☆ 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

[kuroi_taiyo]

It's Judar.

[ But it'd be silly to continue this, crouched or sitting on the ground. So the new arrival, who only had these temporary merrow traits for the moment, stood back up. Connor may've let go of the hand, but it was offered all the same, to get the dog-eared guy back up as well. ]

We can go somewhere else to keep sharing things...

[ Which seems like a rather quick turnaround, but the faun nature that settled in before other features was more prone to promiscuity than violence to begin with. So it was rather easy to get pulled towards that again, even if he'd been fighting with Connor just a little bit ago. ]

You'd have to lead where, though. See, I just arrived, so I'm still figuring out where the good places are.

[plasticasshole]

[Connor takes the hand and gets to his feet fluidly, nodding his thanks. Usually he'd take people back to his house for this, but since they were just fighting he has to be slightly more cautious.]

I think I know a place.

[He starts to lead, heading back to the houses. But instead of going back to his own cottage, he finds an unclaimed one and slips inside, gesturing for Judar to follow.]

I'm sure nobody will mind if we borrow this cottage.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ His home, or anywhere else, it didn't seem to matter too much to him. Which is why it was easy to follow alongside, back to where he remembers was supposed to be the housing area, from the tour. It seemed like... But an empty place was fine. ]

Probably not. Even if there were, it doesn't look like they're using it...

[ And as a sign of him getting 'comfortable,' or at least accepting of the place, he started taking off the white wrap. That way the wand could be bundled away as those items were set aside. Just a little less to worry about, even as the shaggy hair and glowing tendrils found a way to get loose in the gesture. ]

They're usually all furnished, right? For the best welcome?

[ Seems like a good reason to tug at Connor, while walking backwards towards the bedroom. At least, it's what he's assuming is the bedroom, if the layouts were all cookie-cutter. ]

[plasticasshole]

They are, yes.

[Connor finally smirks a little, following Judar into the bedroom and pushing the door partly-closed behind them. No point in closing it all the way... nobody else is here.

There's a big bed in the centre of the room, and Connor is eager to get Judar onto it. He pushes him back against it, then starts working at unbuttoning his black shirt. He's fine with how this has turned around.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ It's definitely no trouble pushing him onto the bed. In some ways, it was practically invited, even if Judar didn't fall all the way back. Instead he held onto enough control with the fall to be sitting, so he could reach behind himself and get the single button that held the choli top together- Given just how much hair there was, there was no way he pulled stuff over his head without being dedicated to keeping it on for as long as possible. ]

So much to do to get off your clothes...

[ All these buttons and everything- After pulling off the black silk of his own top, and tossing it off to the side, he tugged at the other shirt to start unbuttoning from the bottom, to get these clothes off faster. ]

Everything else of mine just slides right off.

[ Easy clothes, and nothing worn underneath. Easy on, easy off- just as he liked it. ]

[plasticasshole]

[Connor slips the shirt off when it's unbuttoned, stepping out of his shoes before moving closer to Judar, standing close enough to rest his hands on his shoulders. Connor isn't exactly ripped, but he's got a little bit of muscle definition going on. Nothing like Judar of course, but he isn't insecure in his body.]

Maybe. But I like how they look.

[They look neat and tidy, though he's taken to rolling the sleeves up to the elbows to give it less of a formal air. For now though, with his shirt carelessly tossed onto the floor, he pushes Judar back a little more forcefully and starts to tug on the other man's pants.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Most people don't have the amount of definition Judar has. He worked especially hard for it, with the benefit of being lean enough to make that easy.

But so insistent. At least this time he does fall back all the way, making it easy to slide the silk pants off. While they were just snug enough to stay at his hips, the dress pants were chosen for their ease. Then, when they were off, it was clear that Judar's body was running hot already, working itself up- Or maybe he's been somewhat worked up the entire time. (Something that'll make more sense in the coming months, when physical Faun traits developed... Past that hard head. At this point, especially inside and with those pants off, it was easier to see the scattered scaling, in almost a loose pattern of the side profile of butterflies or something, faintly glowing along the outside of his hips and legs, down to the feet. Something that was also along the back and neck, but the gold was obscuring some of that at this point.

Using his feet to help get the hems past, for those clothes getting easily discarded as well, the stubborn switch starts to sit up again. More to reach and get those clothes dealt with, though he was unfamiliar with the modern styling, it was easy enough to figure out zippers and tooled belts. Plus, in the need for contact, it made it easy to kiss along that skin. ]

I'm wondering if we're on the same page here...

[ Of who'd be on top. Though really, while Judar had a tough skull and was pretty speedy, Connor was definitely stronger. So it's not actually hard to see who'd be able to push more. Luckily, while Judar certainly had a challenging and defiance streak, he really was a switch. ]

[plasticasshole]

[Continued here!]