Event - Lullaby

[apocalypsehowmods]

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Lullaby

➥ For You Never Shut Your Eye

(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

(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

(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

(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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[bloodalwaystells]

Right now, everything is as bloody-raw as it gets. Even the cool air stings on his wounds, and the room is still heavy with menace as he unsteadily finds his feet beneath him.

The water is a welcome salve, even though the taste of it is tinged with metal, and he lets out a slow, shuddering breath after the first long drink.

They should go. It's still not safe here, but the moment of respite is too much to resist. Just for a moment, he's not there anymore, and he can close his eyes and pretend he's not still hurting and terrified.

Just for a moment, before he has to face the nightmare again. He watches Emily listen to the silence outside, at the door that could open anywhere and nowhere.

"We need to go," he agrees, worry in his voice and creasing his features in a deep frown. "There will be more. Others. Something." He should be able to warn her, but he doesn't know exactly what there's going to be. Only that he knows it won't be this easy, that the nightmare won't let go of him without a fight.

[medicative]

"Yes. It's not the time to be showy - survival is what matters most."

To get out of here, to get safe and away from it - whatever it is. She won't open the door until she sees that he's ready, turning the handle and trying to slowly open it so that the hinges won't creak too badly. Whether that's successful or not, she's ready to tiptoe out.

Only, the door opens onto a large open area, seemingly empty - space to flee, to go, to leave this place behind before something else appears. To run feels only natural, only the right way to go, to escape. Always seeking a way out.

What isn't expected are the floodlights that start to switch on.

[bloodalwaystells]

The only thing that's left in Jaeger is not showy at all. It's bitter and exhausted and desperate, and yet also quietly resigned that there will be more hell, whatever form it takes. Part of his mind has given up on logic in favor of accepting whatever horror might come and that seems normal, reasonable.

He's been in this place before, this lucid sort of nightmare remix of his past and whatever else his tortured mind can come up with. Which is why he isn't surprised to see the floodlights start to flip on, filling the space with stark light that stings and dazzles in its brilliance.

Whose nightmare is this part? He's not entirely sure, but he sucks in a harsh breath, moving slowly behind Emily to cover her exit as the door opens onto yet another scene.

"We need to...need to make it to the woods." There. That makes sense, he thinks. Never mind that there aren't any woods here, but once upon a time, there were.

[medicative]

"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.

[bloodalwaystells]

"They're..." he trails off, trying to get his bearings, because he's not sure. The lights are dangerous, though, he knows that much: if there's marksmen behind those kriegs, then he and Emily are easy targets in the light.

He keeps moving, too, not letting himself stop because if he stops, he'll panic. He's already panicking a little, and if he freezes they're both dead.

The might be dead already, but he's not going to think about that. Just keep moving, one foot in front of the other.

"If they come, I'll fight," he says quietly, roughly. "I don't..." His voice still catches, but he keeps going. It feels important to say- never mind that he's exhausted and bleeding. "I'll protect you."

[medicative]

But you're hurt, she wants to say, and maybe it's clear enough in her expression - a pinched sort of worry that she doesn't voice, wishing that she hadn't used everything in knocking that person out. There's no time to stop and try to mend him, just...

"Let's not let it come to that."

If they're fast enough, no one will need to defend anyone. No one's blood will be on the other's hands. If they stop moving - which they won't - then it will all change.

Still, something feels wrong in the air, and she can't help but think the woods aren't safe at all.

[bloodalwaystells]

Even covered in razor cuts, weak from wear and beatings and loss of blood, he's still dedicated, still intent on moving forward. A little bit of it is momentum: if he keeps moving, if he focuses on his companion and doesn't think too much about everything, then he won't fall down the way he wants to.

Exhaustion burns in his muscles and the light stings his weary eyes, but he's still there. Still moving. He gives Emily the best smile he can, though it looks particularly ghastly in the stark light.

"We keep going." He gives a stiff nod.

The oppressive fear and apprehension doesn't fade, though, not even a little. In spite of the clean, bright lights, there's a sense of approaching dread that has the fine hairs on his arms and neck rising. With it comes a whiff of something stale and metallic, old iron undercut with something thicker, bitter, more visceral.

He knows that smell too well, well enough that it sends his heart racing, a dull roar of pulse in his ears in the otherwise silent space.

Jaeger glances sideways at Emily and quickens his step. He's just short of throwing her over a shoulder and carrying her, except he's not sure he can manage it and they don't have the time to wrestle with logistics. He'll have to trust her the same way she's trusting him, and together they'll make it as far as they can. That's the best they can do.

"Something's coming."