☆ Event Log: Snatched, Part One

[faileas]

Event Log: January, Snatched - Part One

I. The Fires (14th) Though it began this month with petty vandalism, before long, things escalate. On the evening of the 14th, when many are settling down for the night, fires blaze to life simultaneously all over the city, though they seem to cluster in places that Mirrorbound and refugees frequent. Homes, businesses, market stalls, the Barracks, the Residential Districts, they could pop up anywhere, but the worst of them seem to hit different locations within the Haven. The refugees stand to lose a lot in the fires, everything they've built up since arriving here at the end of September, and Mirrorbound stand to suffer damage to the homes or businesses they've built in Aefenglom. No doubt everyone is quick to catch on, but with so many locations burning at once, help is thin on the ground. As soon as they're alerted, the Coven sends out a call to all Witches, Merrow, water-based Dragons, anyone who can manipulate water or ice to help put out the fires across town before they can spread. With the city plan so tight and buildings so close together, it's a real worry. They'll accept all hands, even those with no particular water-based talents - anybody can carry buckets, after all. Bucket brigades made up of mostly Monsters form from the River Temese out to pass water to where it's needed most. Others with fire magic or resistances are asked to search the buildings still on fire for anyone still trapped inside. On the streets, more set up stations to treat burns and smoke inhalation, and to check people over for worse injuries. It takes a couple of hours to put out the last of the flames, but thanks to quick action, no lives are confirmed lost. The City Guard is present at the sites of the fires in the hours afterward, questioning witnesses and determining the sources with both magical and Monster-ability-based methods, but as the chaos calms down, it quickly becomes clear that 1. this is a case of purposeful arson, and 2. not all witnesses are present. Maybe it's your friend, or family member, or just an acquaintance you know you saw go into their house at the end of the day, but they're conspicuously absent from the crowds gathered on the streets. Those who are Bonded to a missing person feel it first, though - a horrible sensation like a pillow over the face or a tightening in the chest, smothering their Bond to barely anything, except the very rare flicker of something, a tiny spark lost to the darkness as soon as it's felt. The sudden absence of them is like a case of phantom limb, something that should be there suddenly isn't, but yet it isn't quite an annullment or breaking of the Bond. It's still there, just muted and tamped down. It feels a little different for everyone, maybe painful or maybe just uncomfortable, or maybe, in the cases of new or less-close Bonds, it simply feels as if it never existed. Regardless, those Bonded can't be found through Bonds. It's like those loved ones have vanished, without a trace. The City Guard and Coven representatives alike will seek to make a comprehensive list of all who have gone missing, but Mirrorbound cooperation will be needed for that; they would know better than anyone, because the missing ones are all Mirrorbound or refugees.

II. The Lost Souls (14th - 20th) CW: Torture, captivity, restraints. You were spirited away in the middle of the night. Maybe you were out, or maybe you were safe in your own home, but either way, someone managed to get the drop on you. Upon waking, everything is fuzzy, until clarity returns suddenly and violently. It's possible to remember a struggle, an enchanted darkness that might have enveloped you, maybe even a glimpse of the face of the human or Witch who grabbed you, but now you're stuck in a small, stone cell, the only entrance covered in shiny new bars thick enough to hold back a rampaging Dragon. The hall beyond is also stone and dimly lit by sparse magitech lights and the soft, runic glow of spells drawn on the walls and floors. There are more cells like yours, filled with more Monsters and Witches like you. What's worse, maybe you're alone, or maybe another poor soul is trapped with you - the space isn't exactly large enough for two, but the comfort might be nice. Witches will find their magic restrained, tamped down with a spell similar to the Coven's punishment for lawbreaking. Monsters' restraints are more traditional - muzzles, chains, manacles, and particular weaknesses that differ from Monster type to Monster type, such as silver or iron, water, or the lack of water. Even if, by some small mercy, a person finds themselves with their hands free, all of the captives' Watches have been taken, along with most other belongings on them. The uncertainty of your new location doesn't last for long. It's only a matter of time before people pass through the cellblock in pairs or trios, talking to each other and ignoring the captives behind bars, checking up on the spells that line the room. Those with keen memories will realize - these are not the same people who took them in the first place. All are human, and they all share a familial resemblance - black hair, violet eyes, pointed noses, and unpleasant sneers. Over time, with observation (and what else are you going to do, while you wait for the worst?), maybe frequenters of the Coven will pick out a familiar face, a haughty, unpopular Witch named Constance Rathmore who refuses to associate with Mirrorbound in classes, or those familiar with the law might pick out a mid-ranked member of the City Guard named Godfrey Rathmore, who perhaps looks the other way when refugees are harassed. As the hours tick by, it becomes obvious that there are maybe 22 of the Rathmore family, the only ones with access to this corridor. Other voices, maybe familiar from the kidnapping, can be heard outside the main doors at times, but they never enter, and seem none the wiser as to what is actually happening. a. The Torments And what is happening? Something sinister. It's usually a different set of family members, a pair of cousins, the daughter or the son, occasionally even the matriarch and her son and daughter-in-law (who may be recognized as long-time members of Parliament). Their methods and motivations may be a bit different, but they share one thing - innate cruelty, and a hatred for those they see as a plague on Aefenglom, those harbingers of unwanted change. Sometimes they inflict pain on captives right there through the bars of the cells, with nasty spells or physical instruments, but more often, they choose a victim or two to remove from their cell, still in restraints, to take down the hall, through the heavy door at the opposite end from the entrance. The wide room at the end is a place of horrors: instruments of torture lining tables, heavy restraints, and glass jars to receive any bits or blood they might separate from the original owners, to sell on the black market. The runes on the walls and floor in this room are different as well - this is advanced, forbidden magic, practiced by the daughter Constance on brand new test subjects. When the family members have grown bored or tired themselves out, they return their current playthings to a cell - not always the same cell with the same cellmate, not always with the same restraints, but every time they ensure that it will be difficult to escape or fight back. b. The Whispers While the Rathmores do not often speak directly to captives, they speak to each other quite a bit, as do the others who occasionally pass outside the heavy door at the entrance and simply seem to serve as watchmen outside the corridor. It's easy to get snippets of conversation between the horrors. What else are you going to do, besides wait, and listen, and plot your escape? "Shame about Uncle Rodolphus. Scarred by the mist, his Black Market business raided." "None of it would have happened if they hadn't provoked Dorchacht. It was Drummond's Witch in our city who unleashed that awful gas, as retribution for what they did over there..." "...-Destabilizing a whole city like that, and there are only a hundred of them give or take. Imagine what they'll do to Aefenglom if we don't stop it." "They'll all want to leave after this, surely. We'll go for another batch in a couple of weeks, once Godfrey convinces the Guard to stop looking." "Good. Maybe Dorchacht will take them. Them and their brutal revolutionaries..." "...-Father thinks we can control them if he manages to get in touch with his contact in Dorchacht. They had that spell, you know? Like the collars, but better. Maybe then we can sell them off, make some money back to cover our losses..." "...-All this pushing for equality. The whole economy will collapse. Everyone has their place in a functioning society, right, sister?"... "...-heard from Mr. Rathmore himself they're doing magic in there. A spell to send the Mirrorbound home, and the refugees along with them." "Then why did we have to grab them like that? You'd think they'd want to leave." "The Coven wants them here, obviously. It's a power-play, there's no way they'd allow Mr. Rathmore to do this..." "...-I don't know about this, the Rathmores always seemed a little extreme-..." As a reminder: while this prompt contains a general content warning for torture, please make sure to leave decently specific content warnings in your headers for anything that may be uncomfortable for other players to stumble across. The level of torture experienced by each character is up to the individual players - please respect each other's limits!

III. The Ones Left Behind (14th - 20th) Meanwhile, out in the city, the atmosphere is a new kind of tense. The papers pick up the story pretty quickly, so before long, it seems that everyone knows about it. In the days since the fires, repairs seem to be on the backburner; the remaining refugees especially worry for their missing friends and loved ones, and the missing Mirrorbound. The graffiti stops entirely, as do nasty comments in the streets. The upper-class, when they come into contact with the remaining Mirrorbound, cannot meet their eyes, or even react with genuine sympathy, a rare few even saying in hushed murmurs that they hope they find their people. Vandalizing their property is one thing, it seems, but people simply vanishing, Bonds being smothered... that's another. Even if they don't worry for the Mirrorbound, they worry for their own safety in Aefenglom now. On the other hand, residents of the Western Residential District, primarily Monsters but including a fair few humans as well, stop by the Haven more often, bringing food and kind words, and asking after the disappearances with real concern. The City Guard is an increased presence on the streets, trying to track down witnesses who may have information, but without warrants, their hands are tied in a lot of cases. Some Mirrorbound are asked quietly by the Lead Investigator if they wouldn't mind looking into some of the sources of the fires, and trying to track down anyone who might have seen something - they can operate a little more loosely, not being bound by the same bureaucracy as the Guard. They're promised Guard and Coven cooperation and support in this. The demand for artists increases in the days after the abduction. Many of the refugees especially will seek out anyone who can draw to help them create fliers about the missing people to post around town, to raise awareness. Maybe they want to make posters of another refugee, or maybe they want posters made of particular Mirrorbound faces who helped them in the past. They're distressed, but they're pulling together as a community - and it's clear they consider all the Mirrorbound a part of it, judging from how they'll try to pull anyone in to their efforts to put the 'missing' posters up around the city. The Coven, too, is in a flurry of worry, second only to the refugees, who are missing some of their own as well. Many of the regular classes are disrupted and become impromptu Divining sessions, circles of Witches holding hands and chanting in rooms filled with incense smoke, making concentrated efforts to determine the location of their missing fellows. After all, many Mirrorbound are their classmates, and they want to see them returned safely. Anyone passing through the Coven may get pulled into one of these sessions - Witches to lend their magic to the circle, Monsters who know any of the missing to act as foci. Unfortunately, nothing concrete turns up in the fleeting visions they do get, and the backlash is immense, resulting in splitting migraines. It's magical interference for sure. Luckily, Miss Aerianna, the middle-aged Arachne caretaker to the Dreamers (who, she'll say, are currently unreachable - they're trying to suss out the missing Mirrorbound as well), is well-versed with Divination headaches, and is around distributing her supposed cure-all, which smells like swamp-water and tastes twice as bad. At least it works on the headaches. While the part of the city who wanted to see the Mirrorbound gone have quieted down some, the part of the city that welcomes them has grown louder, providing what support they can to try to find those lost souls who have vanished. The investigation briefs will be posted under location-specific headers down below! Feel free to thread underneath them with others investigating the same area, or collaborate with other teams to share information. We decided to go ahead and allow for everyone who signed up to investigate whichever area they're interested in rather than splitting characters into mod-decided teams, but we encourage working together!

Welcome to Part One of January's event, Snatched! The sign-ups thread is here - it's not too late to get involved. Only the kidnapped characters who will escape on the evening of the 20th is closed out to new sign-ups. Headers for the investigations are here. Part Two of this event will be posted on the 21st and will include the escape, rescue and bringing the perpetrators to justice.

And a note for all! If your character does anything significant during Part 1 or Part 2, we want to hear about it on the city tracker! Make sure your submissions are in by Feb. 3rd, because a special aftermath post will go up on the 4th.

Comments

[curruid_coinchenn]

I will...

[ Berserker sits back down. His leg was aching way too much for him to continue standing. The hunger is forgotten for the moment as he gently presses the area around the wound. It's tender and hot, neither of which are good signs.

As strong a front as he puts up, the hunger is getting to be unbearable. The dragon stays on the ground as he continues to observe Judar. ]

As I've said, I have no want to play their game. [ He shrugs. ] I can lunge forward quickly enough, but...defend yourself as you see fit. I'm in no danger of losing myself to my instincts.

[ Not...entirely the truth. He's having to push his need to hunt to the back of his mind right now. ]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Yeah. The leg- well, everything about the guy was in pretty bad straits. He needed both food and a healer of some kind, of some skill. A shame they made the mistake of putting potential food that the dragon didn't hold any feelings towards. If they really wanted to test the camaraderie or torment them with the idea of survival against their loved ones, this was a big mistake. Maybe they thought the Mirrorbound all cared about one another. Idiots. ]

Right. Like I said, we'll be their most frustrating cell. Never letting them get what they want.

[ It's not like he was just going to give up or anything. After finding the key bit of information to destroy them, he was going to get out of here. ]

Keep resisting the spell and they'll get bored pretty quickly. They tossed that thing in here because they didn't want to wait.

[ Or to speed things up, but the way Judar was framing it gave them both an opportunity to spite the Rathmores. Just a little bit and they'll be pissed and impatient enough to move on to something else. How strong can spite be over hunger? ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

Frustration might lead to another beating.

[ It's a dry remark delivered in his normal disinterested tone. ]

What do you think they'll do when we don't play their games? Their cruelty isn't very inventive...This is the most interesting thing they've done so far.

[ He closes his eyes, trying to focus on anything but the nagging hunger that only grows greater. The scent of Judar's blood certainly isn't helping things. ]

[kuroi_taiyo]

Would you rather be more cooperative?

[ After everything that was said earlier? Though there's going to be a point when they didn't have much choice, Judar was sure of that. They could make things difficult, but it'll only lead to problems later on. ]

If there is anything interesting that they've got in mind, it might take time to put together. For now, aside from the ones like that guy with the glove, it's just grunts and mooks. So... Beatings for the most part.

[ He couldn't assume that the other guy was a witch. The glove could've easily have had some spells prepared into it- or it was prepared anyway to put some separation between witch and target. He hadn't studied very far into things like magical signatures or anything like that.

With that and the spell ball... The best Judar could do was to leave the cuts alone, so that they'd clot and stop, instead of doing anything to smear and worsen the smell of blood in the air. Hopefully it stops and wears off before the dragon loses himself to hunger. Though he said he was in no danger of losing to those instincts... ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

No, I wouldn't.

[ Time is all they have here, it seems. The blood scent is getting to be unbearable for him; it's like a wounded animal released in front of a starving predator. Berserker doesn't move from his spot, but he stares at Judar with that same predatory look at before. The faun is less a person and acquaintance now and more a potential source of food. ]

We're giving them time to come up with something creative. [ He shifts a little bit to one side, as if gauging the distance between them. ] Won't that be something...

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Of course it's for something like this that their captors are fine with giving a break between visits, and probably taking 'care' of the people in other cells.

Ah... That expression really is starting to change, though. Was the spell that effective? Not that Judar's naive or stupid enough to not realize that the injuries they both had made things more desperate. They were turning the dragon into both a starving and injured predator, who would need the hunt even more desperately. Now, without a means of getting away, Judar was just bait, taunting him due to the bloody antler. ]

Someone else has been working on that the entire time, I bet. Those people just went to deal with people in another cell.

[ And to indicate how he knew, Judar tapped at the edge of his deer-like ears. All the better to snoop. ]

You know that if we live and get out of all of this, you're really going to owe me, right? I'm still going to fight you off, but we know where this is going.

[ Even injured, there's no way that Berserker was weaker than Judar right now. ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

...I should warn you I'm poisonous and likely to use that against you.

[ He doesn't move from where he sits, just shifts again, almost into a crouch. One quick lunge across the small space and he could be on top of Judar in no time. ]

We'll live. Whatever it is, I will repay you. It's only fair for what's to come.

[ The spell isn't that effective, it's that it's compounding on his instincts. He hates these instincts and hates that they can used against him so effortlessly. ]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Berserker, you dork. If it's taking advantage of your instincts to make you ready to pounce and devour someone you somewhat know, the spell's exactly as effective as it needs to be.

He really doesn't like the way the guy's shifting even more. It's not too different from how Caren and that jaguar person were ready to pounce, going right for his throat. The fact that poison's also going to be involved... he really didn't stand a chance. Despite the shitty situation, the amusement of his own luck is not lost on him. ]

If they don't break it up in time for a healer to work... I guess it wouldn't matter. You'd be free of that debt, as there's no one I bonded to that would feel it. Lucky that, huh?

[ So either you better really hold back on killing him quickly, or do it as fast and painless as possible. It'd depend on how much Berserker was ready to hold that debt. ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ Shut up!! Don't tell him that!! ]

The poison won't kill you. [ As if that matters. ] But you will panic and hallucinate terrifying things.

[ What happens next is lightning quick. Berserker lunges across the room towards the faun. A thick, black, acrid-smelling substance drips from his mouth. Unable to resist himself any longer, he snaps at Judar with his sharp, poison-covered teeth. ]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ If he ever heard that those were Berserker's thoughts, he totally will. ]

Great. We know what'll-

[ Ah, it was already happening. The lunge was quick, too. Quick enough to demonstrate just how desperately hungry the dragon was. While he didn't share the lack of ability to run, it meant Judar was ready to act in other ways. In this case, taking the right moment to pull his legs in and kick back at the figure. Judging by size and speed, he thinks it'd go for the shoulder and face. At this point, it was a test of how strong his legs were going to be against gravity.

Regardless, it's enough for the faun to seethe from the pain in the injured leg. Even worse, he still didn't have anywhere to go. ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ Judar's kick nails Berserker in his injured shoulder; he's quick enough to guard his face from the attack. It still hurts like hell and is more than enough to bring him back to his senses for the moment. ]

...Did you have to kick that shoulder? [ He snarls, not backing away. ] I should tear you apart just for that.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Enough sense to talk, but not enough to back off... They were just delaying the inevitable, but damn if they were going to make those people wait on whatever show they were hoping to get. ]

You're going to tear me apart either way. I said I was going to fight back.

[ Ah, but he really won't get away with doing that again, probably. That really made his bad leg hurt more. ]

You'd be more pissed if I just let you do what you wanted, anyway. Easy doesn't seem your style.

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ It really did take the wind out of his sails, but it's only for a moment. Unable to shake the feral instincts screaming in his head, he lunges at Judar again, aiming to grab him by the shoulders and sink his teeth into the crook of his neck. It seems he's holding nothing back now... ]

I guess officially starting the cannibalism/assault/gore CW?

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ He really didn't have the ability to pull that off twice in a row. The ache in his leg was too much of a distraction.

As the teeth sink in, there's a choked sound of pain. Not just choked because of the teeth and pressure, but Judar was actually pretty good at holding back sounds of pain. For as long as he could, he was going to deprive the Rathmores the satisfaction of hearing him scream. Yet, in a way, it's also like a white hot fire sinking in, as the black poison did its work.

As the pupils dilated and panic started to set in, it seems that Judar's way of panicking was getting even quieter while reacting. Hands over Berserker's face, and knees against the body to push it away, but really. There was always going to be a clear difference between a dragon and a faun, even if the latter had a unique amount of strength in their legs. ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ Even as injured as Berserker is, he does not relent at the force. Judar's struggles only make him that much more determined, angry even. He releases the bite, a mixture of blood and poison dripping down his face, only to gnash his teeth at Judar's hands. The attempts to create separation between them only give the faun a few extra inches.

Berserker's grip grows stronger, his sharp claws dig into whatever he can grab a hold of. Judar is nothing more than prey to him now. ]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Far, far back, in the depths of Judar's mind, he kind of wishes that he asked Berserker to avoid destroying the hands. Not because he had anything particularly special that required the use of them later, but for what they'd meant for his entire life. Magicians required the use of their hands, almost as much as their brains, and Judar worked to make them particularly dexterous and skilled.

However, while no one would know about the things that Judar could hallucinate, which would induce the near-silencing and almost paralyzing panic, it certainly kept him from thinking about how much seemed to be getting lost in all of this, one area at a time. Even as he continued trying to shove and get his legs between him and the dragon's body, for leverage to shove him off, or the hands grew nigh useless with the teeth destroying tendon and muscle, the pained sounds were choked. The tears that were building up weren't from straight-up crying, but the pressure from how he was automatically internalizing everything.

It was clear that his body would go into shock, or he'd pass out in some way from the trauma and panic mixed together. He just had to bet on those Rathmores coming in and splitting them up before it was really too late. ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ Berserker's role before this was to be used for another's purpose. His wants and needs never mattered, so he would do as he was told without feeling anything. This is not much different from that now. His instincts are being used against him so he can be used in experiments like this. How much will it take to make a dragon attack someone it's familiar with? How quickly will it try to fatally wound or kill its prey? He's being used to fulfill someone else's wishes again and if he were in his right mind, he would be angry.

But he's not. With Judar poisoned, his intent is to kill. He doesn't tear the chunk of flesh out that he bit into, but backs away momentarily. The faun's panicked attempts to free himself are doing nothing. Berserker goes to bite down on his throat, a killing blow...only to crumple into a heap, like a wet sack dropped on the ground.

Seems the Rathmores were more interested in keeping them both alive, for now. The same people as before rush in and one quickly puts the disabled dragon back in his restraints. Berserker thrashes around with a roar until he's forcibly subdued with a syringe full of...something. Its effects work quickly and his eyes turn dull and glassy. ]

Make sure it didn't kill that one, [ the one with the syringe says as he steps away from Berserker. ] There was a lot of poison in that bite.

[ What they didn't know is that his venom didn't kill, just that its effects could last for hours at higher concentrations. ]

[kuroi_taiyo]

'Just mangled it so far. The freak-'

[ The other one was getting a good look, mostly to survey and make sure nothing severe was going to have to be countered right away. Which left a panicking Judar, who's eyes couldn't even focus on one particular thing in those hallucinations, gave a two-legged kick, knocking the guy back, as the faun continued to kick at the air; at whatever 'demon' was haunting him. ]

'... Try to grab a damn sample of that beast's poison.'

[ The big guy probably never had a great temperament. Now, with the pain in his gut and arm, he was just more incensed to kick Judar's face back, hitting the wall behind him hard. Hard enough to daze, if not fully knock out, before stomping at the knees, to try and damage them as much as the hands were. It's probably the thing that's gotten the most reaction of pain from the faun so far, really. That's before getting out his own syringe to put something in there- a weak neutralizer agent, to work with the other guy's magic. If the poison killed at some point, that'd do the job to keep it from going that far. ]

'This one should be good for one of those weak healing spells. Wouldn't have to deal with it fighting back anymore. '

[curruid_coinchenn]

[ Berserker still has poison and blood dripping down his chin. Now that he's heavily drugged, it's easy for them to collect some of the black, sticky substance. He weakly jerks his head away and gets a hard slap to his temple for his trouble. It's enough to cow the dragon into behaving for now. ]

'Yeah, yeah. I'll get it healed up so it stops bleeding on everything.'

[ He uses a very weak spell on Judar, enough to stave off the bleeding and pain. ]

'Get them both out of here. We can't get anything else useful out of them like this.'

[kuroi_taiyo]

'Yeah...'

[ The response is a mix of the temper abating, irritability from having to move them around again anyway, but also knowing it needed to be done. Then again, he was around because he could get them moved to other cells. Kicking the rest of the temper away into the faun's hips, the faun gets picked up first. Then he'll just get a final kick into the dragon, for good measure, and because of earlier. ]

'I'll toss this one with the other deer-witch-freak and toss the other in one of the cleaner cells to get it ready for that regrowth stuff.'

[ Seems they already know to avoid 'rot' and mold issues, which could cause scale regrowth problems. Only the best for harvesting, right? ]

[curruid_coinchenn]

'Yeah, yeah, I'll make sure it's ready to harvest in another few days.'

[ It's difficult to move a barely conscious dragon, especially one as heavy as Berserker is. The kick doesn't even register nor does he even look towards its source. The same attention is paid when he's jerked to his feet by a leash. He obediently stands up and lets himself be yanked out of the room to the waiting "clean" cell. Compared to what Judar was likely thrown in, it is cleaner. He's shoved into the corner and chained to the wall, left to ride out his drugged state alone.

Berserker owes Judar a lot for this if they ever make it back. ]

And done!

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ They'll know just how much when Judar realizes the work he'll have to put into playing the guitar again. If they ever managed to get out and to proper healers, the damage in the hands will be fixed, but he'll have to work everything back to how it was again.

For now, they just have to survive. ]