☆ 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

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup lets out a sheepish little laugh that isn't totally humorous right now, considering everything going on.] Yeah, I- I know about the zouwu stuff, he's- [Hopefully mostly in his right mind still.] That's how I got that gash on the side of my head. Some men had him cornered, and then they threw a rock at me, and he- he attacked them. I tried to get him out of the city, but we got separated in the confusion...

When you saw him, was he- you know, himself? At least mostly? After what happened, I'm worried.

[chosenside]

[So that explains the injury at least. With everything that's going on, it's definitely not the worst outcome, especially since Newt seemed fairly well when Theseus encountered him.]

Still very much has some physical features of a zouwu, but more importantly, he recognized me. Guess it's a good sign there, recognized me and didn't attack me, speaks volumes that we're on good terms. [He's joking mostly, but there's definitely some actual relief there, like a part of him was afraid that Newt would attack him still.]

I'm worried, though. Do you intend to look for him, Hiccup?

[thisisamazing]

[There is a definite sag of relief in the set of his shoulders (and tiny wings) at that. It's good that he recognized his brother.] He wouldn't- He wouldn't attack you, even... even feral, he's still Newt. [If he wouldn't attack Hiccup, even in the middle of attacking other people, he thinks that Newt definitely wouldn't go after his brother.] Even when he was pretty far gone, he- he wanted to protect me, and I'm not even family.

[He scratches a hand through his hair, idle and frustrated by the whole situation.] Yeah. I- I don't know what else to do. Someone should be with him.

[chosenside]

He's still Newt, I agree, but these changes have made even the most docile of individuals become overwhelmed by their senses. It's not their fault, of course, and I'd hardly blame Newt if he did attack me...

[Theseus is glad that Newt's protected him, but he's not sure how long his brother can endure the changes or if they'll suddenly become worse with each passing hour.]

But that's why we have to be responsible now, making sure to use the least amount of force-- using these knockout spells on those that are unable to control their instincts. I know that those affected wouldn't want to hurt anyone normally. [He's grim, but believes this to be the right course of action, so he nods at Hiccup after a moment.]

Are you able to reach him? Through the bond?

[thisisamazing]

He wouldn't. [Hiccup shakes his head. He has a pretty unwavering faith in his friend that he wouldn't attack his loved ones, not like he had attacked those wealthy citizens. (They had provoked it by coming after them first instead of minding their own business, and Hiccup would feel worse about it if any of them had been seriously injured.)] I know this mist is- affecting people, but I don't think Newt is that far gone. I'd- I'd feel it if he were.

Yeah, I, uh, I don't think there's anything else to be done about it, at least until... someone figures out how to reverse all this. [He still hopes like hell that it's soon.]

Mm, it's... It's not exactly, we can't talk to each other through it or anything, but- I can sort of feel the general direction to go to find him? But with the mist, it's fuzzier than normal.

[chosenside]

[Theseus doesn't argue with Hiccup on that, partly because he doesn't want to. In this instance, he wants to be wrong and believe that the mist won't change Newt to the point where he'd hurt innocents. It's not within a zouwu's nature, at least, but he's also not discounting how strong the mist may be.

He really wants it to be gone soon.]

Newt's not in any state to answer calls either. [...Not that Newt is good about answering them in the first place. Theseus plans on bugging him more about that later on.]

If you know a general direction, we can start there. Better than wandering aimlessly. [He nods at Hiccup.] Listen, I want you to find him, I know you're up for it.

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup manages a smile and a small laugh despite the situation.] Newt's bad about answering calls anyway. [He echoes the thought, because it's true. Hiccup usually doesn't bother contacting him on the watches unless he just absolutely can't find him within the city.

He nods, expression settling into something more serious, a little concerned.] I- Yeah, okay. I'll- I'll do my best. I think- we just have to go where a zouwu would go. That's how he'd start looking if it were someone else.