apocalypsehowcomm | Event

Event - Lullaby

Lullaby

➥ For You Never Shut Your Eye

Photo of a small grassy area within an urban environment. Two men are passed out across the grass and sidewalk. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced sleep/fatigue, supernaturally-induced sleep disorders/somniloquy, needles/injections)

The line between waking and sleep is beginning to blur. People will find themselves sleeping far too much, but it never feels like enough. The music is growing more prevalent and persistent throughout town. The effect is still weaker within the building, but as October wears on, more and more people are affected and ADI staff are more intent than ever to find the source and also figure out how to block the effects. Characters will find themselves conscripted (between Halloween Party preparations) into assisting with building or testing anti-music and sleep devices along or with helping to try to track down the source of the music.

For those helping to build and test devices, there is an R&D lab in the basement levels of ADI that will be available. Devices native staff have been able to devise include:

Headphones that play different frequencies to try to cancel out the sound of the singing.
An armband that periodically stabs a small needle into the arm with a small dosage of adrenaline.
Headbands set to a constant low vibration.

The efficacy of all of these devices is… questionable, but perhaps others may have their own expertise to lend to the efforts, attempting something on a broader scale than just personal protection devices.

For those helping to track the source of the music, finding it seems to be impossible, but there is a definite pattern that characters will note as the days pass. The epicenters of the music are moving, migrating out of the graveyards and converging on ADI Headquarters. As this goes on, the building will become less and less of a safe haven, the music penetrating its walls and affecting the staff there more heavily. You might find yourself having to help a neighbor who's fallen asleep while working. Or you might not even be able to fully tell they've fallen asleep as they sleepwalk and talk almost like they're actually still conscious. Even those who have never been prone to sleepwalking and talking may find themselves affected and… far more open with what they say when in the unguarded state of semi-unconsciousness.

➥ Till the Sun Is In the Sky

A caucasian woman is lying on the floor, eyes closed. The room is dark around her with a spotlight shining on her. A secondary image of the woman, semi-transparent and wrapped in white clothes floats just above the woman on the floor. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced sleep/fatigue, thanatophobia, character death, death by poisoning, blood, choking, emetophobia, death by crushing)

By the 25th, some people may find waking up to be a challenge in and of itself. But they do manage to wake up. Seemingly. Perhaps the day is much like any other, heading to ADI or out around the city, grabbing coffee and- something is wrong. Something is very wrong. That cup of coffee you just drank had tasted a little different than usual. A touch of almond to it? It hits you that your throat is burning, bile and blood rising up and choking you as you hack and gasp and vomit. Your legs grow weak, you're losing control of everything, falling, dying.

And then you wake up.

Just a nightmare. Just a bizarre and horrible nightmare. You head out and… is this home? You're home! Or maybe… wait, this doesn't seem right. Have you gone somewhere else? Some things might be familiar, memories intertwined and mixing with fantastical elements, some your own, some not. You notice people you recognize, ones who might be as confused as you are. This isn't where they should be and they remember dying, too. Or seeing you die or someone else. It doesn't make sense, but somehow, they remember they had a dream they shared last night. And then something falls from above and nearly crushes you or your partner. Or maybe it does crush them, and you're suddenly looking at a dead body as the world and this nightmare that feels so very real becomes more and more hostile. Maybe something falls on you.

And then you 'wake up.'

➥ When the Blazing Sun Is Gone

Three sheet ghost halloween decorations stand in a line. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced sleep/fatigue, thanatophobia, character death, body horror, detailed description of painful physical transformation, description of the loss and regrowth of teeth, violence, mental status alterations, temporary power-loss, spiders)

Even with people dropping left and right thanks to the odd sleep effect taking hold, ADI staff are hellbent that their Halloween party will not be completely ruined. And on the 28th (a little before the actual holiday), everyone wakes up. Or… seems to. For those trapped in dreams, it will seem very much that they've woken up, the music has stopped, and they can actually carry on. For a few days, it even seems like things are normal. The party on the 31st is a blow-out bash. The entire first floor of ADI HQ has been transformed with decorations. The canteen is serving festive food and has set up a dance floor with holiday-appropriate music playing. Some of the offices feature additional activities, including party games like bobbing for apples in a trough that's been brought in, a guess this gross food booth, and more general party games. For a quieter time, there are also areas set up with board games and card games to play. And for some extra fun spooks a mini-haunted maze has been set up with faux spiders and webs, along with other goofy-looking monster creatures.

It's around 9 PM when the music and lights suddenly cut out. There's nothing for several seconds. Then, a voice begins to sing, filling the halls of ADI. It's a young girl's voice.

"Bye-bye, bye-bye,
Quickly you will die,
On the morning will be frost,
And you’ll go to the graveyard, the graveyard.

Grandfather will come there, too,
And he will bring the coffin.
Grandmother will come along,
Her tears, they will not soften.
Mama sings the prayer song, then,
And falls down on her knees.
Daddy takes you to the grave,
No one can hear his pleas.

Bye-bye, bye-bye,
Quickly you will die,
On the morning will be frost,
And you’ll go to the graveyard, the graveyard.

As the last notes of the song fade away, all hell breaks loose. Those who had been wearing particular sorts of costumes, ones that are more monstrous in nature, may find themselves transforming, growing, twisting, shifting. It's not a clean change, but a violent, agonizing one that cracks bones, tears and reshapes muscles and tendons, pushes out teeth to make room for new ones. Those transformed will find themselves compelled to chase, to hunt, to kill anyone they can get their claws, teeth, or other appendages on.

For those who stay themselves, it's not just their transformed friends who pose a danger, but the decorations they've set up, as well. Those fake giant spiders and webs? They're no longer fake. Neither are any of the other demonic little creatures. The goal of everything in ADI and even outside for those who manage to make it out the doors, is to remind you how very, very mortal you are. Those typically possessed of fantastic abilities will find that they have been sapped away. There's no calling on magic or innate abilities. You are mortal and you are going to die like everything mortal does.

In the chaos, characters will catch glimpses of a young girl flitting amongst the chaos, seeming unperturbed by it all. Trying to catch up to her or speak to her is fruitless, but she's there, and she's humming that song from before.

➥ When He Nothing Shines Upon

A caucasian woman has just woken up and stares grumpily at her phone. There is a purple gradient filter over the photo.
(cw: supernaturally-induced fatigue/malaise, thanatophobia)

Those who are killed at the party will find themselves waking up wherever they actually fell asleep a few hours or even days ago. If your character was one of the lucky few who somehow managed to escape the effect, you'll notice people waking up all over ADI HQ and elsewhere. There are no signs of damage on the bodies, but those who died in the dreams will find themselves feeling incredibly weak and generally ill for several hours to several days after the experience.

The music has actually stopped, and this time, it would seem you've actually woken up. Depending on how long you were passed out for, that may be a more unpleasant experience for some than others. There's a message posted from a random ADI employee's phone a few days later to the network:

Mr. S was right. This was fun! I'll have to come back next year to play with you. - Ava, the Lullaby Girl

P.S. Sorry for stealing your phone, horsegirl67. But I wanted to say, hi. C:

Unfortunately, there are no further messages and attempts to respond to the message will receive no reply for now.

But... fortunately…? All of the Halloween preparations are still up, and there's a festive party to attend if anyone actually feels keen on trying it in real life. Pam Ruan, the main organizer is bloody-minded about it now and will have her God damn Halloween party, but those who work themselves up to attend out of festive spirit or morbid curiosity will find it a distinctly muted affair that breaks early in the evening.

Happy Halloween, Gloucester!

➥ Mod Notes

GENERAL - Players are welcome to play NPCs for themselves when they are needed in a thread. If you need more information on general behavior for these types of NPCs, please feel free to ask! In general, the information provided in the prompt should be sufficient and you're welcome to make up any details beyond that for your specific scene. The Lullaby Girl (Ava) can be seen throughout character dreams, but they will not be able to interact with her during this event. They will either wake up or simply find that the physics of the dream are warped and she cannot be reached or there's a sheet of glass between her and the character or whatnot.
FOR YOU NEVER SHUT YOUR EYE (15-24 October) - Characters are welcome to develop their own devices for attempting to stop the music. Characters will have modern day technology available to them along with a few slightly more advanced electronics and tools. Please do not go too out there. This isn't Tony Stark's array of tools and the like. But characters can create additional devices to test within reason. Some of them may be more or less effective, but with how sporadic the effect is, it might be difficult to tell what's actually working or not. There can also be negative side-effects from devices, if you'd like to play those out. Characters with the appropriate magical charge may also attempt to supernaturally block the music, but this will not be condoned or facilitated by ADI. Characters searching for the source of the music will not be able to find it, just discover that it is moving. For characters who are sleep-talking, they may find themselves unusually honest. They may or may not recall conversations with other characters and all that they told them.
TILL THE SUN IS IN THE SKY (25-27 October) - Characters will experience repeated nightmares of dying in a shared dreamscape. They will remember every time that they die in the dreams. Feel free to get as creative and gruesome with this as you would like. These are dreams and fantastical situations that might not actually happen (e.g., a robot showing up and shooting a laser through your character) may occur. Players are welcome to introduce elements of their memories into the nightmares and mix those memories around between characters who might wind up in a dream together. Please ensure all top-levels are appropriately tagged for any and all content warnings. Add content warnings as you go along, if needed. Dying in the dreams will trigger the sense of waking up. This can be a fake wake-up or characters might actually wake for a short while and find others passed out around them.
WHEN THE BLAZING SUN IS GONE (28-31 October) - Again, this will be a shared dreamscape where characters will be under the illusion (at first) that all has returned to normal. For those who investigate, everything seems to be real, nothing too off, excepting the night of the Halloween party. Once the Lullaby Girl finishes her song, characters who are dressed in costumes that depict animals or other monstrous creatures may find themselves transformed into their costumes. Transformed characters may gain powers for the duration of this prompt/event related to their monstrous forms without mod approval. Go wild, kill your friends and neighbors, and generally trash everything around you. The decorations that come to life will be attempting to murder all characters, transformed or not. If characters escape into the city, they will find all of the festive decorations out there have come to life and want to kill them, as well. Death is unavoidable for this particular prompt, but it can be something swift and painless or something drawn out and horrible at player discretion. It is the only way to actually wake a character fully. Players also have the option of keeping their characters awake. They will not experience the shared dreamscape and will just be stuck with a lot of unconscious people around them for the duration of this portion of the event.
WHEN HE NOTHING SHINES UPON (31 October) - Ava, the Lullaby Girl, cannot be contacted or immediately located, but she will be available in future plots for interactions with characters. There is no immediate information regarding who Mr. S. is. Players may have the general sleep/death malaise last for a minimum of two hours and a maximum of three days. Regular medications for the flu can ameliorate some of the symptoms, but they will ultimately clear up on their own. Characters may wake up in whatever state players would like. Feel free to play out the effects of them having been slumped in a corridor for three days without food or water. It's going to be a bad time all around. Those who attend the real Halloween party will be thanked profusely by Pam and showered with candy. At least they'll get a few HR brownie points?

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You seem plenty healthy to me. How about you think of this as me helping you stay sharp and enduring of the awaiting trials that are yet to come? As preemptive preparation for future psychologically taxing events Gloucester will be subjected to, it certainly didn't sound like we've heard the last of that little girl.

[...just gonna lean slightly back so that she's outside of egg sammy spit range;]

That would be for the best, yes. Sleepytime should be drunk before going to bed, right? So if I was to have it again, I would very much prefer it to be within the quiet comfort of my own apartment room late at night. I don't think I'm ready to invite you over for a sleepover at this juncture, and it would be very creepy of you if you were to ask first. So let's just have tea over sweets next time during the day instead, how about Chai since we both agreed it's delicious?

[Mercy has known fire. She'd seen a burning beam drop from the Abbey rafters to flatten the Abbot into bloody, blackening bones and skin. She'd seen what remained of Brother Ainsley when they'd finally put the gatehouse out and sifted through the ash. Those centuries of tomes and scrolls he'd loved and cared for so dearly taken up in a single night.

She'd wondered what it might have been like for him. She'd had nightmares about the dear man's fate. And if it was anything like this, her imagination had been underselling the horror.

It's hard to be brave and speak bold words when her throat is filled with ash and blood, when her skin blisters, blackens, and cracks in deep red lines. She tries to scream, but there's no air left to give voice to that agony. There's only pain and-

Mercy wakes with a gasp, rolls to one side and immediately vomits off the side of the bed, onto the floor. Her throat burns, but it's with acid now, not fire. Her chest heaves as she tries to come down, to gain her bearings. She's slick with sweat, and it's dark and cold, but this isn't her apartment at ADI. This is... somewhere else. It's somewhere she's only ever dreamed she might find herself.

She realizes belatedly that the bed she's on is made of human hair with bones for its frame. She also realizes she's not alone. The man from before. He's here, too? This can't be... that thing that was talking to them. Could it have known?

This is the Dread Watcher's den, a place of pure nightmares. The walls are woven with spider's silk, and the floor is pitch black. It's absolutely silent apart from the noise she and Jack are making.]

Sir? [Mercy whispers as she looks the man over for injuries.] Are you all right?

[Neither of them are going to be all right here.]

[Kill them... all? Well, there's the two she's mentioned and that's enough for Mercy, so she nods firmly, resolved. She... likes the way Aelwyn's touching her, as well. It's enough to give a girl a little extra courage when she's feeling just a little scared of them that rise when they should be fallen for good.]

Aye!

[For a moment, she has the mad notion to kiss Aelwyn, and settles for pressing something chaste to the other girl's cheek to show her appreciation. Then, it's out the door with her blade in hand. Where are Colm and Ida? Papa and Mama and Granny? They all seem to have vanished from the house. Maybe they're out helping to fight the fire? It's what would make the most sense.

If Aelwyn pays the surroundings any mind at all, the place is small, cozy, and well-lived in, but still clean. Not the best house, but one that's been maintained with care for decades.

Opening the door leads them out to a graveyard that's surrounded by a low stone wall. It's to this the Mercy goes, crouching low to try to keep out of sight of the Abbot and Brother Sindri. They'll have a better few of both men. Abbot Edward Sawyer is a light-skinned bald man on the far side of 50 with a neatly-trimmed gray beard. He's a large fellow and most of his form is hidden by a habit. Brother Sindri has a darker complexion, a full head of black and gray hair, along with a full beard, and a clearly muscular figure. His habit is halfway off, tied at the waist. There are scars across his body that speak to his years of warfare.]

Come out, come out, my child. There's no need to hide! [Father Sawyer's voice is a pleasant baritone and seemingly sincere.] There's trouble afoot and we've evacuated everyone to safety. You'll need to come, as well, and bring your friend.

"Oh!" Even more romance than she expected. Maybe Caduceus had had the right idea about mentioning something to Ren or Akechi. "Don't think I met either of them proper, yet, but I'll look forward to it sometime.

"We all been into folk who maybe come off as rough and tumble, though. What makes this-"

Wait a minute.

"Tim's a... He fancies another boy?"

Meredith's expression turns a little more opaque, cautious. Right, Mercy's not from around now.

"Yeah, Tim's into a guy. It happens sometimes. Like some women are into women. Shit, I've been known to catch a crush on a girl sometimes. Why do you ask?"

"You're definitely good at helping folk," she agrees with a small nod. "Did you find it, yet? What you needed to stop the corruption, or are you still looking? Maybe it's something we could figure out while you're here?"

"Just never heard of it. I mean, boys is boys sometimes, and girls get crushes everywhere. I would've practiced kissing with some of them at the Abbey if they'd ever... wanted that." She tilts her head, more confused than anything else. "Does he like girls along with the boys? Or... how's that work? Are you only interested in girls?"

"I'm attracted to boys, girls and sometimes people who aren't either. As for Tim, I'm not sure whether he's into girls too. It's not something I've really talked to him about much." Meredith tilts her head to one side slightly, considering. "You would have wanted to kiss the other girls?"

'Aren't either,' is, at least a little more in the realm of familiarity. Plenty of gods aren't one way or the other or they might be both ways.

"Well, I mean, it's not hurting anything," Mercy says, feeling her cheeks darken with color as she thinks about... a certain girl here that she's already kiss. Just the cheek! But that had been... nice. "But that'd just be... play for most folks. Practice."

"For some people it's more. For some people, it's everything. They get married, build a household, even raise kids together."

Meredith pulls out her phone, thumbing the screen briefly to pull up a picture. "This is Cassandra Peterson. She's a celebrity, an actress, best known for playing the character of Elvira. And next to her is her girlfriend, Theresa. They've been together for almost 20 years. Cassandra is seventy now. It's not just something for young people--it's a lifestyle that's open to you, here."

[no fever, save the embarrassment that's started to burn up her cheeks.]

I'm fine, thank you...though I'm not quite sure what's gone and come over me. Did I say anything wildly bizarre?

[please, hopefully nothing inappropriate.]

A key. It'll be old, maybe hidden, but we need it to exit the gates out of here. Nothing you do will force them apart otherwise - not magic, not science, not any amount of leverage.

[she turns her head to look at the light, offering him a little smile of thanks before she starts - the wind, causing the roof to creak, or is it. gazing upwards, she goes still, and then exhales. just her own imagination running away with her.]

Believe me, I want to be here even less than you do, but it is what it is.

"You have, as it happens. I'm Emily Dyer - I work there full time, though forgive me for not recognizing you sooner. We've had our hands full the past few weeks, what with everything affecting the physical self."

Between attending to usual patients, the checkups post the Dogtown attacks and treatment, the new anti-sleep methods, and her own research, her mind's been so occupied she can barely think about putting her hands down.

"Though I hope you've been in for the admin side of things - I confess I'm never going to be overjoyed to see someone as my patient, for it means something ill has befallen them."

If this is a dream, then you'd be the figment, for I was here for a long while before you. Or that makes both of us, and neither of us exactly have our footing in reality.

[as if in answer to that cosmic contradiction, something groans like the lowest of thunder rumbles in the distance, and Emily's head whips around in observation.]

...I don't suppose you have any inkling on how to find our way back, do you?

"How far are they?"

She knows these lights, knows this kind of an alert. Somehow, they know they've escaped. Somehow, they've started to make plans for recapture, or more likely death. The sensation that they're going to be sent back grips her heart, makes it pound faster and faster, forces her legs to keep moving. If they stop, they die. If they can make it, they have a prayer.

The question is if the woods even exist to be found in the first place.

Meredith pauses a moment, leaning her cane against the wall to demonstrate her hypermobility.

"I'm naturally loosely strung, and it causes me problems. It's why I've got the cane, extra help with balance in case my ankles don't work like they're supposed to. So I come in when things are worse than usual, in terms of subluxations or dislocations or pain."

Who, me?

[ He gestures to himself as if it were a real question and not just another one of his exaggerated gestures. ]

Nah. [ He inhales before releasing a puff of smoke from between his lips, having not removed the cigarette. ] Why? I didn't miss a stab wound or anything, did I?

[ He then proceeds to check himself over, the absurdity of going this long without noticing a stab wound completely lost on him. Sometimes shit happens. ]

With a nod of the head, Emily understands, and is all the more impressed at her quick action with the zombie. Decisive, strong, and used to difficult situations. Clearly, there's nothing to underestimate about her.

"I'm not going to snap into work while we're still under siege, but if you'd ever appreciate a house call in those times more than having to make the trek down to the department, I should be on the private network and would be glad to help."

Call it easy repayment for saving her life.

[Mercy kisses her on the cheek, and Aelwyn can almost feel the bloodlust and sadism fade to the slightest degree, and are instead replaced with this bizarre feeling in her chest. Nobody has ever shown her affection like this, in this almost casual way, it makes Aelwyn feel... something.

And then she does what she's good at, and swallows that down, deep into the citadel of protective barriers she's built around her heart. She can show affection in the way she knows how.

Murdering these men, and rendering them to ashes so they'll never crawl their way back up from hell to hurt Mercy again.

They're crouched behind the wall, and Aelwyn resists the urge to scoff.]

Does he think we're that fucking dumb? [Her voice is barely a whisper.] I can give them something to tangle with. Just say the word, darling.

[She raises one arm to block the chair and manages to claw it in half, sneering at Akechi as she goes in to aim another strike, which leaves her open for his next attack. Tossing a leg at her is hardly a lethal attack, considering her armoured flesh and the spikes across her skin to slow it, but the pain does distract and stun her enough to let him get out of her reach.

The next barrage of projectiles is considerably harder to avoid. The pens and erasers are mere bruises and scratches against the armour of her skin in this new form, but when one of the decorative bats gets swept up and hisses in rage, attempting to burrow into her flesh, she has to grab it and crush it in her hand.]

Is this all you've got? How embarassing. Did Ren steal all your strength too? You must feel so small next to him.

[Even as a demon, you can't take the high school bully out of the mean girl. She grins, raising a hand and elevating a simple spark into a writhing ball of fire and explosive force, ready to be set loose.]

I hope those feathers of yours are fireproof, for your sake. Then again, I think a reminder of your place would serve you well.

[And with that, she throws it full force at him. Good fucking luck, bird boy, hope you can make your DEX saving throw.]

Like the place and culture I came from.

But if you really want to, you can bring it, I'll just have anything else.

"Yeah." He shrugs his shoulders. "I mean, probably. I guess it depends on how... how bad it gets. You know, it's like when you go on a bender?" He looks at Gil for a moment, like he's trying to suss out how likely it is that the man's been on drug or booze fueled benders, then huffs out a breath. "Well. Maybe you don't know, I don't know."

As if on cue: another horrible, disorienting symphony cuts through the room, shrieking right into their ears. And this time, there's another strange occurrence, coinciding with the creature's approach.

Whether it's chairs, or flooring, or accent pieces, or makeshift weapons, the wood in its path begins to splinter and bend.

"You what?" Kate is stunned. So stunned that she doesn't respond immediately. His response seems extreme. "Is that necessary? I mean... Is it that bad?" She doesn't finish that sentence as a wave of dizziness washes over her. "Oh." She reaches up and holds her head in her hands. She tries to shake it off but the dizzy feeling doesn't quite go away.

"Yes." She wobbles a little. Her skin starts to pale. Kate reaches out with her arm to steady herself against the wall. "I don't feel well, Winter. I think the adrenaline is wearing off." Is what Kate says because she doesn't know that the barbs on the pumpkin monsters had been poisonous.

Gil makes a slightly affronted noise. "I was your age in the eighties. I made my share of adventurous mistakes."

Adventurous mistakes. Christ, he really is old.

A pause, then a little length of rope thrown out to help pull Jeff back from the loneliness of self-recrimination. "Sometimes I dragged other people into them, too."

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Page 30 of 53

Event - Lullaby

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cw: body horror, bones, immolation, pain/suffering, emetophobia

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CW: linked visual of hypermobile wrist; injury mentions

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