☆ 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

[kuroi_taiyo]

Maybe for dessert, kitten.

[ They have no qualms about testing the way monsters act around, and on, witch blood. They grabbed more than enough to use too, so it wouldn't be a hardship on their plans. Besides, they'll be getting more in a little while. They just had to make these last, hopefully long enough to harvest the valuable parts from them more than once.

Ah, she's being rather stubborn though, now isn't she? The one holding her hair will deliver a punishment, hoping injury would bring out the hunger further. Indirect injuries don't seem to be enough, so the one dealing with Judar placed a few shallow cuts along the neck, collarbone, down along the stomach. Just little places to bleed freely. It just works out better if Judar pulls against his restraints, because it presses the barbs further into his skin, making the charm to encourage antler growth more effective. ]

[showsnopiety]

Call me a kitten again, and I'll feed you your guts.

[She'd rather take their blood thanks, not the blood and meat of her fellow captors. She knows they've been taking a lot of it from her fellow witches. She's smelt it-and too, she knows that it's a problem on the Black Markets, thanks to the gossip she's heard.

Speaking of blood...the fact that Judar is bleeding more makes her tremble in tension. It's hard-so hard. His neck is exposed, he's vulnerable, and if she were any less stubborn, she would have lunged forward already.

Instead, she's rocking on her feet. Caren was trying to focus instead on her captors. They were a better target. They were the reason they were here. But using strength...that didn't work. Then...hm.

She closed her eyes, and made as if to sag, biting down on her inner cheek. Maybe if she seemed to have fainted, they'd loosen their grip and...she wasn't sure what she'd do. Something. Maybe give Judar a chance to flee.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Suddenly sagging is certainly something they weren't expecting. The grip doesn't release right away, but there's a firm shake given from the grip on her hair, and tugging of some extremities to jolt a reaction out of her. ]

'Passed out?'

'I guess even chimeras can have weak failures... Huh. Guess we'll have to try it with a dragon. '

[ It didn't seem they were simply going to release her, though. See, Judar they're used to, which is why he was fixed in such a way. They don't even need to hold him, to be propped like that. He can't even easily shove someone from the side. Which meant the one that did the slicing fixed some of the chains back onto Caren, before the larger guard tossed her to the far side of the cell, giving them an easy leave. ]

Good thing... They don't have patience right now...

[showsnopiety]

[Caren didn't react to the head shake, nor the tugging. Really, if they wanted her to react, they were going to have to do something that'd cause her some measure of pain-and see the results.

She offered a gentle huff, and opened her eyes. She'd been listening to them walk away.]

I would have bitten one of them.

[Her voice was rumbly, more of a growl still. She needed to kick that tinture away, somewhere. But her eyes were worried-even if there was still that predatory gleam.]

...though now I'm...not sure what to do.

[Let him out? Play dead until they bring a dragon? She doesn't have a chance against one, not if they go feral. And Judar less still, with how he'd been bled.

No, she can't. She can't fall apart, she needs-she just needs a plan. Then she can get him out, and it will be all right. It has to be.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

I think they're ready for 'beasts to act like beasts.'

[ Paraphrased from what's been heard before, but he's got a feeling Caren's heard things along those lines since getting grabbed as well. Dehumanizing prisoners was a rather normal thing, especially if acts of cruelty were already being planned. ]

See if you can get that tincture out of here. I can hold this for a little while longer.

[ That way they didn't feel the increased effects as they're pulled closer and over the feral line. ]

[showsnopiety]

Morons.

[She shook her head at that but-Judar had a point. She nodded, and with that, clasped her chains with one hand to keep it from clinking, and grabbed the tincture. After that, it was a matter of peeking out into the hall, and checking to see if anyone was there.

No one. But she didn't see a good place to throw it out either.

Crap.

So, gritting her teeth, she drew her arm back, and hurled the jar as far away from their cell possible, before hurrying back to the room.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ He can see the way she's trying to peek out, and get the tincture tossed, just out of the corner of his vision. Unlike them, the people running this whole operation shouldn't have special hearing to realize that something's been moved away like that. As long as it was still active, or so he hopes... ]

Hopefully... The effects aren't nearly as strong on you now.

[ Judar isn't particularly worried about going feral, especially with it just being them. His mind just goes to sex and fighting anyone that gets in the way. It's considerably different from how a predator's affected. ]

Think you could undo the one keeping my head back?

[showsnopiety]

It's still strong but...I think I can get near you without being part of the problem.

[As in, try to maul and eat him. She is a risk when going feral, especially now. She wants to feed and hunt. No fighting. Only eat.

She wiped her mouth against her shaved arm- crude, but without hankies, little choice in the matter- before nodding, and stepping closer.]

I think I can get you unstrapped entirely, if given enough time.

....I do feel that I must apologize. It doesn't make sense but...

[Still.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

Stop apologizing for being a predator.

[ It's not her fault that they were taking advantage of those very instincts. Those people purposefully put a predator and prey type of monster into a room to see how things would go. It's only natural that, after being pushed towards the lines of 'feral,' that she'd start drooling or something. ]

Focus on the one on my head. With the stuff in the shackles on my arm, I don't know what'll happen after pulling the barbs out.

[ They don't need more blood filling the area. ]

[showsnopiety]

[She shot him a glare, but it was half hearted at best. She had chased around some prey before, and it felt weird when she was lucid. She was used to it being on the other foot, so to speak- since she was so frail in her former life, she was easy prey.

At least she'd stopped drooling. She was still hungry and wanted a nibble, but she could channel that into other things.]

I think we both know what will happen. However-I have quite a bit of material with my clothing.

[She's gentle in getting the strap off of his head so he could move his neck. But then she stepped back and...

She made to quietly as possible to rip strips from her skirts.]

It's not as thick as a winter skirt, and it's not as clean as I'd like, but keeping barbs in your skin is not an option.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ He could move his neck, no longer be forced to lean back in that awkward way, and get himself sitting comfortably. Most of the awkward position was from the shackles and the one on his head keeping him fixed down on his legs. With them being so new, he wouldn't even be familiar or comfortable with what it'd take to get up with that position.

He does nudge at one of her arms to stop Caren from ripping up her clothes. ]

You don't want them thinking to take your clothes away. I think these things are meant to do something, which is why not everyone's getting barbed shackles, so they'll probably just keep putting them back on. At least this way, they're in the same position and spot.

[ It's not the easiest for Caren, more for the type of person she is (he's guessing, given that this all started because she tried taking the torture for him,) but it'll be easier on him in the long run. ]

[showsnopiety]

[She stopped when he nudged her, but she still...had to tale a deep breath of frustration. He was too logical, too right. And likely as punishment, they'd take their time in finding a new position, and make the wounds wider.

And she'd have to watch.

Her fingers balled in her skirts, and her jaw tightened. This was just so...frustrating.]

If they're so careless, this would be the last and only time they'd put these on you.

[Her voice was low, furious.]

I could get you out.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ In some ways, probably because it was still so 'early' in their captivity, the torture wasn't exactly the most extreme yet. There were probably ways of making this worse, aside from wider wounds. They could've brought the tincture in a while ago, or exposed the back of his neck, which would've just encouraged Caren's need to pounce from behind. Just from history and what he's witnessed, Judar could imagine a lot of things being done.

Instead he's going to steadily shift himself to a wall, motioning with a nod of his head for her to follow him. ]

With enough coordination and talking with the others here, you could help get a bunch of people out. For now, let's just take a chance to relax while they wait for you to maul me.

[ Maybe... Maybe they'll get a few minutes before the quiet gets them too suspicious. ]

[showsnopiety]

[It's true. It wasn't the worst they could have done to either of them for it. It's still painful to watch, and they could have just shoved her mouth against Judar and made her bite.

She could think of other things they could be doing to both of them right now. But she sighed, and moved to lean against the wall with him.]

That's the plan. However...it sounds as if you want to stay behind. What, are you a masochist?

[She's still frustrated and mad about not getting the shackles out, so.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

Who said anything about staying behind?

[ Look, Judar could be even more infuriatingly logical with all of this. At this point though, it might make her puff up in an amusing enough way. That'd be a good distraction for some of the things going on... ]

My legs are still... Settling. There's nothing I can offer in an attempt to escape that wouldn't get me caught and left behind later. Not even a strong kick. If they keep changing everyone around, though, we can probably put something together that would actually lead to an escape.

[showsnopiety]

[He was being infuriatingly logical about all of this. But then, she was also a little on edge. It was easy to rile her up, thanks to the tincture.

She had to grab her tail- sad looking as it was-so it wouldn't thump and show that one, she was awake, and two, she was annoyed.]

If the pattern is anything to go by, we're going to keep being switched around. So we'll have a chance to talk and plan, not to mention leave messages.

Don't make me bite you Judar. We can still carry you, no matter what shape your legs are in. No one is being left behind.

[kuroi_taiyo]

I'll just bite you back.

[ It won't be as dangerous, but it'll still deliver a bit of pain. Enough to say that he doesn't just take punishments. ]

I'm saying that I can't help with starting the escape, not that I wasn't getting out. And my legs are in fine shape. Just... New. I won't need to be carried.

[ Too much pressure like that would probably hurt on some level, and the nerves on his legs were sensitive. Little did he know that it would actually be an issue of getting around quickly by the time of the escape. ]

[showsnopiety]

You know that'd only make me excited.

[Not the predator kind of excited. The faun kind.]

Just don't let them know about your legs, and we can help with the rest. Or at least, I will. If you're going to be stubborn, I'll just hold your hand.

[kuroi_taiyo]

Promise?

[ Hey, a faun's kind of excited is just his cup of tea. Though he's not in the mood right now, a few jokes do help to lighten the mood a bit. ]

And nothing from what I said meant I was being stubborn. Relax. Our main focus is going to be working with everyone else here.

[showsnopiety]

Yes. You pervert.

[She doesn't really have the energy to do anything about it, the joking made her feel better.]

I know. That's why I keep listening and passing on hope. And offering chain breaking.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Joking and being 'a pervert' kept him from getting eaten by a chimera before. Why not stick with that tactic? Plus, it already feels like the tension's easing a little. ]

Yeah, I've been listening too. If I didn't already know that they'd be checking on things pretty often, I'd get a break, but it'll be less painful this way. It won't stop whatever else they decide to do, obviously, but these shackles are pretty minor right now.

[ He's not really a 'hope' person, though. Too jaded, with logic and his own history going against the concept. ]

[showsnopiety]

[And flirtation was fun. She liked flirtation. She knew what to do with it.]

Pretty minor...you are a complete masochist. No wonder you slept with me.

[She has to swallow a laugh. He was right, but it didn't mean she wanted him to be right.]

We just need their keys. If they'd taken us to the torture room together...then there might have been an opportunity.

Not here.

[kuroi_taiyo]

Kept you from tearing my neck apart, didn't it? I think it turned into a pretty good encounter.

[ Sometimes a faun's dtf personality helped them with survival! Sometimes. It relied on how easily the 'predator's' instincts could be tugged away from the dangerous tendencies. ]

That chance'll come up. It just isn't going to happen here, with us.

[ But he's sure someone will get the chance. It just might take a while. ]

[showsnopiety]

I don't regret it. If I thought we could get away with it, and without the shackles...you wouldn't be safe.

[She may be a little feral still. But also just very dtf in general, still, from the heated look on her face.]

Just...don't invite more trouble, if you can. I'll have to smack you if you get hurt more.

[kuroi_taiyo]

We'll just have to make it up later on.

[ If he's not going to be safe, then save it for when they're in a better place, right? Away from shackles and feral-inducing tinctures and where there's something comfy to be on. For now, they'll have to settle for teasing and distracting themselves. ]

Besides... Who said I was going to invite trouble to myself at all? You're the one more likely to try and fight them and cause it all.