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.

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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!