left little time for rest. If tonight was an example of how volatile Aefenglom could be, he couldn't slow down, even if it wasn't Fódlan.]

[The stray thought sucks him into mentally reorganizing his priorities instead of eating.]

[halfheartedmagician]

[He reaches up to gently trail his fingers against Connor's hairline and the curious marks that he'd never asked about before. But his expression is more serious now.]

What do you want from me, Connor? What if I can't give you what you want?

[mantiger]

I'm not, actually. I was told that I was a witch, but with this weird fog-- it probably gave me something similar to my normal ability from back home.

[ He answers her a little sheepishly, but he does flinch a little as his cat ears twitch slightly at the tocuh. ]

[sing_for_me]

[ Similar to what he originally had..? ]

So then..you really are a cat?

[ Her hand rests on his knee next, burying her fingers slightly into the fur. It certainly felt real. ]

[newtralize]

[The barracks are pretty quiet for the most part, though there was still the sounds of clamor in the distance. Greg sits up and watches the two intently. She pads over to the pair and nudges her nose against Asra's back. She knew better than to go inside, but of course the creature was concerned for her owner.

Fixing doors were the last of Newt's worry. The space that Newt had taken was spacious. It wasn't quite so before, but it had been expanded by the man; something he had concentrated on perfecting out of everything else. The first room was much like a common room. Chairs and couches and shelves of books lining the walls. It was somewhat homely. There were two doors available.] Left one. [The right lead to the hospital wing and the environments/areas for Monsters. Left lead to his living space with Theseus.] Could you- The bathroom? [He felt awful.]

[plasticasshole]

Isn't it obvious what I want?

[He catches that hand with one of his own, bringing it to his lips and kissing the knuckles.]

It doesn't have to be complicated. Not if you don't want it to be.

[His gaze turns earnest, though.]

It's fine if you don't want to... but the offer is there?

[halfheartedmagician]

Of course.

[He tries to get as comfortable a grip on Newt as he can, helping him over to the left door and shoving it roughly open. The fact that this space was so much larger than what other rooms in the barracks were like hardly mattered right know; Asra knew a little of this kind of magic himself and he could ask questions when Newt was feeling better. Because he would get better. He would.

He angled them both towards a door that seemed to be a bathroom and hesitated at the entrance, unsure if he could really leave Newt alone here, worried of what might happen if he fell or fainted while alone.] Will you be alright?

[omnicrafter]

Gods, I can actually read it right off your ears--

[And that is a huge grin of hilarity on Irhya's face, so wide that her ears actually tip backward with the effort.]

Oh, this is rich. Let me see your tail, too! You must have one, right?

[All thoughts of serious discussion about rebellion seem to have gone out the window...]

[lightblooming]

[ It's a good thing that Lapis doesn't struggle, if only because Aqua would have to tighten her grip. The last thing she wants to do is drop her.

Of course, there's no sign of Aqua listening to her. Instead, she responds by flying higher; large, ice-y wings flapping in the wind. She has a destination in mind, and Lapis wouldn't be the first that Aqua's taken there.

Eventually, she stops flying upwards - that grassy cliff side coming into view.

At the least, she has no plans to hurt Lapis. Aqua sensed some light from her, no matter how little. That in itself was enough to make her hoarding instincts come into play. ]

[mantiger]

My ability is more. . . a tiger, than a house cat. Although I'm kind of stuck like this, now.

[ He thinks that it's only temporary, however. ]

[mirrortide]

[It's nice? Being high up.

But not like this. Not being held onto by some weird person being a huge weirdo after having grabbed her. Little by little, Lapis starts to lose her initial shock and fear.]

Wow, hey? I'm talking to you!

[She bangs her fist down on the hand that's holding her. Not hard, mostly to just get her attention.]

[sing_for_me]

[ Her head snaps up, eyes once sad now filled with awe and surprise. ]

A tiger? An actual tiger?

[ Someone so gentle, such a fierce predator? ]

Would you completely turn into a tiger?

[halfheartedmagician]

[If anything the answer relaxes him and Asra tilts his head, carefully pressing a kiss to Connor's lips while being mindful of his new horn.]

I'm better if it's not complicated. Just... this.

[ressusciter]

[his eyes turn faster than his body, and the claws catch, tearing fabric and flesh. the pain is tense, hot, muddled through adrenaline and his mind. he cannot shut it out in the same dead way he reaches for, but it can be placed to the side with willpower - and the sound that escapes him is closer to a growl.

not an ideal situation, but he'll make what he can of it, and pivots with a new idea. it's a cheap trick, ripping the cloak from his shoulders and casting it out towards the stranger's head as a distraction, like a bullfighter and his foe. if it can pull his eyes, it gives Dantes a precious second. his hand darts out, trying to seize one of the swords that the stranger wears for that advantage over this.]

[ressusciter]

Times like this are not the most hygienic of places. My deepest apologies for not being scented of wildflowers in the midst of my rescue work.

[is he teasing, with that serious face and tone?

he is, but if Caspar can deduce it is another thing.]

[inlikethebrume]

[Use that bit against her, why don't you? She's gonna just sip her drink because she still has Thoughts but if more questions come up, she'll answer. But there is such a thing called information overload and even if he was an immortal being before, anyone can be overwhelmed.

Or so she thinks. Can't be sure.

She doubts he's had other options considering most people probably have...reservations. Like 'punt this rat-looking man into the trash' kinds and yet here is this Warrior who is offering a roof to stay under for some time. It's probably the most dangerous thing she has done so far but then again, she DID pick up a Soul Crystal off a corpse and has killed a few Temple Knights for trying to murder an innocent child. Or tried to force their will on a young woman. Yeah, dark knights run into the weirdest shit.]

Given how you two have met before and it doesn't seem to have come to blows, the possibility of you being safe here is a greater chance.

[unsundered]

[If anything, his ears twist further back, even as he struggles to look more exasperated than annoyed.]

Yes, of course I have one. And no- why should you?

[This was completely undignified.]

[futhark]

Nothing. [ It's true, if just because he's not thinking too far ahead. "Living in the moment" personified. He lets a small "oomph" as Berserker collapses under him, and clings for those few seconds more he needs to properly fold the wings. It's a surprising effort, and always a new experience to feel soreness in new limbs. Once it's done he rolls off Berserker back, onto the cold tiles of the balcony. (Sorry for the glitter, it seems folding the wings releases some of that powder) ]

I simply promised to reward you, should you win. And fully intend to do that. [ The faint smile on Berserker's face, the left-over the exhilaration he felt. The feralness of the Moon directed somewhere else, that's soothing, yes? Caster realizes with a bit of delay he had cupped Berserker's face with his hands— after an honorary duel closeness is what he seeks ]

[unsundered]

[One's imminent death was a hard thing to overlook, and he was still getting used to the idea. Though Emet-Selch didn't intend to use it as a weapon against any of the Warriors too often. He didn't exactly want to dwell on his fate overmuch.]

It's not as though I require your protection. My only enemies here would be- well, you lot, and we seem to have worked that out quite nicely.

[A renewed cooperation. Not that it eliminated the danger- nothing could do that, neither of them could help who they were, everything that they'd done.]

You can show me around later, and I can decide where I'll be staying.

[Watch him pick her room like yes this would be acceptable, what do you mean these are your things, why is that my problem.]

[twoplayergay]

Rich's reassurance does drain some of the tension out of Michael. Some of it. "Oh. I guess I just... I assumed. Sorry, dude." He starts to fidget, squirming just a bit.

"You can definitely have more than one important person..." Even if Michael is used to having only one, that's just because he's an antisocial loser.

He opens his mouth to say something about being a weirdo since he has an uncommon reaction, when Rich takes his sentence in that spicy direction, and Michael chokes on his words. He hiccups with nerves, face and neck heating up.

"A-am I? I didn't... mean... um. Since you're not..." He stops, swallows, gathers himself. You're a useless virgin, Michael, still.

"Kiss me?" There we go.

[twoplayergay]

Michael covers a smile and manages to stifle a giggle. Rich's offended face is.... so cute. "I guess I just have a calming presence?" He offers as an out, worried he's pushed it too far with the pseudo-flirting.

He moves his hand to the back of his neck, rubbing it nervously. "sorry, dude, no... not with me. Maybe we can die my hoodie around your waist?" Though.... it's kind of long enough to just cover all of Rich's front quite handily. Michael finds himself wishing Rich could just pull it over his head and wear it properly because it would be huge and adorable. Maybe another time.

Shit, that's gay.

"Come on, I'll walk you home."

[futhark]

The other one? [ Caster frowns. Did he accidentally strike a nerve? Was there some conflict going between her and her Bonded? He walks closer, taking the offered hand and covering it with his own (such a different kind of hand to hold). Releasing the magic, pouring it out through his fingers— almost an instinctual thing to do ] If your Bonded is denying the bond between you— show me their way. I'll make them rethink their actions.

[ See? He cares. Also, he probably seeks an excuse to start a fight somewhere. ]

[showsnopiety]

No, not him.

[Her voice started to raise into a growl-but the magic realize had her eyes dilate for a few moments, before she sighed, her puffed up wings relaxing against her back. No more swishing tail, or possible claws digging into his skin.

Instead, she moved-even slinked-over to lean against his front, closing her eyes. Magic was delicious.]

Beserker. He said only someone named Ritsuka had been his master.