EVENT #12: INVOCATION - IC EVENT LOG (PART 2)

[abraxasmods]

Event #12 - Invocation ( 2 )

Go to the:
OOC plotting post | Event coordination post

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As Week 3 approaches around March 6th, faction officials will begin to reach out to characters for information they've uncovered that hasn't been reported. Although Thorne, the Free Cities, and Solvunn have traditionally been at odds, the three nations have come together under these unique circumstances,, and will continue to cooperate until the Lost have been recovered. With Nocwich open as a base of operations, the Spared will have a neutral location to meet in person without border restrictions.

How events proceed will depend in part on your actions. If you're one of the Spared, you can join a team or stay back to prepare and coordinate. If you're one of the Lost, you can escape or remain behind to help others break free.

NOTES

1. For a rough TIMELINE, the Lost's breaking free and the Spared's coordination efforts will take place 2-3 days into Week 3. Leading into Week 4, the Spared will send out their teams to retrieve the Escape and Holdout Groups. Though there's some narrative wiggle room for who returns and when, characters should only participate in one team or group to keep things organized.
   
   
2. A Coordination Post will be used for communications between mods and players both. You can request dice rolls, start investigations, submit or review notable incidents, and begin in-person network-style threads with each other to quickly play out IC interactions. Review the post for forms and other details to fully participate in this event.


3. The Network will function properly again for the Lost who have escaped. The ones who remain captured will continue to experience disruptions similar to Part 1.

Please don't hesitate to ask us questions or clarification, even if you feel it might be a minor detail. This event contains a lot of information to go over, so we're happy to guide you through anything that requires further explanation. We'd much prefer you ask to avoid any misunderstandings or confusion!

Week 3

By now, several discoveries have been made. You've explored nearly every angle you can. It's time to take what you've learned and do something about the situation, whether you're trapped inside the dark cave or trying to bring your friends home.

Escape | The Lost

CW: Disturbing imagery (text and visual), death, dark and horror-based themes.

The past two weeks have been a harrowing experience, but you're still alive. Though the situation's worsened in some aspects, you've gained advantages in others. You might've formed unexpected allies from the other side, discovered hidden clues, or retrieved weapons and tools.

Moreover, the Acolytes don't seem quite so sure of themselves anymore, do they? Ever since the ritual, they've been watching nervously, as though they aren't confident in what's coming next. Some of you even managed to reveal one of their faces, exposing a weakness.

As you listen to the rattle of chains and scraping of metal on stone, you fear something much worse awaits you. Is it time to strike? Do you work on your own or rally the others? That's up to you, but one thing's evident: you can't sit around much longer.

Players can narrate the commotion and escape how they like, using the details described below. The Acolytes will retaliate and try to stop escape attempts. Killing and attacking them is possible with no need to request a roll, but enough will survive to subdue anyone left behind.

Characters don't need to willingly sacrifice themselves to remain captured. They can also be too injured to leave or fail to make it in time.

The First Domino (Breaking Out)

When the final shrine was unlocked late in Week 2, fleshy pillars rooted themselves into the cavern floor. As your third week in the cave crawls along, the trunk-like pillars begin to move.

A low groan shakes the ceiling above. Rocks fall along with bits and pieces of the bulbous organic prisons attached to the high walls. Chunks of melted flesh from decomposing bodies within the plantlike traps splatter below. Were it not obvious before, it is now: the pillars are legs belonging to a creature. A very large creature.

◎ Unleashed

The creature is not interested in fighting. Instead, it begins to leave. As it does, it takes portions of the ceiling with it, tearing holes above and below. People scurry beneath its feet and are crushed like ants. It does not discriminate between the Acolytes and the natives who are captured.

But it does avoid you and the other Summoned. Either it can't see anyone except you, or it recognizes you and associates you with those who freed it. Regardless, you are spared its destructive path. It lumbers off, dragging thorny vines that whip behind it. Crumpled pieces of the shrines and mangled bodies stick to its massive feet. You can't see where the creature is going, but later you might realize it has vanished into the ocean.

The brief chaos has left you with several openings:

• Seawater spills from unseen crevices above, flowing down the walls. Several Acolytes are dead, reducing their numbers.


• The already weakened cracked wall crumbles further, granting you an easier path to the webbing behind it.


• Equally weakened is the sealed opening where a smaller but deadly creature was previously trapped. A couple of determined hands could free it for a distraction. Beware - it's hungry.


• If the boulder hasn't already been pushed out of the way, the rumbling ground and smashed walls might help you finish the job.

Do you grab a weapon and attack the Acolytes while they're disoriented? Do you help save the injured natives? Are you focused on what lies behind the boulder and cracked wall? Do you free the trapped beast? Decide quickly - this could be your only chance.

◎ Opening the Door

Although the ceiling's been torn open, no open sky is revealed. Climbing up is difficult. You'll have to look elsewhere to escape. Once the boulder is removed and the cracked wall is torn down, you'll notice orange sparks that run between the strange bulb behind the boulder and the dense webbing across the cave.

Are you brave enough to reach into the pulsing bulb? If you do, you'll find thick vines connected to its beating heart. Each time a vine is forcibly pulled away and disconnected, the webbing begins to loosen, forming a small opening - but letting go will close the webbing right up again.

The more vines are disconnected, the larger the opening. It'll take 2-3 of you to make an opening large enough for people to go through... and from how quickly it closes, anyone who volunteers understands that they won't be escaping with the rest.

◎ Escape Routes

Do you trust what lies beyond the webbing? Looking through reveals only the dark abyss. You have no idea what's out there, but it can't be worse than what's in here. Can it?

If you don't trust the webbing and have the strength, you can swim down through an opening in the floor, left behind by the giant earlier. It's filled with cold ocean water. If you make it, you'll see a standard portal hidden in the depths.

Choose your path. Each one will spit you out somewhere a little different, but you'll have the chance to look for and meet up with others who took the other route.

If you're one of the Lost keeping the webbing open, you could try to dive for the underwater portal, but you won't make it. The portal will shatter quickly once the vines are released.

◎ Josselyn Creed | Interact

Josselyn Creed is difficult to spot in the commotion but not impossible. A few of her most faithful protect her. She wears a unique robe compared to the others. Her hood is lowered, revealing her brown hair tied in a bun that may be recognizable to some. Her mask is in place.

While she'll escape in the end, she isn't immune to harm. You can try to stop her and, in the process, perhaps contribute to what happens to her as she flees or afterwards.

◎ The Mysterious Acolyte | Interact

Along with the natives who might need your assistance escaping, there's also the strange pair whom a few interacted with. The Mysterious Acolyte and the Unknown Stranger will appear lost and uncertain in the pandemonium.

Some of you promised to help them escape, but saving them comes with a cost: at least one of you must exchange your place in the Escape Group for both of them. She will not leave without her brother, the Unknown Stranger. Her refusal will cost one of the Summoned their place.

Players can decide how the scenario plays out. At least one character must their place in the Escape Group so that the Unknown Stranger makes it through first. Only then will the Mysterious Acolyte follow.

Characters holding open the webbing and vines are not eligible. A sacrifice can only count for one outcome.

Into the Cold (Escape Group)

The first thing you notice is the biting cold. The sky is beginning to lighten. For once, you can breathe in the fresh air. But where are you, really?

◎ Gathering Your Bearings

Though spring is on its way, the mountains are a tundra. Temperatures are cold, though not as terrible as they'd have been in the dead of winter. Maybe you've stolen some warm clothes off the dead before the escape? Or, if you've been kind to the Abraxan natives who shared the ordeal with you, they'll offer supplies and equipment in return. It isn't much, but it could make all the difference if you're in dire straits.

• If you swam through the WATER PORTAL, it'll spit you up in an open cave. Wet and cold as you are, at least you've found shelter. Keen eyes might spot an unusual trail of glitter. Follow it to a tiny hidden hot spring. Soaking in the shimmering water are a few mischievous but harmless creatures. One was accidentally set loose at the Peace Summit many months ago, showering multiple attendants in a shimmery sheen. Large beast-like prints are nearby, though, so best not to stay long. Still, it's a nice reprieve while you can get it...as long as you don't mind being coated in glitter.


• If you went through the DENSE WEBBING, it'll spit you up on a frozen lake. Cracks will begin to form as more and more land on the surface. You'll need to find solid ground quickly. Take care - a large shadow lurks beneath the thinning ice. If there's too much commotion or excessive movement, it'll realize there's prey above and begin to thrash, disturbing the delicate ice further.

◎ Temporary Relief

Though some healing abilities and magic have returned, the wounds caused by the ritual don't seem to recover properly. They aren't getting worse, but it's troubling. Your mind could remain confused or disturbed. Even those who were successfully cured will discover the lesions heal much slower than other injuries.

As the days wear on, you might feel a strong pull from the Singularity that leads you into the Horizon. This is especially so if you remain under the ritual's influence. If you give in to the urge and find a safe moment to enter, you can go in without as much difficulty as before.

You won't land where you intend, but you might find one of the Spared within. Somehow, the Singularity has brought you together. Something compels you to reach out and make contact. When you do, you'll feel a gentle warmth. You might not know what's happening, but it feels right.

When you depart from the Horizon, effects from the ritual have lessened by a noticeable degree. They'll stay that way for the next day or so, giving you the strength to keep going.

◎ Preparing for the Night

What you do next is entirely up to you. You can organize with your fellow escapees, go off on your own, or try to bring the two groups together. Boars, rabbits, and foxes can be hunted. The surrounding snow can be boiled for safe drinking water.

Even more fortunate, your powers will return - to a degree. Stronger abilities might take longer to return fully, but elemental spells, modest healing, and enhanced senses or traits can be accessed. And you might find that messages on the Network are no longer distorted.

Not all is safe and well: though the first few days are quiet, the mountains aren't without the usual predators. Wolves howl, and large gryphons soar the sky. They're wary of people and are unlikely to attack, but that doesn't mean you should let your guard down. In the wild, you never know. As you enter Week 4, more formidable threats could arise.

Sacrifice (Holdout Group)

Maybe you're one of the unlucky souls, or maybe you chose to sacrifice your place for others. However it came about, both escape paths close, and the Acolytes inside the cavern overwhelm you and the rest once more. Those left behind are a mixture of native Abraxans and the Summoned. The ground is sticky with blood and viscera.

Forcibly, violently, you're led or dragged deeper and deeper down the stone paths to the altar room where the rituals took place. The Acolytes push as many of you in there as they can and seal the door - and if a few limbs are caught in the way, that's just too bad. Someone with you, perhaps one of the natives, ends up with a crushed finger or hand as the doors slam shut.

Not everyone is pushed inside in the end. In the Acolytes' rush to contain the Summoned, a few Abraxan natives are left outside the doors with the remaining Acolytes. When you hear their cries through the sealed barrier, you have to ask yourself if you're truly the lucky ones.

◎ The Altar Room

The altar is built of bone. The husks of now-empty bodies are piled into a macabre amalgamation. It's not meant to house anyone for long. Supplies are limited. Water trickles into a small pond used for the Acolytes' rituals. There are bowls of hardened bread. Sealed crates contain more mushrooms. They're edible, but some might carry psychedelic side effects. If you've succumbed to the ritual, though, you might not consider that a downside.

While not as open or large as the cavern you came from, you can explore the altar room for any potential answers to where you are and how to escape. The entrance is sealed tight. Outside, you can hear the Acolytes - and that might be important for later.

Since the door is magically sealed, nothing can come in or out...except the Bone Serpent, whose legs continue to slink down from above to snatch unsuspecting victims. Blood drips from above, possibly from one of its missing legs.

Now and then, something bangs on the door. Is it the creatures you unleashed before? The beasts that were never contained? You can try to follow the Bone Serpent to see where it leads or maybe even glimpse the creature beyond its thorny limbs, but that's a high risk. The consequences could be dire.

◎ Slow Flood

The destruction seems to have broken what prevented you from using the Network. You can now communicate with the Spared and the Escape Group uninterruped.

Unfortunately, the chaos has also dislodged the structure of the entire cavern. Husks of limbs crumble to the floor. The ground grows moist. Bit by bit, water begins to collect in small puddles. More drips through cracks in the walls and ceilings. The rocky floors offer higher ground, but that'll only last for so long.

As slow as it is, there's no denying the dread that washes over you: the cavern is flooding, and it's seeping through into the altar room. Some of the captured natives look uneasy. Others are too injured to help themselves. You can try to plug the leaks. Though the idea might strike you as morbid, the bodies of the dead can be used to keep some of the water at bay.

◎ Temporary Relief

Wounds caused by the ritual don't seem to recover properly. Your mind could remain confused or disturbed. Even those who were successfully cured will discover the lesions heal much slower than other injuries.

As the days wear on, you might feel a strong pull from the Singularity that leads you into the Horizon. This is especially so if you remain under the ritual's influence. If you give in to the urge and manage to find a safe moment to enter, you can go inside without as much difficulty as before.

You won't land where you intend, but you might find one of the Spared within nonetheless if you wander through. Somehow, the Singularity has brought you together. Something compels you to reach out and make contact. When you do, you'll feel a gentle warmth. You might not know what's happening, exactly, but it feels right.

When you depart from the Horizon, effects from the ritual have lessened by a noticeable degree. They'll stay that way for the next day or so, giving you the strength to keep going.

Coordination | The Spared

You might have compromised a few morals to get what you want - if you had any in the first place - but regardless of how you got here, you and the other Summoned have gathered enough information to proceed. Of course, there are still a few details to iron out. How will you approach the island without compromising the Lost? What spells and resources are required? What needs to be done so that survivors have a safe place to rest and recover once they're home? And what about the ritual inflicted upon them?

Players are encouraged to organize teams, rescue efforts, and tactics with each other. The details outlined below are to provide a starting point and some guidance but are by no means the only options available.

Nocwich

Thanks to a request by one of the Summoned in the Free Cities, Nocwich's doors are opened as a neutral meeting ground for the Spared from all three major nations. Some officials will also be arriving to monitor the situation.

◎ Ritual Details (Sten) | Interact

Sten, one of the Nocwich ambassadors for the Lunae, received a request to help find a cure for the ritual. To do so, he wants to first learn as much about the ritual as he can. Anyone with information can come forward either in person or with a note - anonymous or not. While he'd prefer to put a name to the face, Nocwich won't interfere with the Summoned's desire to protect themselves and their secrets.

Sten will be available in Oleuni Square, in one of the many tents. Pale-haired and scarred, he's warm and friendly to everyone. Due to Luna's connection to Solvunn, he has some knowledge of High Magic, although the traditions of the werewolves are different. While he can't hold long meetings, he'll make time to see everyone who has something important to tell him about the ritual - and if you need a little extra reassurance, he'll offer that, too.

◎ Oleuni Square

Normally a thriving marketplace, Oleuni Square has been repurposed. In the northeastern corner, a collection of tents have been set up. Most are utilitarian but others are covered with homemade blankets to help cover imperfections. The Lunae have come to lend their aid. Volunteers help set up tables and supplies. Others guard the area and the portals. A communal cooking area is available to provide hot meals.

You can make use of the tents for talking strategy, organizing supplies, and other meetings. Nearby inns are available for sleeping free of charge, although one of the inns is closed so that it can be converted into a temporary infirmary. Faction officials and employees are available, as well. You can consult them on tactical advice, resources, and the lay of the land.

Early in Week 3, a few representatives from Ikorr arrive with a supply of their sacred sap. With the sap and the metal ore from the Lunae, you can fashion supplies and potions from raw materials.

The mood around the makeshift camp is somber but hopeful. As one of the Summoned, you'll have control of the situation and can work with a variety of officials and locals to arrange what you need.

Reevaluating Plans

Shortly into Week 3, you'll receive word that some of the Lost have escaped. As details come in bits and pieces, you realize the situation's taken a dramatic turn. More than that, messages from the Lost are no longer disrupted as before. You can read the words clearly again.

Who makes contact first and how the news spreads depends on you. Regardless of how it comes about, your focus can't be solely on breaching the discovered island. Now you also have another group to retrieve - and you don't know where they are, though they at least have some helpful information: the Singularity, the snowy mountains, and a view of the ocean.

Take advantage of the Network's return to reevaluate your plans. You'll need to determine the situation in the island cave as well as the mountains, split into teams, and bring everyone home.

Assigning Roles

Under the circumstances, officials will recommend the Summoned divide into at least two groups: one to search the mountains and one to retrieve the Lost remaining on the island. If you're not the type to rush to the front lines, you can also stay back and help out at home. There's plenty to do here between finding a cure, delegating tasks, and preparing for survivors to return.

◎ Search Team

Reports from the Escape Group tell of snow-capped mountains, Acolytes in pursuit, and other creatures that lurk. Many are injured, though fortunately, abilities have started to return. The area isn't guarded, but the terrain is difficult and temperatures are harsh. Officials will suggest using portals to arrive at the nearest safe point on the mountains before traveling on foot to find the Lost. Others can choose to hunt down the Acolytes who are chasing their friends. Anyone with strong tracking skills would be key, but the team could also use medical assistance in case anyone needs treatment on the spot.

◎ Retrieval Team

Word has it that some of the Acolytes remain on the island along with the trapped captives. The area is tightly guarded and possibly infested with some unknown creatures or those not in their right minds. Officials will suggest negotiating to prevent unwanted casualties but will caution that having a team for infiltration and force is necessary, too. Some distraction could also be helpful, and it would be wise to have some medical assistance in case anyone needs treatment on the spot.

◎ Home Team

Having hands on deck at base is equally vital. Officials will recommend a cure for the ritual be found while the teams are out searching, and standard healing supplies will need preparation, too. Outbound teams could use someone to help bring together lines of communication, updating officials and the Summoned alike about what's going on. And of course, with the Horizon as a place of respite, anyone who can go in to help the Lost seeking healing would be of value.

Week 4

The days have been taxing, but you're beginning to feel a change in the air. Now that resources and information have been pooled, things are moving quickly. Soon, you'll be reunited.

Once you find one another, you'll still need to return home safely - but at least you'll have each other now.

Although players have been divided up until now between Lost and Spared, Week 4 will bring the Spared in contact with the Lost's environments. We'll provide relevant information or redirect each group accordingly so that you don't need to review the entire post for the correct details. If there's anything you're uncertain about from the other group, please ask!

Survival | The Lost

CW: Disturbing imagery (text and imagery), mild gore, body horror, dark and horror-based themes

By now, you've undoubtedly heard from the Spared back home. You're relieved to know rescue is coming, but you probably don't want to sit and wait. With threats to contend with and a dangerous environment, you can take steps to be sure the Spared have help from the other side.

Escape Group

Surviving the elements is only half of it. As the days turn to nights, you realize you're not alone. More than wolves and bears prowl. Something sinister comes...as well as the Acolytes who want their captives back at all cost.

◎ Pursuing Acolytes | Interact

Loyal to the cause, some Acolytes chase the fleeing Lost into the mountains. You might be lulled into safety the first few days, but by Week 4, you sense their presence. The evergreen trees wither, winter shrubs rot, and unexplained husks of wildlife are found. The winds carry a stench in the air that you now identify with the fungal cavern you were held in.

They hunt in pairs or small groups. Their powers seem weaker for reasons unknown, but they remain formidable opponents. You can run, protect others, or go on the offensive.

◎ Hydnellia & Esmond | Interact

If they successfully escape in Week 3, the Mysterious Acolyte and the Unknown Stranger will travel with their rescuers. They'll introduce themselves as Hydnellia & Esmond. Though nervous, Hydnellia is more trusting of anyone who helped them. She's skilled in healing and foraging, while Esmond carries a draught for warmth that could prove useful. Depending on where you stand, you could find their addition helpful or contentious.

◎ Revenant | Interact

Something else stalks the night, scaring even the Acolytes. A hoarfrost revenant has lived on these peaks for centuries. With the sudden arrival of the Lost and Acolytes, he prowls the snow, searching for who's disturbed his sleep.

He cannot be killed. You can only run or chase him away, but he'll soon return. Take care not to stay in one place too long. A rattling chain and blue-flamed lantern announces his coming. His touch brings instant death, made clear by the frozen carcasses of animals left in his path. Best not to fight him.

◎ Rescue

Landmarks such as lakes, cliffs, the Singularity, and more can be used to direct the Search Team to your location.

You might want to warn the Spared about the dangers they'll face when they reach the mountains. Unable to portal to you directly, they'll reach you on foot. You'll need to brave the dangers together one last time to reach the waiting portals below. The trek isn't far, but making that final stretch might feel like an eternity. In the distance, the ground trembles, and the snow begins to form an avalanche.

Players can arrange how the Search Team and the Escape Group meet and decide what threats they'll encounter as they return to the portal.

Details on the avalanche and what characters will face when traveling to the portal will be provided under the Search & Rescue - Search Team section.

Holdout Group

As you huddle in the altar room, you can only hope your sacrifice, intentional or not, was worth it. At least you've been able to communicate with the outside world. The Acolytes are beginning to show signs of unease and budding dissent. At some point, you have to ask, why haven't the unhappy ones left or fled themselves?

Maybe you aren't the only ones trapped anymore. Maybe you're all trapped together now.

◎ The Altar | Interact

Now that you can approach the altar and examine it closely, you see the terrible remnants of twisted figures sunken into the ground beneath it, as though they've fused with the altar itself.

If prodding at the shrines worked, perhaps doing the same with the altar will reveal some answers. A strange energy emanates from its open maw when those afflicted by the ritual come near.

◎ A Promise | Interact

In the final hour, some Acolytes desperately try to resume the rituals on the few remaining Abraxan natives left outside the altar room - many in poor condition. You hear it, though you can only glimpse it through a gap in the sealed doors. Their bodies quickly succumb and sprout more fungal growths while long, spine-like tendrils protrude from their orifices.

You can plead with them to stop, or you can join them in hopes that you will find your divine emancipation. The Acolytes will release anyone who wants to join the ritual from the altar room...but what you step into could carry horrific consequences.

◎ Dissenting Acolytes | Interact

More arguments beyond the sealed doors erupt as water fills the cave and altar room. They accuse each other of being faithless or too blindly loyal. Some say Hydnellia betrayed them. Others say the High Priestess did, perhaps referring to Josselyn.

Toward the middle of Week 4, it grows quiet outside. The arguments stop. One Acolyte approaches the door. She promises to free you and the others and help you find a way out of the cavern together, including overwhelming Josselyn's faithful.

This could be what turns the tide, but things might also go very wrong. You and the others trapped with you must decide if you'll accept the olive branch. Of course, agreeing to trust them doesn't mean you have to follow through. The Acolytes sound desperate and might be a bit too trusting themselves.

◎ Rescue

Unlike the Escape Group, the Spared know where the Holdout Group is. Getting to them will take effort, but you can help by providing information from the inside. After all, the Acolytes won't know when you're using the network. You can even coordinate with each other in secret despite being in the same room.

You might want to warn the Spared about the dangers they face when they reach the cavern areas. The Bone Serpent could pose a problem, along with any crumbling walls and obstacles. A creature might still be trapped in one of the tunnels if no one freed it. As the team approaches, severe quakes shake the entire place. Water flows in faster. It appears ready to collapse at any moment.

You'll need to get off the island to reach the portal on the Thornean peninsula. That'll pose a problem when the boats break from the collapsing island, but an unexpected friend might arrive.

Details on the quake and what characters face when getting off the island will be provided under the Search & Rescue - Retrieval Team section.

Search & Rescue | The Spared

CW: Disturbing imagery (text and visual), dark themes.

After an exhausting month, it finally seems as though things are coming together. By now, you've made decided on your plans, gathered your resources, and chosen the role that suits you best. Not everyone may agree with what you're doing, or maybe there's someone you don't agree with. Nevertheless, your friends are waiting, and you'll push forward with or without support.

Search Team

As part of the Search Team, your goal is to portal from Nocwich to the mountains and locate members of the Escape Group.

You'll need to determine the best place to portal in - close enough to the Lost that the trek is reasonable but safe enough that the portals won't be at risk. Considering the terrain and the condition of many of the Lost, it's likely the distance will be about one day's travel on foot.

◎ Resources & Support

Thorne will send their military for support since their soldiers are used to winter conditions, unlike the Free Cities. The Free Cities will provide portal stones so that mages won't be required to maintain an open portal. The Lunae will offer guides to help navigate the wilderness.

Solvunn's aid is limited to healing supplies, as their efforts are focused on the island due to the heavy use of High Magic there.

You are not limited to only what the factions offer upfront. If there's more you think they can do, you can make a request.

◎ The Acolytes (Escape) | Interact

Though rescuing the Lost is the top priority, you might feel justice or vengeance is long overdue. Some Acolytes are pursuing the captives while others might try to pass as one of the survivors. Those most faithful to the cause will attack you, but not all of them are that steadfast. Some prefer to flee. Others still may surrender, under the right circumstances.

Officials have requested that the Acolytes be brought in alive if possible, but no one will be counting the bodies if you decide to take out a few on your own.

Players can write out attacking, capturing, or killing the Acolytes without using the interaction. However, if you want to take a more specific action in terms of identifying any Acolytes pretending to pass as one of the captured Abraxan natives, negotiating a surrender, or interrogating them on the spot, you can submit an interaction.

◎ Getting to Safety

During the search, you'll encounter the same dangers the Escape Group has faced over the past week. Common predators include wolves, gryphons, and wild boars. Most significantly, a revenant must be avoided or else death is certain. Detailed under the Survival - Escape Group section, the revenant can be interacted with by the Spared once on the mountains.

Keep your friends safe after you meet up with them. You'll have to guide them back to the portals and make sure they can keep up with their injuries. Though you hope the journey is smooth, you know better.

And sure enough, a rumble draws your attention. When you look up, you see it coming down: an avalanche pouring down one of the mountain slopes. Get out of the way quickly or risk being swept up in the landslide. If you're lucky enough to dodge the avalanche, you can help anyone caught in its path.

Retrieval Team

As part of the Retrieval Team, your goal is to infiltrate the island and safely retrieve the members of the Holdout Group. A portal from Nocwich can only take you as far as the peninsula on Thorne's coast, near the island. The rest is on you.

Your team's likely already decided the best method to breach the island and you may have done your best to account for every last detail, but that doesn't mean everything will go as planned. The flooding hasn't stopped. Frequent, violent quakes are now shaking the island, and the structure beneath is rapidly crumbling. Time is of the essence.

◎ Resources & Support

Thorne mages and Solvunn Elders will accompany your team to focus on dispelling the enchantments, while the Free Cities will send some of its soldiers. They'll also provide boats powered with New Magic. Though normally quite noisy, Thorne has stepped in to enchant them to be much more discreet.

You are not limited to only what the factions offer upfront. If there's more you think they can do, you can make a request.

◎ Dispelling Protections | Interact

The illusions that once held the island together are corrupted from the escape. Navigating the constantly shifting landscape is dizzying and confusing. You might experience strange visions brought on by your imagination - terrifying images from home you know shouldn't be there.

Fight through it to find a warded tunnel. You'll need to find a way to break the wards to enter. Should you feel the urge to rush in heedlessly, you might want to observe the pile of dead bats and birds all around you. Their bodies are mangled and crushed. You can only imagine what might happen to you.

◎ The Collapse

Whether you make contact with the Acolytes or the Holdout Group first depends on your approach. You can apprehend what Acolytes you can, negotiate their surrender, or kill them. Whichever tactics you use, once the Holdout Group is released from the altar room, you'll end up in the same situation: the way out is blocked from falling debris. Seawater rapidly fills the cavern.

Your best bet is to follow the water flow into the open ocean. As you do, the cavern begins to collapse in on itself in a swirling whirlpool as the magic which kept the water at bay falters. You'll have to struggle to swim against the current, and a few Acolytes are sucked into the vortex. The boats splinter and break apart, leaving you and many wounded stranded in the ocean.

◎ An Old Friend

Deep waters aren't safe. When a deep rumbling sounds and a massive shadow looms below, you might wonder if this is the end. Instead, the shadow takes on a warm moon-like glow. A familiar figure to some of you from Thorne surfaces. The giant sea turtle waits calmly for you to climb on its shell. You can save any captured Acolytes, or you can let the sea swallow them.

How did the turtle find you? If you have strong psychic abilities or an affinity for communicating with animals, you might sense a connection to a much smaller turtle: Admiral Chuck from The Arcanis. Perhaps a friend is looking out for you from afar after you were kind enough to spend time with him.

The moonlit turtle will carry everyone to shore, where the portal to Nocwich awaits. Then it vanishes into the depths once more.

Home Team

As part of the Home Team, your goal is to support the others and prepare for the return of many survivors.

Two important tasks are healing in the Horizon to aid any of the Lost who are struggling, and finding a cure for the effects of the ritual. You can also assign tasks, transform the inn into an infirmary, and make sure supplies are available.

◎ Ritual Cure | Interact

The answer to a cure is likely found in the contents of Josselyn's house, the mushroom rings, and the odd black substance painted around the abduction sites. Solvunn's Elders and the Lunae, including Sten, will be there to help and provide any information they can.

If you're not the experimental type, you can still help in one of two ways: you can go to Ikorr to retrieve a bloom from their sacred flower located in the Nightbloom or you can go to Luna to collect moon-blessed water from the Lunar Pond. You'll be accompanied through a direct portal by the vampires to Ikorr or the werewolves to Luna.

Researchers and mages from the major nations will also work on the task using the information they've learned - but they'd be grateful for any assistance.

◎ Horizon Healing

As discovered in Week 3, you can continue to use the Horizon to offer to heal those who need it. In moments of calm, anyone connected to the Singularity will feel a familiar pull. The urge to enter the Horizon itches at the back of your mind as the hours go by, even if you're not usually inclined to do so.

If you give in, you could find one of the Lost there. You sense they need your help, or you feel compelled to reach out and touch. A warmth flows between you. Though you may not realize what you've done until afterwards, you'll know it's something unique and powerful.

Forging a stronger link to the Horizon can subtly strengthen the gifts and magic you receive from the Singularity - and a deep healing connection with another Summoned is a part of that.

Return

For the next week or so, Nocwich is the place of refuge. Concerned that the ritual and other unknown effects may have a widespread impact, everyone must remain in Nocwich. This includes the abducted Abraxan natives, the soldiers, mages, and Elders who arrived to help.

Captured Acolytes will be held in the prisons in Nocwich. Their fate is yet to be determined.

Should the Mysterious Acolyte and her brother make it to safety, they'll also be held in Nocwich for now. Nocwich will recognize that they were rescued by some of you, however, and will make sure they're placed in a comfortable - but still guarded - home.

Recovery & Cures

The Square's largest inn serves as a temporary infirmary. The Lost will be brought here to recover and receive the cure for the ritual. Any of the Spared who were injured during the rescue will also be treated.

Healing & Care

Although a few healers and doctors from the factions are in Nocwich, most have stayed home to prepare for when the Summoned and their citizens return. Instead, healers from Luna and Ikorr will look after you with a combination of salves, healing magic, and potions. Ikorr's powerful sap is used in healing concoctions, reserved for the most severe injuries. Overdoing it can cause unwanted side effects, so healers are careful.

If you're lucky, you can get a room to yourself. If not, you might have a roommate. The infirmary is hectic, though you'll receive the best care possible. Visitors are allowed. Nurses caution against overtaxing yourself, but you can finally reunite with everyone you've been separated from over the past four weeks.

Receiving the Cure

After such a harrowing ordeal, you'll be relieved to learn that the cure is effective and painless. It consists of a spoonful of a thick mixture. The aftertaste is bitter and a little sour but not terrible. After a day or two, the psychological effects will fade completely. Physical afflictions will begin to heal again.

If any growths remain, they must be removed. Thankfully, potent sleeping draughts means you won't feel a thing - a blessing that those who sought a cure in the caverns didn't have.

Returning Home

After a week, officials determine that the ritual effects are cured and request that you return home. Their doctors and healers will look after you once you're back. Eventually, they'd like to know the details, but you won't need to talk about it just yet.

◎ Thorne

Your return to Thorne is greeted with a show of fanfare. For many, the castle staff has grown familiar with your presence. They're heartened to see you return. A few may have get-well gifts if they've come to know you.

If you still require significant healing, you'll be taken care of in the Castle's infirmary. Otherwise, you'll be assigned a healer who'll check in on you in your room.

◎ Free Cities

Your return to Cadens is greeted with a buzz in the air. With a city so populated, reactions vary from relief to curiosity to a much less welcome invasion of privacy from local writers. City guards will do their best to make sure you return home or arrive at the hospital with minimal fuss.

If you were injured, doctors will insist you remain overnight at the hospital. If you were severely wounded and remain so, they won't clear you for release until you're fully recovered. Of course, no one can stop you from leaving, but you may want to listen to the doctors.

◎ Solvunn

Your return to Solvunn is greeted with a somber air. Many in the settlement are in the midst of prayer, having devoted themselves to seeking your safe return. Your friends and neighbors are relieved to see you, but they're troubled by the perversion of their traditions, the close involvement of one of their Council members, and the terrible suffering you endured.

Healers and Elders will see you in your home as needed. Offerings will be made to shrines on your behalf, and you won't run out of home-cooked meals for a while. Many will lend a sympathetic ear if you want someone to talk to.

Comments

[earthborn]

She blinks, and it's like Gideon's simply teleported in. Her mind feels like it's running through deep, black mud. Hanging in there? That's about all she's doing.

"I'm fine," Shepard says, because some questions have right and wrong answers, "You catch any of the fight, earlier?"

Fight was putting a generous name to it. That, had been a brawl. Still, Shepard's part in it had not been subtle; but then, the concussive explosions and brightly-flashing blue light of a combat biotic never were.

"Takes it out of you. Not a lot in me, lately. That's all," What she means is, if she passes out, she's likely to simply die of hypoglycemia. Does Gideon need to know that? Nobody needs to know that. It's too embarrassing, "Got contact with a couple of the people outside. Something about the cave having holes in it— Horizon's back, sort of. It's cold out there, but they're doin' alright."

[theidlemaiden]

The whole reason I like hearing them is that they're never boring. [ Her eyes open for a brief moment before he begins and she wrinkles her nose, grinning up at him from ear to ear teasingly. ] The minute they start becoming boring is the day I ask you to stop telling me them.

[ Admitting that the stories Claude tells are interesting is only a portion of the truth. Like many things that had been surface level for her at the beginning of their friendship, she had gradually realized that the stories he told, even the nonsensical ones, held small slivers of truth about who he was. What they were truths of she can only speculate but she didn't mind, and frankly didn't care to probe for fear of Claude taking away the trust he had so generously given her.

And there lay another well-concealed truth that she had never told him: his trust was more precious than anything else she owned. It would likely remain that way for as long as they stayed friends. The reality is that she'll never tire of his stories because if he stops telling them, it might mean that something else was wrong. That the trust they had built up was crumbling for some mysterious reason. The thought of losing it is terrifying and more anxiety-inducing than failing to live up to someone's expectations.

But here he is offering, launching into a story that is still just as interesting, just as funny, and just as soothing just like he promised. Once again she tells herself that whatever it is that she feels — worry, fear, hurt — don't matter. They were okay. Everything she had been worried about is silly and doesn't exist, and one of the most important people to exist in her life is here. Surely that's all that matters.

Hilda can tell the thread he's trying to follow branches off multiple times, but that doesn't make it any less endearing. Her eyes flutter closed again, the motion of her hand slowing as her breaths stretch and slow before eventually falling asleep, soothed by the sound of his voice and the steady beat of his heart. ]

[tobeclosetohim]

Woah! Hey! [ The words are out of Jo's mouth, and she's darting to help the guy who just took a nose dive at a wall before her mind can even process how fast and suddenly that snap went. But it's not hard to know how. Why. It's the same thing she flees that forces her back out.

How many of her days, how many people, had made her trigger sensitive to whether she needed to tell someone after one (or four beers) over where they should have stopped that they got to take a nap in the driver's seat first? Or tried to say they were OK after getting triaged in the bar, only to nearly take a header two steps from standing up? How far into her teens had she been by the time she learned how to help catch a body half her size without crumpling?

It's deeper than breathing or thinking. She's already got a hand on the guy's shoulder before it really works out in her head how-what-why, and she's already in the middle of more words even as it's clicking, and she's kicking herself or the whole fucking world. Some acidic shame in the game of preferring distraction, throwing herself into the ice cold punch of reality, digging her hands hard down on thorns or flames, smothering it again for a second, busy with the brusqueness of the too well-known, over clarity there even to circle her ankles. ] You—

[ —okay? dies in her mouth because the guy couldn't be okay regardless of how light or obvious or trite or normal the question is. He's one of the returnees. Not from their group. But he's so broken over and through—she's not even sure how he made it this far, to the wall, from wherever he'd been before—and she has to reform the rest of that sentence on a too-obvious pause there. There's some guilt in that, too.

(She should be with Cas. Even if. Because he too.
She should be grateful this didn't happen to her.
To more of theirs. She can't feel it.) ]

—going somewhere?

You don't much look like you should be out of bed.

[outwear]

It's probably fine that Geralt doesn't ask because it's written all over Sam in every way it needs to in order to be incredibly obvious. He isn't trying to hide it, not any more than he ever does (which is still some, at least), but it's a strange balm to not have to worry about answering to that right now.

He's not all right, of course. He's pissed off, sad, tired, lonely, exasperated — in every way possible, Sam feels struck through, like his own insides were pierced instead. More than once already he's wished it so, but that's not particularly important or different from any other time this happened.

"It's Dean," he says and he knows that he doesn't need to elaborate further for Geralt to take his meaning. His head dips, hands coming together, elbows propped on his knees to steady him. "We were on our way back from the island and—" Sam's jaw works and he forces himself to press on. "He saved us, but he, uh. He didn't make it back."

He's not sure if it's any consolation, if it's even news, but he stays the course. He owes that to Dean.

[beautifullies]

[ Claire listens, and then she sees for herself. Did she have an opinion or an idea of vampires before? Dimly, but truly, the lore never stuck in her mind. There's so much in Abraxas alone that keeps her realizing more things are possible than she could've ever dreamt up on her own; this doesn't necessarily stun her.

When he's done explaining, her hands resume their gentle task of examining him, letting the silence pass for a beat as she continues. ]

What you're telling me, then, is that I don't need to worry about your blood pressure.

[ She says this blandly, as if he's told her any old thing. Does it change their (what she hopes is becoming) friendship? Not so far as she can tell. ]

Is there anything I should know about your physiology that might help in getting you healed once you finish your escape? I plan to find you if I can, Louis, I'll take care of you.

[ It occurs to her that he might have help waiting, but even so, her offer stands. He's going to need rest, and care, and why not outside of the Horizon as well? Does she have questions? Loads. But she thinks they can wait for a while. ]

[beautifullies]

[ There are many times (many times) Claire has thought fuck Frank. But then she'd see him rocking Bree to sleep with his lips pressed to her forehead or catch them passionately talking about some historical thing or another when she was older. A book, a place, a documentary. It's been one of the most conflicting things of Claire's life, her anger and resentment, paired with her gratitude, and yes, even the love that lingered from before the war. ]

Thank you, Hilda. No, you're right. He didn't care, but then, if it were the other way around...

[ Claire can't promise she'd have been as willing. Your spouse comes back pregnant with another man's child, that must have been a horse pill to swallow. At Hilda's offer, she looks down at the ring and lets her fingers drift over it. A ghost of a smile touches her lips before she shakes her head. ]

No, thank you though. These rings won't be leaving my fingers.

[ She can't stand the thought of either of them&but especially Jamie's—being out of her hands. ]

You know a lot about jewelry, I take it?

[stations]

( From zero to someone. He could swear he's had more people touch him in the last week and a half than he's had in the last five years combined, between Julie and Kyle and now this. It's strange, both nice and awkward simultaneously. He's not exactly a fan, but he doesn't hate it. The circumstances behind it, on the other hand?

Unfortunate, to put it mildly.

He presses one palm against the wall. Uses it to brace himself as he finds his stability again, already nodding before she even gets going somewhere out. Really thought that one was going to end with okay instead of where it actually went, and now he looks dumb. Cool.

All of that is a small, tiny fraction of his mind, though. The larger part of the meat processor in his skull is devoted to blinking back the sudden swell of emotions, the sensation of a dam threatening to burst very abruptly after having been drought-dry only moments before. )

I'm okay, I'm- ( Normally, his face is pretty stoic and impassive. Now, when he looks at her it's with a little furrow in his brow and an expression that indicates that of the two of them, she's the one that people should be concerned for. ) I'm... fine. I just...

( Shit, how does he even begin to approach this? He does not have the necessary empathy or people skills to be doing this, but he can't not. It hurts too much. He echoes too hard. )

I am... so sorry, and this is going to sound... insane, but... I don't think you should be alone right now?

[thedevilwhorose]

Diplomat. Boring. She could easily shake things up. The way she talks reminds him of a certain demon that he despises, but he recognizes the value in her way of living. He's taken the role before himself, knows it can be rewarding, but he's much more quick rewards than the long-term goods these days.

And they need that information. He thinks she might be able to get it.

Anything else he might say is derailed by her ending statement, and he blinks before rolling his eyes. It's like Mat all over again. "Whatever motivates you," he says.

[chainedqueen]

It's shocking to hear him speak so forcefully to her. Usually he's been respectful to their respective stations. All of that is gone, not that the pit had made her feel that social standing really had any relevance anymore. Huddling together in the cold is a great equalizer.

"Won't I slow you down? I am no hunter or tracker." She is only a lady out of her depth. She's wavering, but still is afraid, remembering how quickly she was captured in the first place.

"You won't leave my side during it all?"

[chainedqueen]

"I understand that feeling, but I can only call them what I was told they were." She hadn't forgotten the story that the gods had been present in some form before in this world, but the term "Old Gods" imply that there is some other, newer power that might oppose them.

She sighed, glancing down at her palms. They would need a great deal of care to get them back to their former state. Vines, thorns, rough living, it had ruined her skin and left her covered in scars and open wounds. "What they gave us has left us sick. So many of the people escaping are still suffering from fever and hallucinations."

[techmaturgy]

A smile is good--lets Viktor know that he's relieved, at least. He's not accustomed to being a caretaker, but he can at least be a supportive presence. If Kell isn't well enough to speak yet, he'll fill the silence.

"I doubt you have any interest in this at the moment, but, perhaps for when you're feeling a little better."

A puzzle box, a real one, produced from his bag and set on the bedside table. For later, of course.

"How is your pain?"

[thedevilwhorose]

He could feel pride at the almost deceitful reasoning behind Jack's choice. Who would Dean and Sam trust more than Castiel? It's clever. It should indicate that there is some bit of Lucifer inherently present in the nephilim.

But it really doesn't seem like that's what's driving Jack if he already made some pitiful remark about having to lie to them.

"He stole you before you were born!" Lucifer shouts. "He was 'there for you' because he never even let me have an opportunity!"

[thedevilwhorose]

Unfortunately he does expect the worst from her anyway. It's no slight on her part, it's all on him not exactly knowing how to handle having friends when all he predicts is that they won't allow him to do what's necessary, ignoring completely the similarities between the two of them.

He winces. He knows the state of his mind but he hasn't particularly paid it enough attention to keep it untangled. There's been little point. Istredd can't feel it and as far as he knows there aren't any telepaths in Thorne. Yennefer hasn't made any indication of being able to hear his own chaos.

It's a nice thought, but he isn't going to get a clear head anytime soon. He's gotten this far in this state, how hard is it to make it any further?

He's fine.

"Don't offer me platitudes," he tells her.

[tobeclosetohim]

[ Jo has the gaul to draw a momentary blank blink at that, a more say what? confusion more than surprise or suspicion. No flicker of actually hearing it besides the words themselves existing at her. Then waved out of the air with a hand. Her words that came next weren't even ones she needed to think about, two universes over; they were the rote response to a world that never knew what it would never know in the beginning, the middle, and the end anyway. ]

I'm fine.

Just tired.

[ Jo knows it's factually false—full stop—but it's easy than breathing to say. Easier than breathing to make that lie sound as serious as it is nonchalant, especially in a place where people have been through so much. She doesn't know if those words have ever meant more than 'I'm still breathing' but it's not something to think about now (or any time soon), and she can wait to think about the rest of her (not-her) death warmed life once she got random guy wherever his somewhere else was. ]

Were you headed somewhere? Looking for someone?

[techmaturgy]

When Jayce is angry, he goes into the Horizon to smash things.

[With a big hammer, sometimes. Viktor says that weakly, kind of like a joke, but perhaps not sure how it's going to go over. He admittedly doesn't have anything that feels like a good suggestion--there's no simple solution to what Alucard is feeling, and Viktor can't even say that he understands. All he can do is have faith in the person he knows Alucard is, even as Alucard himself worries about succumbing to darker impulses. Viktor knows that he won't.]

I'm sorry. I wish I had something better. But I can stay here and talk for as long as you like.

[thedevilwhorose]

He folds his hands in front of him and leans towards Sam, his voice childish and snide, gaze becoming completely malicious.

If it was anyone that wasn't from his world asking they might have gotten something closer to an answer. Maybe not a great, honest answer. But it would have lost the complete theater of it all.

Sam gets this because it is stupid coming from his mouth.

"Are we friends now, Sammy? Should we braid each other's hair before we go out into the wilds?"

[cryptsleeper]

I gave him that suggestion. I have also been gently accused of being overdramatic in my horizon space at the moment.

[He can't smile, but it doesn't matter. Solidarity is more important. There's a sigh.]

There's little to say. If I change forms, would you sit with me for a while?

[lightkeeping]

[She raises an eyebrow to indicate that she doesn't quite believe him, but she also isn't about to police the situation, given how dire their need is for able bodies. If he starts to look worse, she'll demand that he rest, but for now she could use the help.

The cough, however, is a bit disconcerting. They need to get warm, and it needs to happen soon.]

Let me know if that changes.

[It's always easier if they admit it--then she can do what she needs to do, rather than drag along someone stubbornly insisting that they're fine. She, on the other hand, is more than aware that she gives off an air of competence, especially in a situation like this. She has no interest in downplaying it.]

Yeah. I don't live in the commune, back in Solvunn. [And now, she's glad of it.] Used to making my own way.

[thedevilwhorose]

Interesting.

The mention of Rhy should have been an easy win. So why isn't it?

It does remind Lucifer that he should send Rhy a Horizon message, not even bothering to ask if Kyle already has. Better to just mostly... avoid talking to Kyle for the moment.

He gives Kell an actual reassuring pat to the back.

"Lead the way."

assume at some point Kyle tells Istredd all the things in the first paragraph

[ushiri]

Kahlil nods. There's plenty to talk about and write down: the whispers he's heard about the King making a rare appearance soon, his own trip to Solvunn and his short chat with the council member there, what he's learned about the gods and the significance of that altered tarot. But there'll be time for that later.

There's a slight frown as he follows Istredd's gaze to Lucifer.

"He hid it well, for the most part." A glance back at Istredd. "There was a little trouble with Ambrose, but nothing worse than... usual."

Lucifer's been under house arrest before, so. A shrug.

"He was focused." Which helped.

[malicieux]

I was trying to find you.

[ He’d said he would. He’d all but promised, really, and while the opportunity to be a hero in that capacity had passed, a different one is presenting itself here. ]

A few of them paid the price for their actions.

[ Not just from Lestat, either. Plenty of those on the search mission seemed keen to seek some sort of vengeance on the Acolytes, but Louis doesn’t need to know what others did.

Lestat’s thumb makes to wipe at the bloody tear. His head tilts, expression becoming one of consideration. ]

Have you eaten, Louis?

[preferscuffs]

[Caitlyn's attention is torn, shifting from the sound of Ciri's voice to the subtle crick crack sounds coming from beneath them. Carefully, she spreads her weight out between all four limbs and eases her way towards Ciri's location. The situation making everything else take a backseat.]

Right. Of course. [A beat, as she considers everything.] Never a dull moment here, is there?

[Making her way to Ciri close, but not too close. No need to strain the ice under the other woman. Just to be on the safe side.

Then it's simply a matter of making it to shore. The same slow and careful pace until she gets closer and then it's a relatively inelegant scramble up to her feeet and then she's skidding the last bit until she finally hits the shoreline and solid land. Then she turns to check in on the others, assistance ready if necessary, but she's fairly certain it won't be required.]

[takeatrip]

[Jayden will be very jealous when he figures out Jack is high, but for the moment he's just confused. But he does step into the room, half expecting there to be some mysterious Gaston also present, but no, it's just Jack.]

Hey.

[Very eloquent, as usual for Jayden attempting smalltalk, but thankfully he notices--]

Did you uh... Summon a pudding cup?

[Because that's an upgrade over the children's toys for sure.]

[oversight]

He watches as long as he can. Long enough to sense Hilda's eyes on him, feel the light shimmer of change in her that she clearly pushes through. It doesn't pass his notice that the whole ordeal was difficult on people everywhere. Hilda's distress had been palpable and even knowing as much grips a tight fist around his heart. He'll do anything to make it better.

"You don't gotta worry, I'll act the part," he assures, voice low; it's their secret. And so he lifts a hand and covers his eyes, but it doesn't stop him from gabbing.

"Was gonna send you a message, but I figured you'd be busy and it could wait 'til I got outta here." Never mind that he's barely had time to recover. It's been difficult integrating food, keeping himself still but also tough staying awake, and being told not to deal with his own wounds is horrible. "I'm glad you're here," he says with finality, although she could have slipped out while he was talking and he wouldn't know. He might be sitting there talking to himself, he doesn't know. What he does knows is that it feels good to talk to someone (for once) and he doesn't want to stop.

[nadine_he_loves]

That sounds really nice. I think I'm going to sleep for a couple of days, first, but...I'd really enjoy some time together where we aren't busy as hell or too exhausted to talk.

[She squeezes his hand before turning to the food, realizing with the first bite how hungry she actually is. It's easy to forget to eat, with everything going on.

It's easy to let a lot of things fall to the side, with everything going on.]

And you'll be fine if you have to do any first aide. It's like I stressed, you're not trying to fix anything, just do a quick patch job. Just to get them back here.

[Nadine has no high hopes that most will come back with only scratches and some wear and tear. She knows how bad things are, and that they'll likely be dealing with all kinds of regular wounds and injuries and exposure issues on top of...the rest.]

Then we'll take care of the fixing. I hope I get extra credit for all this, when I go back to classes.

[It's as much as a joke as she can manage under the circumstances.]