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apocalypsehowcomm2022-07-16 01:04 pm
- !event,
- bucky barnes (mcu),
- kate cordello (original),
- manji (blade of the immortal),
- zz_bruno madrigal (encanto),
- zz_caitlyn kiramman (arcane),
- zz_callisto (xena: warrior princess),
- zz_george milton (of mice and men),
- zz_misty quigley (yellowjackets),
- zz_peter parker (tasm),
- zz_takayuki yagami (yakuza)
Event - Aftermath
(cw: arachnophobia, entomophobia, chirophobia, elafiphobia)
There is a reason Dogtown has been boarded up. The wicked do not rest and while the majority of ADI's manpower was out of town, those remaining were stretched thin. There simply weren't enough eyes to keep on the park. With too few people, the things that crawl inside crawled out. Most of them have been hunted down and dealt with, but not all. Not nearly all. Though it might not be apparent at first.
The weather is hot and a bit of humidity brings the bugs about. They might all be horrible, but some aren't so bad. Butterflies flit about in the air, their colorful wings offering an aerial show on your walk. Every now and then, however, one or two might catch your eye: there appear to be a few with an odd wing shape that seem to jerk and plunge in their flight. Keep an eye on these odd bugs and you might just finally place the shape: four long, spindly segments. Hands. Interlocked at what would be thumbs, fluttering sets of hands no bigger than the rest of the butterflies flutter about. Some land peacefully, some don't seem to land at all, but just dance about like a perverted wave from no one. Others still, like to land on faces and what a delight it is to be blessed with the gentle legs of a butterfly on your nose as it spreads and stretches its wings! At least until those wings clamp over the eyes under them.
You don't even have to go outside to find things that skitter and hide. Perhaps you've settled down to work on something or read or even check your phone. It'll only take a moment, really, but it has your attention. Enough so that, when you feel a gentle tickle at your neck, you might not even think much of it or reach up to scratch the spot. Except it happens again, slower, more careful; to the point it doesn't tickle, in fact, it feels almost like something is...stroking your neck? Like a tiny hand running along your skin. If you're fast enough, maybe you can brush whatever it is off, or maybe you simply turn your head to look at your shoulder and into the multiple eyes of an eight-legged friend. No, make that six. Six legs and two, long, arms ending in thin-fingered hands.
On the other hand, there are also those things that go bump in the night. Well after sunset, some areas of Gloucester titter with laughter or carry the steady sound of feet hitting the pavement, while some darker corners patter with a rhythmic slapping sound. Following the sound might just lead you through echoing alleyways until you come across the recognizable shape of a deer. A deer whose legs end in hands. Where they start is at the top: curved, gnarled, fingers jut from the top of its head like a perverted crown. Antagonize it or stare too long, and that slapping sound may turn your way, the charging deer aiming for you grasping-fingers-first.
(cw: underwater threats, drowning, refuse/filth, squirmy things, human-caused environmental damage)
Known locally as the Cut, Blynman Canal in southwest Gloucester connects Gloucester Harbor to the Annisquam River. For over a hundred years the Blynman Bridge has spanned that opening, a busy drawbridge that has nonetheless been left to rust. The Cut is a deceptively treacherous little waterway, and it's not unheard of for locals with too much time on their hands to go down to the canalside and watch the boats in the hope of witnessing an entertaining misadventure or two. There's more than one local legend of boats going down in the canal, though no record of it in recent history, and people claim the water is a lot deeper than anyone might expect. But that's not quite why it's caught ADI's attention recently.
No, it's the wretched sobbing from under the bridge at sunset that's new and concerning…and the reports of boats striking something in the canal where there should have been open water. Several owners have reported thumping on the hull of their boats as though they were struck by some furious creature, but the official story is that they simply struck litter and debris that has recently clogged the canal's entrance. It's not a lot to go off of, but with the recent Dogtown troubles, any sudden change at locations of potential significance is worth an investigation.
In daytime it's difficult to see much of anything in the water, and investigators are discouraged from intruding too obviously on the scene during hours when locals are more likely to be present. As the sun sets, though, the water roils and crashes under the bridge for minutes on end. The motion dies down, the water calms, and the lamenting cries begin. There are no words, only broken sobbing in a human voice. Looking into the water in the dying light, one can see something down there, just below the surface now. Is that a face? Did a hand just breach the surface, reaching pitifully skyward before slipping back under?
Anyone who tries to enter the water will feel detritus brush against them, all manner of sunbleached plastic debris clogging the canal. The walls go straight down under the bridge and the water is deep. It won't be long before one finds oneself not just swimming in trash but entangled in it. It drags even the strongest swimmer down, snaring arms and legs. Fight and cut yourself free, hope for a rescue…or await the end.
(cw: hallucination, disorientation, synesthesia, altered mental states, breaking and entering)
There is someone in the mirror. They appear when you're alone. A childish, friendly face, or what you would consider friendly, interesting, someone you would be willing to play a game with… or at least entertain the possibility for. Your new playmate has something to show you. It's something good, and you should follow! Even those who might not usually be inclined, will find themselves drawn in. This playmate seems to be tailor made for you, someone you could get along with. Someone who whispers into your mind and no one but you can see, even if they have their own playmate.
There are too many reflective surfaces in Gloucester, and you'll find your playmate flitting easily between them, like they're stuck in a world beyond the glass. Maybe they are. They might even tell you that's the case. Help them, please! They've been trapped here by some monster for so long.
Those drawn into the chase will find themselves directed to all sorts of places around Gloucester, from publicly open buildings to private residences to other buildings they really shouldn't be going into without a very good reason, like the police station. Maybe try getting in there under the cover of night? Your playmate is insistent that wherever they're leading you, it's important to the trail. And you can feel that they really mean it. This is important, this is vital. It might be harder than usual to say no. Maybe you can make yourself believe this isn't as dangerous as it seems. That's far too easy.
It's a trail that does seem to have an end for those willing to stick it out… and who aren't arrested in the middle of all this for breaking and entering or trespassing. A tiny mirror shard, something no bigger than a fingernail. That's what you've been looking for. Grab it! Grab it! Those unfortunate enough to take their playmate's advice will find themselves experiencing sudden and intense disorientation followed by a 24-hr bout of synesthesia. Ever wondered what gray smells like? What flavor your favorite song is? The color of a burger wafting under your nose? All yours for the price of a mirror shard!
Destroying smashing the shard to even smaller pieces seems to end the disorientation, at least, but synesthesia is something that persists for at least a day after. One thing that becomes immediately apparent, though, as soon as you find the mirror, whatever you do with it, your playmate disappears.
(cw: death; drowning; choking; claustrophobia; nausea; emetophobia/vomiting; disorientation/vertigo; body horror)
It begins with a news headline: Lost Baby Dolls Cry Foul On Beach! The article details strange new visitors to Gloucester's beaches, and the residents making efforts to clean up the dolls along with other debris from recent 4th of July fireworks displays. The leader of the local non-profit, I Love a Clean Gloucester, leading the clean-up is quoted as saying some volunteers have been experiencing some unpleasant side-effects from contact with the dolls, clearly indicating there may be something toxic in them. Paul Rudder encourages everyone to be vigilant to pollution and wear thick gloves when assisting.
But ADI digs deeper. It seems those 'toxic' effects aren't what they first appear. There is something supernatural going on. Two dedicated beach clean-up volunteers have been found dead in their homes, drowned on dry land. The police are puzzled. The lungs of both bodies are filled with seawater.
ADI takes over investigating as a stretch of beach is closed to the public. Perhaps you're brave enough to check on these dolls for yourself. Perhaps you're just here to try to bury the things deep where no one can reach them. Those who pick up the dolls, even those wearing gloves, will feel a strange, rocking sensation that grows more intense the longer they hold and manipulate the dolls.
Regardless of actually touching the dolls, those who visit the beach will find themselves dreaming. They are out at sea, exhausted, struggling to keep afloat, their articulated ball joints ache. They can feel the last of their energy reserves bleeding away, their mouth, something they can never close, filling with water as they sink down, deep, deeper, the weight of the water pressing in around them, constricting their body.
Waking up might just be nauseating or a violently unpleasant affair as you'll find the ground still lurching like you're trapped out at sea for minutes or even more than an hour, or hacking up seawater. Repeated visits to the beach worsens the effect, and if the clean-up volunteers are anything to go by, too much dedication might well be deadly.
- GENERAL - Players are welcome to play background 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 prompts should be sufficient and ordinary people will act like… ordinary people! Although, the people of Gloucester seem to be becoming more and more aware of supernatural phenomenon and they are frightened by it. You're welcome to make up any details beyond that for your specific scene. Also, please remember that character deaths are permanent and plan accordingly!
- HANDLE WITH CARE (16-20 July) - All creatures can be killed similar to their normal counterparts, but smashing the butterflies or spiders will result in smashed blood, skin, and bone (on whatever instrument you use to smash them with). The deer itself can cause potential harm as it will attempt to gouge, scratch, or even strangle those who threaten it.
- SHIPPING AND HANDLING (28-31 July) - From above the water it will not be possible to make out the full shape of whatever is in the canal regardless of the quality of light. Anyone who enters the water and keeps their eyes open will get an impression of a long, eel-like creature with a human-like face; it also has many hands on short, jointless arms all down the sides of its body. It is the garbage, not the creature, that drags characters down–the creature also seems to be entangled.
- SAY, SAY, O PLAYMATE (16-25 July) - Your character's playmate can interact only with your character, no others. But two people might see different playmates in the same reflective surface who could be telling them wildly different things. The playmate is someone who will be specifically tailored to appear as non-threatening and friendly as possible to your character. If that means they're a small scared child claiming to be trapped in the mirror, or an older teen or young adult with a rakish air and charming wink. This is about your character's perceptions, not any consistency. Their appeals to 'play' will also be tailored to your character. They might be requesting help, asking for a favor with the promise of a payback, encouraging some silly game, or whatever might motivate your character. The mirror shards will continue to induce synesthesia and disorientation if they are not destroyed. Any shards brought back to ADI will be examined and then ordered destroyed. The playmates will all disappear when all of the shards have been collected, whether your character has successfully collected one they were on the trail of, or not.
- LET'S HAVE A TEA PARTY (16-31 July) - Not every doll induces the rocking sensation, but many do. Characters will have a hell of a time trying to pinpoint any source for the dolls. More of them keep washing up, seemingly at random; though, they definitely seem to be coming in batches, and any time a stretch of beach is fully cleaned up, more appear, like something has been watching and waiting to unleash more of the things. Multiple visits to the beach may result in significant lung damage, akin to what you might experience from having partially drowned.
Aelwyn Abernant | Fantasy High
[She watches the butterflies with a perpetual scowl on her face. Her mood has soured over recent months, everything's been a blur of nonstop nightmares, and all she's gotten out of it was one stupid book Jeff stole from her. (Before he disappeared with his own prize, a problem to be dealt with later.)
They'd come out here to investigate and contain them, but frankly Aelwyn has better ideas. It's a good thing she's been keeping up to date with her feeding schedule, largely in burning cars and terrorizing academics, ruining the odd loving relationship with a fiery distraction, burning bright like a flare.
It's not enough. Not forever. She's teetering on the brink. But first.]
Are butterflies flammable? Yes, right? [The more important question is if her investigation partner will object to a small bit of magic.]
1A. HANDLE WITH EVEN LESS CARE (catch it and kill it)
[They'd been out here investigating sightings of a truly horrifying deer, and from the vague reports, she can only assume it's connected to the swarm of butterflies she lit on fire and killed. Dogtown is proving, once again, to be far more trouble than it's worth, even sealed up and confined.
She remembers, distantly, a conversation she had with Nia, all those months ago.
"Imagined terror is still terror ... An animal won't understand why it's being fed upon ... Shouldn't be using magic at all." The deer stares at her and her partner, alert, it's fingers dragging through the dust.
There's something vicious inside of her now, in the wake of all the friends she made and lost, the feeling of the liquid nitrogen in her eye that she could have blocked if she were given even the slightest bit of leeway.
Is it dangerous? Does she care?
Donna brought up a similar case, of the boars with arms, a comical and ridiculous monster that may have once been a person. This, too, might have once been a person. She might as well put it out of it's misery.
Silently, she reaches for the pistol she keeps on her person nearly at all times nowadays.]
I can handle this, if you want. I might need your help carrying the corpse.
2. PLAYMATE O PLAYMATE (i need somebody to remember my name)
[Aelwyn has been staring at her reflection in the public kitchen for about fifteen minutes. What she's seeing is a boy that she recognizes. A boy that she's pretty sure she would be the only one remaining to recognize. Not Mirabel who had friends, roommates, family around, or Keith, who was well known among the people from the older days. No, just the kid so lonely that he'd reached out over the network asking anyone to be his friend.
And he vanished a month later, and she's still not sure where he went. Where any of them went. It's an awful feeling in her chest. Guilt. A familiar sting. Resentment. More familiar than anything.
The reflection is calling on her to believe it. Is calling on her to trust it. It's not an uncommon trick for this place, and she's experienced enough at this point to know to never trust what her mind tells her to.
So she speaks up, to whoever's nearby.]
Can you see it? The boy in the mirror? [Her voice is tired and weighted, guilty and hurt, and more than anything, she's furious.]
2
[ Takayuki's gaze follows hers, though, and he goes quiet at the sight of absolutely nothing. "The boy in the mirror"? ]
...sorry, no. [ He turns to her again, cup of unopened ramen in hand and no attempts made to get some hot water in there. ] What boy?
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It hurts. It hurts somewhere awful inside of her, but she's not stupid. It's a trick, an illusion, a shadow on the wall. She's been around the bend long enough to know that.]
A missing one. From here. Don't suppose anyone's told you about how often we go missing? Happens a lot.
Another one of this shithole town's miserable little tricks, I'm guessing. The fact that my first impulse was to believe that it was real should have clued me in.
[She seems to remember the tea she brewed fifteen minutes ago, and she sips at the now lukewarm drink with a sour expression.]
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...can't really think of anything except "fucked up".
[ He puts his cup ramen down on the counter, picking up the kettle to fill it with water. ]
Someone told me folks here can disappear without a trace. You're the first person to tell me they've seen a missing person in a mirror, though.
[ He spares the glass a look and sees nothing. ]
Is it trying to talk to you?
no subject
[She shrugs, pointedly looking away from the mirror and turning to Yagami. She can still hear him, quietly, but rejecting him's made it harder for him to reach her.]
It all gets rather samey after a little while. In my... second month here they tried to lure me into a maze of mirrors with my sister. I guess I'm too hard to fool with the impossible, so they tried something that I couldn't really one hundred percent dismiss.
For all I know, the missing people could've all been dragged into mirrors. I'd have to investigate it if I couldn't immediately single out that it's an illusion.
no subject
Do you want to investigate it? Where this thing in the mirror's trying to take you.
Or is this an "if I ignore it, it'll go away" situation?
[ He leans against the counter the kettle's on, crossing his arms over his chest. ] I haven't been here long enough to know what does and doesn't need handling.
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No, I'm good.
It'll lead me to somewhere unsavoury and then try to reach through and force me through it to feed on me forever.
[She hums.]
A good rule of thumb is to pick your battles, especially if you're an investigator in this place. If something is luring you into looking at it, or luring you into attempting to be the hero, it's almost certainly not going to be worth it. Investigate the threats you find, not the ones that find you.
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Mm, I'm not in Investigations, at least. [ But only because he couldn't stand to work under anyone else's orders as far as finding the truth to anything is concerned. ] Maybe I'll count myself lucky.
Can I ask you something? [ With the ramen covered and his chopsticks keeping the lid down, Takayuki turns to face Aelwyn once more. ] What made you stay here with them? You know, even after knowing what all the danger out there is.
no subject
[She knows that if she leaves here, she'll come back an Avatar. And she's been wondering lately if that's even worth staying here for. She needs the purpose to stay sane.]
I had friends here. I still have a couple. [Mercy is more than a friend. Beau is a friend. There's others she respects here. Maybe that's enough.] The rest left. Some of them are still out there in the world.
[Ren and Akechi weren't her friends but...]
I need the direction, I guess. Or I'll go mad.
1A
Jon wants to examine it more closely. He also would rather not have seen it at all. But that's true of so much of his life isn't it?
He glances over at Aelwyn when she speaks.]
Go ahead. At least it's not a person I'm helping to bury in the woods this time.
[Or being expected to dig his own grave.]
no subject
At some point, we are going to have to talk about the spooky shit you keep mentioning offhand.
[She aims the pistol solidly at the things head, just as it starts getting irritated and is probably moments away from charging.
Unfortunately, she rolled a five, and the gun jams.]
Motherfucke- [And suddenly the deer charges, and Aelwyn's magic shield - once blue and protective, now an angry sadistic red, forms around her body.]
no subject
[And that's when things go wrong, of course. He braces himself for the sound of the gunshot, remembering for a moment the sound of Basira shooting, of Daisy... a feeling that is grief and relief and terror all at once.
The sound never comes. The deer charges, and Jon is left scrambling away, through leaf litter and dirt.]
cw for animal cruelty?
She groans irritably, tosses the gun aside and outstretches her hand to cast Burning Hands and cover the deer in a sheet of fire. It's horrific, the noises it makes as it burns. Aelwyn smiles in satisfaction, the fear filling her up like a warm bowl of soup as she watches it die.]
Well. That could have gone a lot easier. Are you alright, Sims?
Re: cw for animal cruelty?
I think I'm going to be sick.
Re: cw for animal cruelty?
[It was pretty horrific, wasn't it? Is it strange that she's unbothered, even now, at this stage in her development? She's not yet an Avatar, and yet...
Well, she was already heartless to begin with.]
...You understand I didn't intend that, right? [Just to be clear...]
Re: cw for animal cruelty?
I know that. It attacked us. I doubt it was charging us just to shake hands.
[He smirks, just a little.]
1A
[Callisto remarks, breathless - because even though she's been wildly slashing her dagger through the air, letting out the occasional snarl of frustration, the butterflies are small, quick, and insubstantial enough to dodge easily. Callisto manages to crush one against a tree, but that's it.]
Everything is flammable if you try hard enough. Go on.
[She'll certainly find no objection here.]
no subject
She sets her fingers together and comes out with a small ball of fire that she then transforms into a blanket, using her expertise to avoid burning Callisto (even if she knows Callisto would probably like it if she left some more scars on her skin beyond the ugly burn she left last time) and catch as many butterflies as possible like a twisted net.]
Look at them sizzle. [She's enjoying this too. Butterflies don't have much of a capacity for fear but this is still a light snack to her.]
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[Callisto says, pouting theatrically - and indeed, her fingers do stray towards the blanket of fire, though she falls just short of actually trying to touch it.]
Don't think I don't know that it costs you to do that. Are you going to try to scare me now?
no subject
[She smiles in satisfaction as they all burn, and as Callisto just about reaches for it. Once again, she looks over Callisto's very pretty features, and more importantly, the mark she left on them.]
I get enough of it from other sources. [Vandalism, mostly.]
no subject
[Her hand traces the curve of the fire, cupping around empty air.]
no subject
[She smiles, crossing her arms with amusement.]
You really aren't doing much to defend against the masochism allegations, are you, sweetheart?
no subject
From what you've just said, the real masochist move would be to take you up on your propositions towards me, wouldn't it?
no subject
I am, at best, a terrible decision.
But you know I would never hurt you. [The joke is that she already did of course.]
no subject
[She says, flashing a sharp, humorless smile.]
I don't know that anyone would never hurt me.
[And if they're smart, there isn't anyone who should feel that they know that Callisto would never hurt them, either.]
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