Event - Dogged

[apocalypsehowmods]

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Dogged

The message goes out to everyone on ADI's network. It seems to be something captured live. It's Pam Ruan, head of HR who holds a prosthetic finger up to her lips before whispering, "Everyone's pushing for transparency right now, right? Figuring out where threats are coming from and sharing. I think that should come at all levels. Let's see what Nia's talking about with Mr. Zyrian Steel, hmm?"

The camera flips around as Pam clearly creeps closer to an office door. There are muffled voices, and Pam sets the phone face up before using one hand to shove the thing under the door. The video shows a sliding picture of the office's bland ceiling for a moment before coming to a stop. The voices become much clearer.

"-down in Wolf Trap," a masculine voice is saying. Presumably, Zyrian Steel. "There's just no need for that."

"Zyrian, this ain't a negotiation." Nia Lehrer's voice is familiar to most people working at ADI at this point. They've likely heard her speak in some pre-recorded training videos at the bare minimum. Nia's tone is no nonsense and clearly on the edge of snapping in frustration. "You're not hiring us. I'm sending my people down to Wolf Trap next month. We've got evidence of those signalhead things being on the march, one down that way, your kick off for New Horizons in the park, and evidence out of there about the Lullaby Girl from some of my people."

There is silence.

"You remember her? Ava? Or Amber, it seems like. She's the one you gave us those Lucidio masks to help train our people against. Frankly, I'd be surprised if you don't remember her, Mr. S." Another drawn out pause. "You ain't been straight with me for a long time. You ain't been straight with ADI since Tawnya was Warden. You tell me you need us in Buffalo, payback for helping in Wolf Pen and Cortana and the mobile med units, and not only do half the staff come back with crab claws and whiskers, but I find out you're using us for business politics." There's venom in her tone. "Or were you just going to stay quiet about Etcher's enterprises competing with your own software companies? ADI is not your personal attack dog. You are our client. And I thought my friend. But I'm about 30 seconds away from firing you from both."

Further silence, then a heavy sigh. "And I was going to offer to send you and your staff on such a nice retreat." There's the sound of a chair being pushed back. "Warden, I think you misunderstand the nature of our relationship. You are the dogs. I am the master. I hold your leash. Or have you forgotten just how much technology I've donated to ADI over the years, how many of your systems run on things I built? We've had a mutually beneficial relationship up until now- Well… you and I have. Tawnya got to be a problem before the end, too. But I made sure that was taken care of."

"You self-aggrandizing son of a-"

"You're a much more practical woman than she ever was, even with those shiny ideals you hold so dear. You'll compromise for the greater good, to protect what's yours. Such a good Warden, looking out for her charges."

"What are you talking about? And get your hands the hell off my desk."

"Haven't you ever wondered about the title? Warden. Odd name for a leader of any organization, even one like yours. But maybe not so odd when you consider your more eldritch masters." A scoff. "The Hunt always does pick out the most oblivious avatars, doesn't it? What does a Warden do?" A beat. "She controls the monsters, Nia. Sniffs them out and contains them. And she goes after the poachers coming after her prey. Tell me, have you ever noticed how you're always picking up on threats far afield with uncanny precision. It's been getting stronger, hasn't it? Tawnya was the same way. As was her predecessor, I imagine."

"That's not- I wouldn't ever…"

"Wouldn't you, though? Every time you sent your own dogs after a threat, reveled in it, you were being such a good Warden, instilling terror in the hearts of your enemies, ADI's enemies. So many cults know who and what you are and they fear it. Fear the Warden of ADI, famed avatar of the Hunt. Even now, I know you've compromised yourself. Have you considered what that's done to you? You let that Visionary kid stay alive. I rather think that might have been the start of your slide, hmm? Making exceptions, just this once.

"Now," he continues, voice growing louder and footsteps starting toward the phone, "I realize this is a lot to take in, to think about. Why don't you do that self-reflection while I attend to other matters? You are doing good work, puppy. I need a dependable pet to take care of all those nasty pests who keep trying rituals. But no need to worry about the New Horizons launch, really. I'll just-" Zyrian pauses and everyone will have a view of a middle-aged caucasian man with dark, slightly graying hair and a beard. He's wearing khakis and a Hawaiian shirt, and he's looking down at Pam's phone.

"Well… fuck." He stomps a heeled shoe on it and the transmission ends abruptly.

➥ Links

• OOC Questions - LINK
  
• General Setting Prompts - LINK
  
• NPC/Mod Response Prompts - LINK
  

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General Setting Prompts

[apocalypsehowmods]

General Setting Prompts

This section is for general RP prompts. While character actions in these prompts may have an overall impact on the event, mods will not be responding directly to any actions taken here.

_

➥ Who Let the Artifacts Out?

(cw: existential despair; memory alteration; blood, violence, supernaturally-induced rage; supernatural compulsion; gaslighting)

There are so many potential responses to discovering that the organization you've poured your heart and soul into, believing it was fighting the things that hurt you or others you love, has become one of those things. Anger that anyone could let this happen. Rationalization that you're the good ones in the sea of awful. Fear of what this means for anyone trying to do good in the world. And then, there is despair. What was the point of any of it? What is the point now when there's no winning against the monsters? You're either their victims, their victims-in-waiting, or one of them. There are no other options.

The person who's decided to unleash every artifact in ADI's vault certainly seems to be of the opinion that it's better not to be the victim. All manner of dangerous, strange, and uncanny effects fill the halls, offices, and rooms of ADI as objects are left out to afflict anyone who draws near or touches them. Probably a good idea to try to round up some of these problems and get them put back away. Unfortunately, the majority of them will be immune to conventional means of destruction… but for those willing to use their own abilities or perhaps use one effect against another, there may be options beyond just hiding them away again.

Reflections of Regret
There are mirrors all over ADI, so it might be hard to spot the new additions at first. You might not even notice as you walk past that the scene on the other side of the mirror isn't reflecting what's in this reality. Instead, you can see something you regret, something that chills you down to your bones and aches with the knowledge that something happened and you failed in some way. Perhaps you didn't save someone. Perhaps you forgot something important and it ruined everything. Maybe you're the sort of person where it's a good deed you regret or not taking the chance to be more ruthless. You'll even hear the words of the scene in your mind, playing out as you remember… or maybe even worse than what you remember, worse than what actually happened. There could even be scenes that you've only ever imagined happening that play out in the worst ways… with others involved in them.

Anyone else looking will have a clear view of your scene playing out in the mirror, and be able to hear the scene, too… even interact with it. You might find that once you actually take notice, you're transfixed by the reflection, as well. It could be time to risk the bad luck and attempt to break the mirrors. They don't seem to shatter easily, though, certainly not under any physical force a normal person could apply. But there might be more creative solutions to removing their effects. They'll continue to play out the effects of people looking into them until they're taken care of.

Blood-Stained Amulets
The scent of iron fills the halls when one of these amulets are nearby. It's a good way to track them! Unfortunately, once you smell the blood, it has you. A vicious rage boils your blood, a sense of injustice and a desire for vengeance against someone who has wronged you. You don't know who that is, though, and everyone nearby could be them. It's time to start attacking first and asking questions later.

Someone hurt you. You need to lash out. They deserve what you're going to do to them. The blood pounds inside you and fills your senses. Maybe something that overpowers that scent could overcome it? At least long enough for you to find the amulet and get it into something that will dampen the effects, at least.

Seductive Whispers
The truth can be so very appealing when it's what you want to hear. When it provides some comfort in its knowledge. It might feel like you have an edge, like you know something that's going to give you an advantage over someone else when you need it most. You can protect yourself if you know what you want to know, after all.

Of course, lies can sound an awful lot like truth when they seem completely reasonable. Those caught in the effects area of small music box type artifacts will hear a trusted voice in their mind, whispering apparent 'truths' about the people around them. The whispers last as long as the box is open, and it's so very tempting to keep the boxes open. Maybe you suddenly know that that guy is the one who put an artifact over in the gym. Maybe you know for certain now that Dave from Accounting took the last bagel from the breakfast line. Is Dave a weasel in a cage brought back from the Buffalo excursion? Yes. But you know for sure he did it. Somehow.

Use your newfound 'knowledge' wisely. Or don't. You're pretty sure it's true, either way.

((The effects above are generalized prompts. To request a specific Artifact for your character, go HERE and provide an object and an Entity association.))

_

➥ You Ain't Nothing But a Groundskeep

(cw: prejudice and discrimination; disruption of home life)

It's never been a secret that Benny Holt isn't exactly enamored with the presence of offworlders, regardless of his job security as groundskeeper for ADI housing. He's always done the work to keep the place in decent repair, but never hesitated to snitch on any rule-breakers who failed to cough up a bribe, and wouldn't have made for a friendly ear to any of the residents.

And now Benny has gone missing, but his disappearance isn't much of a mystery, either. The graffiti is a clue, with such pithy phrases as "GET OUT" and "MONSTERS" scrawled in spray paint down interior hallways. That's if you can get inside the halls to begin with–perhaps a few people were home when Benny went on his little rampage, but he appears to have timed his departure for the workday, leaving ADI workers to discover on arriving home that the outer doors are all locked. Hopefully you know a few tricks for sneaking in after curfew, because even after you get inside it turns out Benny took all the unassigned keys with him. Safety features mean it's possible to get out, but until someone re-keys or at least breaks the locks, letting an outer door shut behind you means you're not getting back in. At least once Neil hears about what's happened he'll help make sure everyone can get into the building.

Thankfully Benny seems to have prioritized leaving without encountering any residents over escalating his rampage beyond the petty, so the insides of occupied apartments are untouched. However, there's no power to the building, no wifi or ethernet, and no running water. Once someone manages to get into Benny's (locked) office and the maintenance areas for each building, it turns out he shut off the water and power and went snip-happy with a pair of wire cutters. Restoring the flow of water is just a matter of turning a few valves; restoring power and internet isn't exactly a complicated repair job, but it's not one anyone at ADI has much capacity to deal with right now.

Hope you don't mind cold showers and reading by candlelight!

_

➥ Dirty Old Egg-Suckin' Tech

(cw: blood; potential character or civilian death; screeching metal noise in the link)

Steel is very correct, ADI’s technology has been top notch in a lot of ways, things that aren’t often available to the general public (or at least not cheaply) can usually at least be found on the grounds, in the labs, or in the hands of ADI agents. And about a week after that ill-fated conversation between Nia and Zyrian, all of it suddenly goes dead. Anything more advanced than a basic radio-transmission walkie talkie or your basic calculator offers little more than an error screen if you’re lucky and a blank one if you’re not. Including the ADI network.

But when it rains, it pours and that’s not all there is to deal with. Slowly, the Signalheads have been walking off, including the ones wreaking havoc at the beginning of the month. All but one left to stand vigil at the edge of town. Except it’s moved closer. Just inside the Eastern edge of the city, one tall, twisted, metal structure stands, its long limbs stock-still as its signal pad faces turn towards Gloucster. A deafening sound blares through every radiowave it can find as always, recently defunct phones included.

There are no hallucinations this time, no compulsions or out of body experiences. This time, it’s simply pain. The signal interferes with the workings of bodies of any type, ADI and civilian both, and soon blood (or what passes for it) begins seeping from orifices and a weakness builds in your limbs as your head pounds. Neil grabs and distributes as many headphones, ear plugs, and even earmuffs he can find and works to direct and coordinate people to fight the Signalhead directly. He’d prefer no powers, but he’d prefer lives saved more. Your only hope is to cover your ears, destroy the transmission points, and maybe even destroy the creature itself, hopefully while saving civilians who can’t save themselves along the way. If you’re so inclined.

But this thing is huge, at least forty feet tall…it’s not a solo endeavor by any means and it’s not safe to uncover your ears....time to get creative.

_

➥ Mod Notes

• 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, native and non-native NPCs of ADI are going to be all over the place about what to actually do given the situation. Some are going to want to keep ADI as it is, acknowledging they've become the thing they've hunted, some are going to want to break away completely, while others are going to want to find some middle ground. Please remember that character deaths are permanent and plan accordingly!
  
  
• WHO LET THE ARTIFACTS OUT? (16 May-1 June) - Artifacts will be scattered throughout ADI's facilities, even into the housing areas. Some might, perhaps, find their way to Bonnie's as well, if people aren't careful. While the most mundane means of destruction will not work for these objects, characters are welcome to get creative. Maybe you decide to put duct tape over the mirrors so there's no reflective surface. Maybe you wear a gas mask while searching for the amulets. Maybe you glue the music boxes shut so they can't play. Players are welcome to come up with their own solutions. As long as the solution isn't 'just hit it harder with mundane force to break it,' it can work! No need to get approval from the mods.
  
  
• YOU AIN'T NOTHING BUT A GROUNDSKEEP (16 May-Ongoing) - Benny will have timed his departure to avoid encountering anyone on the way out; savvy characters will realize he's probably been watching the video feeds of the shared hallways long enough to know residents' patterns (not creepy at all, Benny!). He has left town and will not return. For the duration of the event (and potentially beyond, depending on event outcomes), the general chaos at ADI means there will not be resources allocated to fixing the things he broke. Characters who wish to relocate to Bonnie's Flophouse may do so using standard OOC housing change procedures; please be aware that the Flophouse likely is not large enough to house all characters.
  
  
• DIRTY OLD EGG-SUCKIN' TECH (25 May-Ongoing) - The last Signalhead in town will need to be taken down by more than one character. As long as at least three characters engage the signalhead in their threads, we will consider it dealt with by the end of this leg of the event. If not, it may simply walk into Dogtown to be a problem later, once it feels it’s killed enough people around town, anyway. This fight is completely player run, just know it is huge and largely metal and leathered skin and wires, it packs a punch and can use any frequency to try and get into character’s head or hurt them as it has in the past. It’s a tough fight, but not an impossible one. The effects of Signalhead’s most recent signal will leave characters weakened and aching, but it’s ultimately recoverable if the person hasn’t been exposed for so long that their body has gone into shut down, if characters work together, they’ll be able to save most of the civilians who don’t just shut themselves away and hide.
  
  

[apocalypsehowmods]

NPC/Mod Setting Interactions

This section is for players wishing to take a more active role in deciding ADI's ultimate fate, and directly interacting with key NPCs. We would ask, for the sake of plot progression, that those tagging in prioritize these threads to the extent practicable. Mods will do so, as well.

We would request all tag-ins by 5/25 to allow for sufficient time to thread things out. Players may tag in just their character or may thread in pairs with mod responses. You may tag an individual character into a maximum of two (2) different mod response options.

_

➥ Pam Ruan

(cw: existential despair; discussion of mental health and psychiatric committal)

Pam is harder to find than she normally would be. She's not in her office, she's not in the Canteen or other smaller breakrooms. She doesn't even seem to be at ADI. Instead, those going looking for her will have to travel further afield, roaming Gloucester. They'll find her sitting on a park bench looking toward the General's Store. Her expression says she's a million miles away right now, but she does speak when she spots someone familiar. As the head of HR, she seems to know everyone in ADI. The prosthetic hand she usually wears is missing. She looks like she hasn't slept in more than a day, and her good hand and the other parts of her look… injured. Bad. She's not hiding the clipboard that sits beside her with a list of security codes for ADI. One of these, circled in red pen, is 'Artifact Containment.' It might point… a certain direction for the culprit of ADI's current woes.

"I left my family to come to ADI, you know? No more contact. Not unless I agreed to be committed. They don't think I'm well. I think… maybe, they were right."

_

➥ Neil Grace

(cw: none)

Neil is always a busy man. As head of security, it’s his job to know his people, make sure they’re where they need to be and be there as safe as they can. That’s harder to do with some disillusioned, some just gone, and others throwing themselves into the job harder than ever. At least those he can help lead towards figuring out where these artifacts have gone.

Neil can be found anywhere around ADI from checking on the perimeter he’s set up around the grounds to try and keep the artifacts from getting out into town, to making sure people move through the building and search in pairs, to talking some people down from…simply making things worse. Those who feel the right answer to learning you’ve become nothing but dogs is to be dogs and snap at those around you. It’s a fight like that you might come across Neil breaking up, his tone firm but fatherly in his Disappointment as he puts a hand to one chest and braces an arm against another. “Enough, both of you. You, get yourself down to med and see to those scratches. You, take a walk. A long one. Outside this building. Now.”

He pulls his phone from a pocket and makes a note or seems to text someone with vigorous but quick efficiency and then turns to look at whoever’s next to approach him. He offers a tired but genuine smile. “Lots of things up in the air…we gotta keep our heads long enough to know what to do about it or we’ll lose them completely. What’s up? Need something?”

_

➥ Rae Hargrave

(cw: none)

In the midst of the chaos, there is an ongoing flurry of activity in the office adjacent to Nia's. Rae has never quite settled in as Warden's assistant, apparently not much of one for paperwork and administration, but she seems to be spending much of her time in the days immediately after the revelation rifling through filing cabinets and moving files from the ADI database onto a thumb drive. Judging by the messenger bag she's stuffing full of papers, she's apparently planning to throw all rules of data security out the window and take a big chunk of ADI intel with her…somewhere. Interrupt what she's doing, and you're likely to get a curt, "Yes, what?"

That is, of course, if you don't come across her destroying an artifact with ruthless efficiency. She's taken to carrying a sledgehammer in the halls, though it's not especially effective against most of what's been released. Catch her in the break room burning the face off of a lone Elf on the Shelf that somehow survived the Christmas purge, and you'll see something wolfish and vindictive behind her blue eyes, her mouth set in an expression of grim determination that doesn't quite hide the pleasure she takes in the act of destruction.

_

➥ Warden Nia Lehrer

(cw: none)

Zyrian Steel had said it best, perhaps: Nia Lehrer is nothing if not a practical woman. There are rogue artifacts on the loose around ADI, and she's reeling, but she's not about to let those go unchecked. Characters will find the Warden prowling the corridors with various tools in hand to try to fight against the effects of unleashed terrors. There's an unusual energy to her, as well, almost as if she's straining to see or hear something. Regardless of whether you're in the area looking for her or just happen to be passing her by chance, she puts a hand out to halt you. "Wait. Something ain't right over there." She nods toward a hallway, a room, some place nearby. "I just… need a minute. I think." To do what isn't clear, but here you are.

Nia Lehrer

[abrightboy]

Malcolm hasn't actually spoken to her since that meeting in her office, so long ago now.

The meeting where she told him the only way to deal with Avatars was to kill them.

He sees her approaching with various implements and walks up to her, but she stops him.

"Do... do you need help?" he calls after her.

Nia Lehrer

[hellojon]

That entire conversation with Nia and Steel almost made Elias laugh. There were so many similar threads in it with conversations he had with his Archivist. The knowledge that you are now something more than what you were before. The confusion at learning of your change. Hell, even the revelation that Steel had...taken care of the previous warden feels so similar to revelations that the Archivist picked up as well.

So naturally he goes to seek out Nia. Truthfully, he wants to bother Steel: he has his own ideas about what the man might be. And he's right—the Hunt is predictable. But it's a predictable he can push in the right place.

"Warden," he says, as he approaches her and gives her a little nod. "Might I have a moment of your time? I suspect you have a few questions that I might be able to answer."

Rae Hargrave

[failedpromise]

"Oh, I don't know, just wondering what you plan on doing with all that data you're stealing." Cortana's tone is equally testy, and she raises an eyebrow, leaning against the wall. She'd cross her arms over her chest, but she seems to be missing one. Really? She didn't think someone would pick up on what she's doing? Stealing data via small portable storage device is something any skilled cybersecurity expert should be on the lookout for, after all.

Speaking of...

"You know, if we don't all get picked off while our loyalties are divided, I really should look into blocking USB access for unapproved devices."

Neil

[ployboy]

It's really not long after that fated broadcast that Tim's pushing into ADI space; trial by fire, he's going without the forearm crutches. Figures he'll have to get more used to the prosthetic without the training wheels.

"Neil, what happened."

It's not a question. But it is. He doesn't know. Tim doesn't know.

"The program was sound. We have people talking about Artifacts out of containment- did we get any chance..." Well, Tim takes a pause, a breath, and he just wants to beg for... quieter, he continues.

"Any chance, to plant a bug on Steel?"

Nia Lehrer

[failedpromise]

Well, she'd already been thinking of talking to someone about the possibility of introducing more advanced technology in a way that doesn't inspire easily exploitable fear... with the recent split that's gone from a way to potentially boost their cause while making some extra cash to something that might actually be vitally necessary.

She already had her suspicions about ADI and she's even less inclined to trust them now, but... well she'd be a liar if she said corruption isn't ingrained in basically every large scale organization she knows of, and she can't do this on her own. At least Nia seemed to care.

"Bad breakup?" She's beat up, frazzled, and missing an arm, but she's still gotta try for levity. "I might be able to help with that."

Rae Hargrave

[worthallthis]

Guess who has been helping with the smashing, shooting, burning, and otherwise destroying things? This guy. He doesn't know what to do, yet, so he's settled on something that's familiar.

He knocks a harmless-looking bucket out of Rae's path before she can step on it, swing at it, or otherwise interact with it. "Careful," he warns. "It will try to eat that sledgehammer. And then you'll be left without a sledgehammer."

As evidenced by the rough and ragged end of the broom he'd used to swipe at it with.

Nia Lehrer too, why not

[worthallthis]

Like when he ran into Rae, Winter is still smashing artifacts himself. He stops when he sees Nia. Narrows his eyes at her.

But he's had a day or two to calm down. And hearing her sound like a normal, scared, upset person has taken her down from "handler" level of authority in his head, a little bit. And she hadn't known. He knows how that feels like. How mad he was.

So he says after a long moment: "I didn't know I had an entity with its claws in me when I got here, either."

Pam Ruan

[pinionedheart]

Nina isn't looking for Pam. It's the way the older woman is holding herself that catches her attention first - she only recognizes her a moment later, from the message that had gone out across the network and seemingly thrown everyone and everything into disarray.

"Maybe," she says. "It's hard to feel quite right, when everything you thought you knew gets yanked out from under you."

She settles on the other end of the bench, fingers twitching as she folds her hands in her lap. "Did someone hurt you?" It's a little softer, sympathetic. Concerned. She doesn't have to feign it - if Pam had been caught spying, it's not an unexpected consequence.

Nia Lehrer

[rainestorms]

Raine hadn't talked to Nia much... not of what they could remember, at least. But something struck a chord with Raine when they heard the transmission between the strange looking man Eda had been investigating— Zyrian Steele— and Nia Lehrer. So much so, that Raine decided they wanted to seek the woman out. Talk to her. They'd seen things happen like this before, as the the covens were no stranger to people being exposed. It always ends with them being cast out. Or petrified. Or worse. They knew now that Eda had been correct about Zyrian. And they knew that would make certain people angry.

Well, angrier than they already were considering what they knew now about Nia. Raine decided that the opporitunity to talk to her alone was too good to be passed up. After a moment of silence, of allowing Nia to think, Raine decided to take matters of conversation into their own hands.

"I have a question," They begin, calm and collected, empathy at the edges. "What do you plan to do now?"

Rae (cw weight mention)

[ployboy]

It's the Warden's office he's going to. Damage control is providing increasingly futile. Tim, bastion of clever observation that he is, (that's a joke), just-- wants to see if she's okay. Honestly. He's worn thin between the uselessness of breaking his head open every night the past months to set up the surveillance system, and, well, finding himself thin. Thinner. It's hard to find an appetite after a living through a nightmare that is now part of his body. Harder to find time to even attempt to remedy the problem.

He's had the stun gun all of one day. Holstered under a favorite pullover of his. Tim feels it shift as he shuffles forward with those forearm crutches. That's why he stops.

That's it, that's really the only reason Tim stops to see Hargrave over a laptop in an all too familiar hunt. He lets himself in, just there, just at the door. What she snaps.

"I'll trade you," Tim offers.

He has no idea what he's offering to trade. But his voice sure doesn't say that.

Pam Ruan | Pair thread with Raine Whispers

[edalyn]

Eda is chatting to Raine as they walk, pointing out one thing or another that she’s noticed in Gloucester as they make their way towards the store.

They aren’t looking for anyone from the ADI right now, but the disheveled HR lady still catches Eda’s eye.

“Hey, is that…”

Pam is someone she’d certainly wanted to talk to, after the ‘transparency’ incident. While Eda doesn’t exactly know her well, she’s never gotten a bad impression of her, either–being more positive towards offworlders than some people goes a long way.

She glances at Raine and gives a little nod towards the woman, suggesting they both try saying hello, before heading over. She looks concerned, noticing the absent hand–and everything else, but starts by simply giving Pam an awkward little wave.

Whatever response she’s expecting, it’s not the comment she gets.

“Wait… d’you mean the ADI made you do that, or your family did?” She tilts her head to the side slightly, trying to follow.

Nia Lehrer

[edalyn]

Eda has been bristling since Pam’s video feed went up on the network. Not precisely angry, although that’s absolutely part of it, but also not as satisfied over her own distrust of Zyrian Steel as one might expect.

She’s simply… unhappy, in a way that’s taking even her a little while to put her finger on.

Not that sitting with her feelings about the ADI is what she’s spending most of her time on—there’s too much happening for that.

In fact, as much as she’d like to have some kind of words with Nia Lehrer, she’s not actually looking for the Warden when she runs into her. She’s looking for artifacts, but she won’t pass up the chance, especially when it’s Nia who stops her.

”What’s not right… and why shouldn’t I check it out?”

[worthallthis]

I. Plans Gone Awry - Closed to CR

Winter doesn't usually reply to things on the network unless it's important, from someone he knows, or he has a particular interest in whatever is being said. Which is not often. He does, however, keep up with everything posted there and follow up on responses that aren't made private.

So he saw that video. And he is pissed. He seeks out his people, because he doesn't know what to do, but he does know they need to do something.

"What do we do," he asks each member his team. "We can't work for an Avatar." But can they take her town? Should they take her down? He doesn't know. And he doesn't know what to without an organization to work for, either.


II. Smashing Things - OTA

When in doubt, kill something. For now, Winter is still showing up for his security shifts, and he is making it his personal mission to seek out everything strange and out of place to smash it, shoot it, stomp on it, or otherwise make a mess out of it. He prowls the halls of ADI like an avenging angel decked out in guns, staves for poking things from a distance, and the occasional grenade.

Mirrors all get punched with a metal fist, all the plates closed tight and hard until they finally crack. Anyone looking over his shoulder for that could see a parade of deaths, clearly at Winter's hands, or more rarely a handful of smiling young women with dark hair.

He also eyes anyone he passes warily unless he's very familiar with them, in which case he might make an unhappy face and ask, "Did you see it?"

He leaves "it" unclear, though he means the video.


III. Gunning - OTA

About halfway through the morning on the second day of artifact hunting, one might find Winter hastily stripping things off in the hallway of ADI and throwing them as far away from himself as possible: weapons, body armor, even his boots. Only when he's down to a tank top, pants, and his two layers of socks does he stop.

That makes it obvious that his right arm is looking kind of metal, too, and his fingers are a little longer than they should be. He stares at the mess of equipment he's made, glares at it, searching for the culprit.


IV. Handyman - OTA

Winter is a former assassin. He knows how to pick locks. He gets back to the ADI apartments and can be found cursing at the lock on the front door as he coaxes it open again with the pins in his little kit. When he gets inside he'll see about sticking a brick in the door to keep it open for anyone else not home yet.

And once he figures out that the power's out, which shouldn't take long, he sets about picking the lock on the maintenance closet, too, to figure out what's wrong.

He can't fix everything, but the water is easy, and he can twist wires together until they get power. Wifi he's not going to figure out on his own, though.


V. Blowing Something Up - for Yelena, Steve, and Cortana

There's only one signal tower left. Winter is sure they can take down one signal tower, if they put their heads together. So he makes the rounds to his usual crew to hatch a plan.

"I want to blow it up," he says simply. "Grenades. If we can get some C4, that will be even better. We just have to get close enough to strap the explosives to it. Maybe take turns distracting it."

III

[punched_hitler]

ADI has become something of a minefield of strange effects, and even if smashing mirrors or throwing artifacts doesn't work, it still feels better than doing nothing. Steve has been warily patrolling, Mjolnir in one hand because this seems like the time to start carrying it around, when he hears scuffling in the next hall over and breaks into a run, only to find -

"Winter?" He stands there, blinking, for a second, before his brain gets into gear and he sprints forward, hand reaching out as if to help tear off some offending piece of gear. "What's wrong?" Is there something in his clothes? Is he hurt?

But coming closer, he can't help but notice that Winter's right arm is - "What did you touch?" he demands, looking around at the gear strewn everywhere, and anything else that might be in the hallway, besides.

Elias Bouchard | ota!

[hellojon]

artifacts pt. 1 - cw: mention of death, blood
Elias knows what this is. He knows what the sticky notes will show. It shows the Archivist, his Archivist in all his majesty, drawing on the power of their mutual patron, walking towards Elias, knife in hand. He doesn't want to see it. He knows how this will happen, after all, he knows what he'll see on that final sticky note and he knows that terrifies him more than he'll want to admit. But the part of him driven by curiosity wants to keep going. He wants to see the end, he wants to know what happens, if only so he can find a way to prevent it from happening in the first place.

Needless to say, as he grapples with this dilemma in his head, the sticky notes are totally bleeding. So there's Elias, rummaging through the break room, trying to find sponges and dish soap. And later he's at his desk, scrubbing wet, fresh blood off of any surface that's scrubbable.

groundskeep
Elias is absolutely not doing any work. But he can help! He's down in the maintenance area, holding a flashlight, shining it on the circuit box as somebody else does the work of stripping the wires, clearing away any debris, and so on and so forth. That being said, Elias is absolutely using the Eye to cheat at electrical work and occasionally offers up suggestions.

"Maybe try the blue wire next?" he says, after connecting the red wire to the circuit box did absolutely nothing.

artifacts pt. 2 - cw: blood, blindness, body horror
To his credit, he lasts a week or so before succumbing. At his core, he is part of the Eye. And the one fatal flaw of his patron and Elias himself is curiosity. He wants to know how it ends. He comes up with all sorts of justifications for himself: it would be good to be out of the way during whatever nonsense with the signal tower, other people here need to see him as mortal and fallible. But at his core, he wants to Know. He wants to see how he dies so that he can make sure it never happens.

That being said, the blindness is just as much of an inconvenience as the knowledge itself. It's anathema to him. He is of the Eye. He sees. And yet here is Elias Bouchard, stumbling around the ADI housing, hand on the wall, blinking blood away so that it keeps from crusting. When he hears someone approach, he can't help but ask, "Am I anywhere near the restroom?"

His face is a mess, caked with wet and dry blood, some of which has dripped down to his shirt collar. With every blink, he dislodges tears of blood from his eyes—but he doesn't stop blinking, just because the fear of his eyelids being caked together by dried blood, him unable to open them, plays in the back of his mind.

Artefacts 2 I had to restrain myself from typing wouldn't you like to know weather boy

[rainestorms]

Raine wasn't very squeamish, but somebody bleeding from their eyes was quite unsightly- no pun intended. Seeing Elias Bouchard blind and helpless however, twisted something mean in the back of Raine's mind that they didn't quite ignore, for once. They knew with.. whatever their new condition was, that it would hurt him. They didn't like hurting people. But...

Elias reminded Raine too much of people that had hurt them. Though you don't typically expect to fight fire with fire, perhaps it would be a good thing for Elias to feel something deeper- something other than his usual smug overconfidence.

Raine did their best to ignore the gruesome sight, and though he couldn't see them they gingerly touched his shoulder. Their form became more corporeal than before, though there was no smile of satisfaction on their face. Just a cold glare. If he could even see it.

"I don't know." They replied, rather flatly. "I'd have thought you'd figured that out. You seem to have everything here figured out, anyways."

Stephanie Brown | DC Comics | OTA

[ichoosefight]

Reflections of Regret [cw: PTSD, gun violence, potentially suicidal ideation]
It's the sound of a gunfight that catches Steph's attention as she passes the mirror. She looks first towards the window, but the sound that continues to echo as it bounces between brick walls is very clearly coming from the mirror. Inside is a downward view of an intersection of alleyways, where a dozen or so bodies lie once the bullets stop flying.

Steph is frozen in place, as frozen as she always is when she has this dream, begging her body to move, to do something, to turn to the woman next to her and ask for help.

She can only stand and stare, wide-eyed, as the color drains from her face.

Blood-Stained Amulets
Steph will be the first to admit that she doesn't know what she's looking for. But she looks, through ADI and Bonnie's, seeking out anything that seems out of place. She pauses when she smells something strange. What is that? It smells like...

Blood.

Suddenly Steph is furious. She hasn't gotten so far as wondering why she's furious, but that's never really stopped her from throwing a punch before. Which is exactly what she does to the next person she sees.

blood-stained amulets

[hellojon]

Fortunately for Elias, this is before he gets to the last note in his sticky pad, seeing the End, blind and bleeding.

Unfortunately for Elias, Stephanie is faster than he is. So when he sees her enter their apartment, he gives her a nod, about to introduce himself, very quickly Knows that she's affected by one of those artifacts, and unfortunately does not have enough time to get out of the way before she swings a punch at him. He moves quick enough that her fist connects with his cheek instead of his nose but also ouch? That hurt?

"What a lovely welcoming committee," he dryly responds, taking a few steps back from Stephanie.

delloso de la rue | d20 | ota

[ruevealing]

[i. artifacts a] gravity it makes no sense to me / but it pulls me just like you do (cw: body horror, moths)

[It starts off as an itch beneath their feathers.

A gorgeous, beaded moth broach, beautiful in design, appears at Rue's vanity one morning and immediately they know it is a gift from Hob. Their beloved has always been generous in that way - small trinkets, sweet compliments, unexpected texts through the day reminding them how dearly they were treasured - but the intricacy and loveliness of this particular piece takes them by surprise.

It reminds them so dearly of their friend Binx, with her moth wings and her cozy court, and Rue has a chic hat it will look absolutely perfect pinned against.

And at first, the broach is only a fashion statement piece, something they delight in seeing whenever they catch their reflection in the mirror, the gleam of shiny wings in blues and greens and soft pinks against their mossy feathers.

But then the itch begins soon after they pin the delicate hat to their feathers and Rue can not stand how they keep having to pause every other moment to scratch themself. And just when they think it can't get worse, after pressing their back into a door frame to get at that terrible itch between their shoulder blades, Rue catches sight of their back in the mirror and notices the tiny pairs of insect wings that have begun to sprout from their body.

Which is precisely why the owlbear has thrown on the most weather-inappropriate coat for this time of the year, grabbing at whoever they can find stalking around the ADI apartments or offices, before dragging them into a private space before addressing them.

Not even a lifetime of perfect, effortless composure can hide the way their beak trembles slightly.]

Pray, I need your help.

[ii. artifacts b] the higher i am the harder into ground i will slam / it will kill me it'll be messy (cw: body horror, moths, intelligence drain, dysphoria)

[The sound of screams isn't exactly unusual in Gloucester, but that doesn't make them any easier to ignore.

It follows Rue with every step, strangers shrieking in outright fear, children bursting into tears, their parents bodily dragging them away from the new abomination stalking down their streets. They call Rue a monster and how can they blame them when they look like this, fluttering insect wings covering their body, their wings, their head, translucent and horrifically beautiful in the sunlight, buzzing around Rue with their constant attempts to fly away.

When Rue is found is up to you, characters can run into Rue just as they are beginning to shed some of their intelligence, trembling and terrified and overwhelmed with the reaction the public is giving them, or they can be found after, an owlbear in a torn dress and dainty hat, prowling the city streets on all fours, fighting for the last shred of humanity within them.]

[iii. artifacts c] here i am planted on the ground and waiting / waiting for it to pull me (cw: talk of the above triggers, hurt/comfort hours)

[It's no surprise that after their delicate, beautiful broach is knocked from their head and crushed to pieces beneath their great paw, that Rue retreats. They hole up in their apartment for nearly a week, unwilling to face anyone while they process through the mess they've made of everything.

A lifetime spent trying to prove that they were so much more than just a beast, all completely swept away in an instant. It's devastating in a way that can't even begin to articulate.

Perhaps their absence is felt. Rue is difficult to miss during the day, especially around the office, cheerful and bright, a big personality who genuinely looks forward to catching up with their coworkers after every weekend. Or perhaps enough unread texts is worrying enough to check in with Rue at home. You may need to let yourself in though, Rue can barely hear the sound of knocking over their own swirling thoughts.]

[iv. wildcard] if my logic isn't sound / what's keeping our feet on the ground?

[ooc: hit me up if you want a personal prompt or anything!! :>)

i

[musicdied]

[With everything that's been going on, the broadcast and the sudden, violent termination of the apartment complex's power, and the release of ADI's entire store of horrifying artifacts into the world, Yelena's a little tense. Just a little.

So she stiffens when a hand closes around her arm to steer her into a currently-unoccupied office, head whipping around.]

Rue?

[She relaxes fractionally as she recognized the owlbear, though there's a hardness to the set of her jaw that isn't entirely banished by the look of concern that settles in when she notes that faint tremor.]

What's wrong?

Power | Chainsaw Man | ota!

[thefinalpower]

Reflections of Regret (cw for Chainsaw Man spoilers, gunfire, death, gore)

[ The scene in the mirror looks strangely peaceful and quiet. It's just Power, standing in the hallway of an apartment building and holding a birthday cake. She looks a little apprehensive and nervous, but nothing seems to be wrong as she reaches out and knocks at the door, once, twice, three times.

The real Power, the one staring at the mirror in absolute horror, tears herself away from the reflection long enough to swing a ferocious right hook at the glass. It doesn't shatter, doesn't even have the decency to crack, but that doesn't stop her from punching it again and again and again. If you approach her, she'll turn to you with wide, terrified eyes. ]

I need a hammer! A chair! Anything, quickly!


Blood-Stained Amulets (cw for violence)

[ Power is a Blood Fiend, so the smell of blood affects her in much the same way that the scent of fresh pie affects characters in old Looney Tunes cartoons. Once she catches the scent, she's off like a shot, tearing through the hallways and getting increasingly more frenzied the longer she runs.

... Increasingly angry too, until she's reached the point where she'll just furiously lunge at the first person who approaches her. Sorry! ]

Reflections

[ichoosefight]

[ Steph winces as she approaches to help. She's got bandages on her own right knuckles from trying that, but at least she knew when to stop. ]

Maybe a window? I've tried breaking them...

[ She searches for the nearest one and moves to open it. There's nothing particularly heavy nearby, so that's no good. They can be covered, but she knows from experience that doesn't help much when you know what it's showing. ]

Caitlyn Kiramman | Arcane | OTA

[clavesregni]

I. Blood-Stained Amulets (potential cw for gun violence)

[In hindsight, she shouldn't have brought a gun. It made sense at the time, of course. There are dangerous things out there, all sorts of madness is afoot, and she can't protect herself very well without one.

But now, the scent of iron is overtaking all her other senses, and she's angry - she doesn't even know about what - and it's all too easy to point the gun at the next person she sees.

Are they the person who did this to her? What 'this' is, exactly, doesn't matter. Someone's responsible. And that person needs to be dealt with.]

Put your hands up. [Her voice is colder than even she has ever heard it before.]


II. The Groundskeeper

[Caitlyn is helping! She's navigating the maintenance area with a torch, a very determined expression on her face, no understanding of how anything mechanical or electrical works. Her whole life, hot water has come out of the taps on command and the lights have turned on when she's required it of them, and if something's gone wrong it's always been fixed very quickly.]

How do we restore hot water?

[She's never taken a cold shower in her life and she simply can't start now. And she needs a shower.]


III. A Hunting We Will Go (cw for obsession, disordered eating, insomnia, paranoia, and potentially gun violence)

[It looked like any other gun when she picked it up. It's just a handgun, of the sort that are commonly issued by ADI, nothing notworthy.

But since picking it up, things have seemed different. A little foggier, maybe. She must be tired. She's been trying to keep lists of all the artifacts that have gone missing, records of all the strange occurrences in Dogtown, records on everything, because if she can gather enough information and arrange it in the right order, she'll be able to see the big picture, she knows it. But once she has the gun in her hand, it becomes obvious: there's an artifact out there that's at the bottom of all this, and if she can just find it, she'll be able to uncover the truth, she knows it.

She forgets to eat. She forgets about those hot showers she loves so much. Her clothes, for the first time in her life, go un-ironed. Her hair isn't combed. She just needs to find it...

And no one will help her! She doesn't understand why, when this is the key to everything, everyone else is running around worrying about other things!

There are dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep. She may have lost a little weight, but every second spend eating is a second she could be hunting for the artifact that she knows will unlock the truth behind it all.

Catch her uncharacteristically snapping at someone who bumps into her in the hallway of the ADI building, or in the hallway outside her apartment spreading her ever-growing collection of notes and documents beyond the confines of her living space.]

iii

[ruevealing]

[Hiding away from the world only works for so long. Eventually, Rue emerges from the - forgive the pun - nest they've created in their apartment, finally feeling equal parts brave and desperate enough to risk the looks they may receive, just to get some fresh air and sun on their feathers.

And that is precisely when Rue nearly steps on Caitlyn, where she's spreading out those notes of hers, taking up the small space of the hallway with her ever growing collection of damning evidence. And for just a moment, Rue hardly recognizes the woman. She looks dirty, unkempt and uncombed, the already sharp features of her lovely face a little more cutting and deep, hollowed out by lack of sleep and food.]

Caitlyn. What - what is all of this? My friend, you look unwell.

Lt. Col. John Sheppard | Stargate: Atlantis | OTA

[ferriswheelsandfootball]

cw: hallucinations, body horror, compulsion, violence, stalking, PTSD, potential for injury, blood

A. Drawful Part 1: Artifact effects here

It's just bad luck this happened at the canteen.

It's a perfectly ordinary blue pen. He would have been suspicious if he had found it elsewhere, he'd seen cursed pens before, but for it to already be in his pocket? He thinks nothing of it. He'd been doing some research lately and drops a couple newspapers and books on his table, and sits down to work on his notes, but instead, he starts drawing without realizing it. He doesn't even realize what he's drawing until the shapes start taking place.

They're animals. Deer, mice, rabbits. It takes him a second to recognize that they all sort of have a theme going on. Which should have probably been his first clue.

The second is that he doesn't...really stop. He realizes that he doesn't really want to be doing this right now, he needs to get onto the articles he found but somehow his hand is still going on the paper, still scribbling mice, rats, squirrels, ducks, antelope, groundhogs--finally, he manages to use other 'hand', his crab claw, to press down on his hand to get it to stop. He works his fingers out, frowning, wondering where that all came from when--

--the squealing and screaming immediately gets his attention.

Because the few people in the canteen start violently transforming into prey animals.

"What the hell!?"

He gets up, knocking his chair over--it's like the weasel and crab thing all over again but worse--the transformations are violent, grotesque--rabbit ears bursting out of skulls, pig-noses and hooves bubbling out of faces and limbs, words and screams turning into cries and squeals...it tears at his heart, he can't do a damn thing about it and before he knows it the monstrosities are just there, all humanity lost from them. A mouse-person near him squeaks pitifully, half-transformed, its body a disgusting mishmash of human and mouse parts.

"I'm...I'm sorry," John mumbles, wishing he could do more. Wishing he could do something...but it's too late. They're stuck like this, just like Dave from accounting, and really, he wouldn't want to live in a state like that. Who would? The kindest thing would be to put them down. And he has to do something.

"I'm so sorry."

Of course, in reality, this mouse-person isn't a mouse-person at all, but a perfectly innocent random person that happens to be eating their lunch, completely unaware they're about to be attacked randomly.

John's eyes flicker and his pupils turn cat-like, cat-like claws extending from his other (non-crab claw) hand, fangs extending in his mouth, as he starts to get into a pouncing position.

It's better this way.

B. Drawful Part 2:

Maybe you saw John pounce on some random person. Or maybe you were unfortunately the one he noticed appearing to turn into a rabbit or a duck. Of course, you look perfectly normal in reality, but in his mind, you're a prey animal.

Either way, he's suddenly turned his wild-eyed focus on you.

"It'll all be over soon," he says in a surprisingly kind voice that doesn't exactly go with the claws and the fangs he's sporting, because it looks an awful lot like he's about to pounce on you.

Maybe it's time to run.

C. Drawful Part 3:

Okay. So now he knows that it isn't everyone else being affected, but him. If anyone asks about his cat-like physical traits he's gonna blame it on the artifact or pretend it was something he picked up in Atlantis or the Pegasus Galaxy, if there's space-vampires why can't there be were-cats after all...he's not sure how much longer he can keep the ruse of not being an Avatar up when he keeps losing control like this, or maybe the real delusion in all this is thinking that he can.

And it's definitely an artifact making him hallucinate, making him want to hunt these things--the pen he was using earlier. As long as it's around, he's getting the compulsions, and he knows that he's not safe to be around. He tries breaking it in half, but after he puts the pieces in his pocket it somehow mends itself when he's not looking. He takes it out of his pocket, staring at it as it's fully intact again. Really!?

"How do I stop this thing!?"

D. Wildcard - Anything goes!

Feel free to hit me up if you'd like to plot something out!

Edalyn Clawthorne | The Owl House | OTA

[edalyn]

Who Let the Artifacts Out

➥ Reflections Two Truths and a Lie

i. (cw: animal attack, major injury, blood, eye trauma, possession/lack of agency)

While Eda’s on the lookout for artifacts, she hasn’t heard about the mirrors yet. And so it comes at a complete surprise when she catches a shock of very red hair out of the corner of her eye.

The girl visible in the mirror might be recognisable to people who’ve seen Eda as a witch or a human, although she’s a good thirty years younger. A small teenager with no signs of her future hair colour, and two matching amber eyes.

The scene playing out in the mirror appears to be an average domestic moment, Eda at home with her sister—an older girl with wildly curly, darker red hair—and their mother, a middle aged woman with soft features and short brown hair.

For a brief moment, Eda is more puzzled than anything else. In fact there's even a pang of soft nostalgia as she watches herself help set the table.

And then her heart sinks as she watches the door to the house open. A man who looks quite a bit like Eda’s younger self walks in, calls her pumpkin and ruffles her hair.

Eda tries and fails to tear her eyes away as her father grins cheerfully and produces a party popper from his coat. It’s almost funny what a small, innocent looking thing it is, for all the trouble it lead to.

“I won't be home for a while, so that's why tonight… I'll be leavin' in style!”

And then a few things happen in very quick succession. The popper goes off, fireworks exploding in the living room over their heads with a dazzling flash. The teen Eda’s eyes widen, and she looks dazed and overwhelmed by the light.

…Until her eyes go solid black. She hunches over in pain and lets out a bird-like shriek as her form begins to twist into something larger, animalistic and covered in feathers.

ii. (cw: animal attack, potentially graphic injury, possession/lack of agency)

Another scene starts in an equally innocuous way, but Eda is quicker to guess where this one is going. And to regret that it’s so easy to lock eyes with a mirror, even when she’s doing her best to watch for them.

“No, I don’t–I don’t need to see this right now.” Things are going so well lately.

The young woman in the mirror is more immediately recognisable as Eda this time, somewhere in her mid-twenties and beginning to grey prematurely at the temples. She’s sitting on a hill, in a world that will look unfamiliar to most. The grass and sky are shades of purple, and the view overlooks red trees and what appears to be a mountain range made of huge, jagged bones.

She isn’t alone in this vision, either, but in this case the witch sitting near her will also look familiar, at least to anyone who’s met them here–Raine Whispers is also much younger than they are now, and somewhat slighter, but with the same intensely green eyes and seafoam hair.

“I’ve made a decision,” says the image of Raine. They curl in on themselves, wrapping their arms around one of their knees and looking away from Eda. “I’m joining the bard coven and… I think we should see other people.”

iii. (cw: likely mentions of child endangerment/harm, potential mentions of (fantasy race) genocide)

“Okay, I know you got your head cut off, and we started some kind of prison riot–”

Eda can’t help but look up the familiar voice, even as she realises in almost the same instant that she’s heard that sentence before. Her kids aren’t here. Of course they aren’t.

It’s too late either way; she’s watching the image of a teenage human girl, bright-eyed and enthusiastic if somewhat uncertain at the moment. The girl stands in Eda’s eclectically-decorated living room, looking up at a version of Eda who looks more or less as she does now–well, current harpy form notwithstanding.

A small, furry creature with horns and a skull for a face stands near Eda, wearing a red collar and a tiny gold crown.

“But this is the most fun I’ve ever had.”

The kid looks full of barely-contained hope in a way that very nearly breaks the current Eda’s heart. Because she knows what happens next, and she knows with a painfully guilt-ridden certainty that she should have said no.

➥ 8-ball for Your Thoughts
(cw: loss of agency, obsession, codependency)

It’s no secret that Eda likes to collect shiny things. How much of that comes from the bird part of her brain is anyone’s guess. There’s often another reason, either way—it makes her a tiny bit sad to see things she considers nice thrown away.

This very sparkly magic 8-ball, for example, clearly doesn’t belong in the trash. It belongs in her nest. Or does it? Hah, she supposes she should ask.

Signs point to yes

If only any other answers in her life were as simple as that.

i. [Closed to Raine] i try so damn hard to make everything my fault, don't i

It's subtle at first; as much as Eda's decor is… eccentric, she does like a clean house.

Fold your laundry

Not the kind of advice she expected from her new sparkle-thing, maybe, but come to think of it she'd forgotten to do that. She might as well.

She might as well fold Raine's, too, if she's doing it anyway. And she should really try to pick all the feathers out of it.

Dust the room

She supposes she hasn't done that lately, either. There's been so much going on. But she really should keep up; she's not the only one living here. It couldn't hurt to be a little more thoughtful.

After all, it's mostly her own things gathering dust. In fact most of the decorations, if you can call them that, are her things, now that she thinks about it. Her odds and ends, the walls and the tops of the bookshelves lined with strange human objects she's picked up for one reason or another.

She doesn't even know what some of these are for. By the end of the day, there are just a few less.

Apologise for being rude

Huh. Today's advice is a very different sort than the various little reminders of household chores. But the 8-ball has been right about everything else, hasn't it?

And, once she thinks about it, she knows what it's talking about.

She shouldn't have snapped at Raine yesterday. But it's happened a few times lately, over little things, as the two of them settle into the shared space.

A stack of books that she decided was in her way here, a creeping pile of disorganised sheet music there. Nothing major—in fact, nothing she should have gotten annoyed over at all.

Because really, it's her fault if they don't have enough space for their things, isn't it? They're at work right now, so she'll have to apologise later. But she might as well do some reorganising in the meantime. Does she really need all these books?

ii.

Offer to help

It’s a puzzling suggestion, for a moment, but Eda finds herself certain it will make sense soon enough. Everything else the 8-ball has suggested has made sense. Everything else it’s suggested has been helpful.

And it does make sense, the moment Eda spots anyone doing something that looks like it would be easier with two people. Or easier if someone simply did it for them, whatever it is. In fact, she should probably just do that. Save them some trouble.

“Need some help with that?”

iii.

Or perhaps you ask her something, anything. Whatever the question was, Eda gives you an uncertain look and asks you to just… wait a moment.

Taking a distracted step away, she pulls a very bedazzled magic 8-ball out of her pocket, or her bag—she’s tired of not being able to keep things in her hair, but that’s beside the point—and shakes it.

She seems genuinely absorbed in watching for whatever answer is going to surface. But given that this is Eda, maybe it’s some kind of a bit?

Dirty Old Egg-Suckin' Tech

i. (likely blood, potential animal attack)

When the noise begins, Eda is quick to throw her phone to the ground and crush it under her talons. She’s not doing this again; she’ll worry about replacing it later.

Except the noise is coming from plenty of other places, even if she didn’t have ears more sensitive than the average human.

Said fluffy ears fold back against Eda’s head as, instead of whatever hallucination she was bracing herself for, blinding pain blooms behind her eyes.

She cries out, bracing herself against the wall of the nearest ADI building.

Eda’s eyes begin to swim with tears and then resolve into solid black.

“No, no no… calm down, we’re–” Eda tries to reassure the panicking creature that shares her body through gritted teeth. It doesn’t work.

With another noise of pain, more bird-like this time, she hunches over and falls to all fours. The transformation may not be quite as dramatic when she was already a harpy, but the beast she becomes is still a far cry from Eda’s usual self–most recognisable by the face, but even that’s currently a good deal more animalistic even than usual.

The owl beast lets out another ear-piercing shriek and presses the side of its head against the wall, before trying to cover one of its ears with a huge paw. Frightened, hurt and panicking it begins to search for somewhere–anywhere–to hide from the noise.

Wildcard
Feel free to hit me up badgirlcoven or Ilya#4143 on discord. Or just surprise me!

8-ball, ii

[byeeeeeeeee]

"Oh, uh..."

Hunter is in the kitchen, hands in a sink full of soapy water as he scrubs away at the dishes he'd dirtied in his attempt to make a grilled cheese sandwich. It was more burnt than grilled in the end, but he ate it anyway.

And now he's trying to scrape away the bits that got burned into the pan.

"Thanks, but I've only got a few left to do."

Luka Kovač | ER | OTA

[cuttypie]

cw: body horror, transformation, mannequins, dolls, compulsion, loss of identity, depression

A. Let the world around us just fall apart: Artifact effects here

The comb showed up one day and he thought nothing of it. He doesn't even recognize it as new, it feels like it's always just sort of been there with his things, something he had purchased when he got other necessities, nothing to really think about.

Then his joints start aching. He may not have the medical knowledge he used to, but it's clear that he's developing some sort of arthritis, perhaps? He hasn't worked out any differently than he usually does, and he makes a note to see Carter about it and do some tests. There's a pang in his heart when he thinks about what he could have done himself, he doesn't even remember which tests should be done, and what they even do.

And then, a few days after he starts using the comb, he notices it. On his joints, his skin is...strange. The texture is wrong and it's...hard. He presses down and his fingernail just clicks against it. There's lines, he notices, against his joints, filling out into strange hollows, along his elbow, wrist, fingers, until he realizes they look a little like...ball joints a doll would have.

He should probably be terrified but he's...not. A part of him is, a part of him wonders if this is the Stranger, some part of his old Avatar nature trying to come back, but it's...detached. Like it's far away, like he can't quite reach the worry. That's probably not a good sign.

He looks in the mirror and his face is a little strange, too. Like his features are...softened out, like he's looking at a sort of waxy version of his face that isn't quite finished.

He should probably try to figure out what's going on, though. Had he done anything different? Strange, lately? He doesn't remembering touching any strange artifacts.

It takes him awhile to figure it out. And it's getting worse. His hair looks fantastic, though.

You might see Luka walking through the halls at ADI, making his way to medical, with his strange features. He wouldn't mind stopping for a chat, but he'll seem strangely distant, as if nothing much matters to him anymore.

It's probably fine.

B. And we can build this dream together:

It has gotten much worse.

He knows it's the comb now, but he can't stop using it. His body feels so odd, so stiff, and his movements are jerky and strange, like a marionette, as his plastic joints squeak and move. His face is almost or completely blank, depending on when you meet him.

A faceless, plastic mannequin. The only thing that looks alive on him is his hair, which does look really great.

He should be screaming. Maybe part of him is. It's one of his worst fears, being unknown, being faceless, looked over, losing himself, but everything hardly seems to matter anymore.

Maybe this is what he deserves after what he's done as a former Avatar of the Stranger.

Sometimes the mannequin that is Luka will walk along the hallway, or in the canteen, simply to pose in one spot, wearing nice clothes, a button up shirt and a tie, and sometimes a white coat. Maybe he wants to look like a doctor.

He shows up in medical more and more to just...stand, pose, literally be a mannequin, maybe this way he can be close to it, be some use as a doctor. It's the closest he may ever get.

It's the closest he gets to feeling anything.

C. Wildcard - Anything goes!

Feel free to hit me up if you'd like to plot something out!

b

[ruevealing]

Look, a mannequin in a place where it should absolutely not be is one of the most terrifying things that could ever happen to an unsuspecting owlbear. Rue only means to stop by Medical and see if Dr. Carter is in, just because of all the fearful things that have been happening all over the last week, but stepping into the space and nearly walking right into Luka is not at all what they are prepared for.

The owlbear jumps, the feathers of their neck and head puffing up on instinct, a very unsophisticated squawk at their beak.

Yelena Belova | MCU | OTA

[musicdied]

Reflections of Regret (cw: violence, death, child harm, altered mental states)
i.
It's one of the mirrors in the training room. Yelena doesn't even notice it at first, intent as she is on hunting for the little pewter hound statue one panicked member of the admin team had seen - seen, and fled from as it apparently grew into something larger-than-life and appallingly hungry.

Movement flickers in the glass as she passes and--

It starts with the sound of tires squealing, a loud thump, and a child's wail. The scene in the mirror looks simple enough - a young blonde girl, perhaps eight or nine years old, struggling to disentangle herself from a bicycle that's just been struck by the shiny chrome bumper of what is probably a luxury car, though it's difficult to tell for certain, as narrow as the angle seen through the mirror is. Car doors open and shut, and a man's voice rises, concerned.

He isn't speaking English. Someone particularly good with languages might recognize Dutch.

ii.
The second time, she notices as soon as her reflection starts moving - and it is noticeably her reflection this time, clad in black tactical gear, stalking down an alley to close with an older, dark-haired woman. She draws a knife, sharp and starkly utilitarian.

The dark-haired woman is good, but Yelena is better - and, crucially, is not only willing but intent on using lethal force. The knife goes in once, twice. Blood sprays.

Outside the glass, a slightly-older Yelena watches, fixed, black eyes wide, as her reflection pulls the knife out again, and slashes it across the other woman's throat - and that shakes her out of it. That isn't how it happened. Not quite.

She's only half-conscious of unclipping the baton from her belt and slamming it hard against the glass.

Groundskeep
There are enough people working on getting the utilities back up in the ADI housing complex, and Yelena has little to add to the efforts that isn't already there. For the moment, at least, she's busying herself - in between artifacts cropping up like particularly unpleasant fungal blooms - with scrubbing paint from the walls.

In the evening, she visits a few neighbours to hand out candles, just one of a number of useful items she'd taken to stockpiling between being snowed in and witnessing the hoarding behaviour that had swept the town when communications went down.

She won't turn down some assistance, or a - well, probably a lukewarm drink, at this point.

Wildcard
Hit me up at quantumvelvet if you want to plot out something else!

ii!

[ruevealing]

It's horrific.

Rue does not mean to peer into the mirrors of others once they begin to understand what each one is displaying. They seem to show memories of sorts, some true and some manipulated, these secret blips into the lives that ADI's employees lived before coming here to work for them. So truly, Rue does not mean to pry, it would be entirely indecorous to, but it just keeps happening by accident.

So Rue catches Yelena staring frozen in front of one of those terrible mirrors and immediately moves to her side, intends to bodily pull the woman away for her own sake, but the scene draws the owlbear in just the same, leaves them still at Yelena's side as they watch the woman slash another's throat, the spray of blood so intense it cause Rue to jerk back as if splashed.

And before they can even speak, the mirror is shattered to pieces and Rue throws up a wing to protect both themself and Yelena from the sprinkling of shimmering pieces of glass.

"Yelena! Oh, are you quite alright?"

martin blackwood | ota, i'll match your format!

[lowficharm]

i. [artifact] and i was in the darkness / so darkness i became cw for: self-hatred, possible discussions of suicide, and depression; artifact description here.

[Martin knows what it is when he sees it-- or rather, what it must be. While he's never known artifacts to seek anyone out, the point of them is always to find their way into the hands of someone who will use them. Someone who will do the damage, and Martin seems to be all damage these days. The whistle fits into his hand well, cold to the touch no matter how hard he presses it into the warmth of his hand.

He takes it, of course. He can stop it. He can stop anyone else from having this, holding this. That was the point.

But of course, there is so much suffering around. So many people who were drawn into this mess he made, the world he was left behind in that he ruined. The temptation is his own, before too long, to get the fix he needs and remove these feelings from his chest. It is his fault, after all, and there is little reassurance for him of trying to keep hope. There's only so long he can hang on to it. This whistle came to him. Maybe it will answer something else.

So he does. He hides and he waits and when he's finally almost alone, he lets that cold, low sound echo over him and whoever happens to be nearby. He listens, and tries to hear, tries to accept this.

He can't.

It's not long after before he becomes near-impossible to find until you hear the call, round a corner into fog, until the voice in the nothingness reminds him-- or you, or both, perhaps-- that you could have stopped this, if you'd really wanted to. But you didn't. No wonder you're alone.

Either you'll find him by feeling the effects yourself, starting to succumb to the feelings and the cold to see someone through the fog, or by fighting your way through because you know he's there, and you'll find him standing and looking away-- always away, and always maybe a bit too far to reach. And the words he says will be the same.]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

ii. [later] and knew that somehow i could find my way back

[Okay, so, that was bad. It was very bad, and he's sure someone's going to have words about it to him, but if he stops too long to think about that he's likely going to explode. Instead, because being alone got him here, he's going to maybe-too-aggressively make himself useful. Before too long, he's puttering around to everyone working on something-- somehow he's achieved hot tea and has raided every cabinet he can find for cookies, and he'll find anyone off by themselves who needs a spot of brightening up with a smile and some tea and food.]

Hey! How, uhm, h-how are you doing? With this or just, uh, in general, I suppose.

iii. [wildcard] in the shadow of your heart

[Hit me up at cancerously or on discord if you want to plot something else for this!]

i!!!

[rainestorms]

Raine found the fog sometime between when they'd argued with Eda, and when they'd left, angry and frustrated that she was acting so immature about sheet music. She had all sorts of human items around their shared space, and they'd never quite been able to make the space their own. Not as much as living alone had allowed them. It was a struggle, but because they moved into the space and were with their favourite Owl Lady again, they hardly complained.

But the sheet music argument had upset them. Enough to bite back about how they would've picked up the music if they'd been asked. About how much of their room was just Eda's things. About how they were happy to live with her again but found it to be difficult to adjust to living with a person again after living alone.

Now they were left with regret. If they'd responded better, maybe they would've argued less. Why didn't they just pick it up in the first place when they were done? They never wanted to fight with Eda, and the fighting brought them into a headspace of fear. That she would disappear. That those around them wouldn't speak to Raine anymore because they had reacted poorly. How they were so cold, and desperate to be held by Eda. How they need to just pretend to be-

A voice broke them from their spiral and they wiped tears out from under their glasses. It took them a moment to realise they'd dropped into a crouch, and stood back up. They scanned the fog for whomever they heard, and squinted at a soft, fuzzy shape of someone close by.

"Hello..?" Their voice is quiet, and gentle. "Are you... what are you sorry for?"