abraxaslogs | [ OPEN ] monster hunting club, the remix.

Entry tags:

[ OPEN ] monster hunting club, the remix.

Who: Ciri & anyone in Solvunn
When: shortly after territory swap
Where: Solvunn Primary Settlement
What: Ciri accidentally causes some chaos and summons a number of weird bugs and creepy plant monsters that will need exterminating before they wreak further havoc on the livestock.
Warnings: please add in subject line if needed!

(( Feel free to use this post as a mingle-style log! Ciri will be running around trying to take care of the problem she caused, but tagging others or making your own TL is encouraged! hmu @ lenafish on discord with any questions.

There are about a dozen creatures in total, and they're not too difficult to kill, but they're quite fast and annoying. Squishing them causes an unpleasant stench. If anyone tries to capture and keep any instead, they'll find that the creatures simply vanish within a few hours. They could definitely do some damage before then though, if not disposed of quickly! ))

The day after the earthquake and the displacement of many of the Summoned, when the Singularity should have been at its lowest point of power but isn't, folks in the Primary Settlement of Solvunn may notice another bit of strangeness.

A sudden influx of unusual wildlife appear around the settlement.

Small, flower-like creatures run around, going after chickens and possibly the occasional small child. They're about the size of a cat, with small, sharp claws that contain a mild venom. Scratches will cause an intense itch or burning around the area that subsides in a few days without treatment. Saltwater can aid in soothing the burning sensation, or maybe some help from a healer.

At the same time, bird-sized, stinging insects appear, fluttering about looking for a meal. They're roughly the size of a pigeon and seem to be more attracted to large livestock than people, but that's no guarantee if you get in their way. Their stinger causes numbness at first, intended to hide their presence as they latch onto their pray to suck its blood. About an hour after being bitten, the victim experiences unpleasant itching and bruising. The stings and bites will respond to common remedies, though they might last up to a week if the insect wasn't shooed away soon after biting.

Amidst all this, the farmers of Solvunn are none too happy, with their livestock already scared and missing. They would appreciate the problem being taken care of quickly.

And so would Ciri. Though you might not realize why -- unless you saw the creatures pop up inexplicably around her shortly before.

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[ In the chaos of getting displaced, the destruction from the earthquake and worry for her home, now so far away, Ciri's been trying to catch up with everyone she cares about, figure out where they've gone and if they're safe.

Once she's satisfied on that front, she heads to Aloy's compound to make sure everything is already there as well, and settles into her new... circumstances.

It's on the way back into the Primary Settlement the next day that it happens. She's worried about Nixie, thinking about how she's been able to summon her horse recently. She's been practicing, and even Nixie appears to have gotten semi-used to it.

Would it be possible...?

--the answer, it turns out, is a resounding no.

Instead of a wiry dappled gray, what appears from Ciri's attempt at a portal are a small swarm of confused creatures hissing and skittering and flying off way too fast for her to do anything about them. ]

Shit!

[ Ciri can be seen running after one of the plant-like beasts as it skitters toward the nearest vegetable patch. Some goats, just recently returned, start yelling loudly at an unfamiliar insect. ]

Shit, shit, shit--

[ Yeah, she really should've seen this coming. ]

Hey! [ She yells out to someone passing by as the plant creature runs under the fence and right at them. ] Just stomp on it!

[ there's a lot of uncertainty about ending up in solvunn, especially when she feels like she only barely got an understanding of thorne. she'd really rather not have to start on a whole new territory. ]

[ but if there's one thing annabeth does always understand, it's coming up against beastly little creatures. she hears the woman's voice and looks up, just as the strange flower monster hurries towards her - or rather, towards the nearby garden. ]

[ and it's instinct after that. as soon as the clue comes in, annabeth does as instructed, taking a quick and sure leap to stomp both feet down on top of the plant beast. it squishes beneath her boots and she stomps again for good measure. ]

What is it?

[ The creature lets out a squealing hiss as it dies, and leaves behind a pungent odor and a mess on Annabeth's boots.

Ciri runs up looking vaguely flustered, cheeks flushed from the cold. ]

Sorry-- [ Wait, why is she apologizing? Or rather, she knows it's her fault, but no one else needs to know that. ] Have you seen any more of them?

They came from the woods. Ran right past me.

[ A beat. She responds to the question with a non-answer that should be answer enough. ] I'm not from around here. Got caught in the portal weirdness.

[ annabeth makes a bit of a disgusted face at the smell, but ultimately she's been covered in worse and spent a summer stepping in cow shit, so it's like, whatever. ]

[ she glances up when the woman comes running, but then immediately looks around when she asks after more. there's some rustling, presumably some type of creature, but nothing to stomp on again in the immediate vicinity. ]

That was the first. I'm not sure I'd bet against seeing more though.

[ she takes another look around, lingering a bit on the woods and idly wiping her boots on the grass. ] I'm not from Solvunn either. But these guys seem like they'd be annoying.

I saw a... handful. But they scattered.

[ She hears the rustling too, some leafy vegetables swaying as they're disturbed. Ciri steps closer, ready to pounce--

But what emerges is a frightened little rabbit, nose twitching. It freezes momentarily, staring at them, then hops quickly away.

Ciri's shoulders slump.

Well. Hopefully the rest will disappear before they cause too much trouble. She looks back over at her new companion. ]

Cadens is a big place, so maybe we haven't crossed paths. But I haven't seen you around.

[ That leaves one other possibility. ]

They're so weird. They'll probably scurry back once they think big bad threat is gone.

[ it's them, with their big old stomping boots. ]

[ annabeth just... continues to assume they're strange solvunn creatures. she'll have to ask someone, later, and then of course be met with puzzlement. ]

No, you wouldn't. I'm usually in Thorne. I'm Annabeth.

[ Istredd is coming back from attempting to build a shrine and he sees Ciri. He is about to wave and check in, but then he pauses, shocked, as a portal opens and a group of plant creatures fall out. He knows what they are on sight because he found a dead one by the Singularity one time, and gave Geralt the corpse, but he didn't expect to see them again.

He runs toward her, inwardly a little panicked as her portaling abilities are supposed to be secret, and who knows how Solvunn would react to seeing that. It's far safer than if she did this in Thorne though, of that he is positive, so he's not in worst case scenario at the moment. He doesn't stomp on the creature though, he instead uses a spell to create a glass-like box around it and traps it neatly. He doesn't know if they've ever had a live one to deal with.

The others seem to scatter or be stomped and he scoops the little trapped creature up, hurrying to meet her halfway. ]

How in the world did that happen?

[ He knows that Ciri sometimes does it by accident, but he thought she perhaps had it under control! ]

[ Ciri swears.

Istredd. Of fucking course. Though--

Well. Better than someone else, to be honest. ]

What're you--? [ He's trapped it. Ciri approaches cautiously, looking around for the others scurrying around. One darts between her legs, and she hisses and tries step on it, missing narrowly.

She groans, defeated. ]

I don't fucking know. It just happens.

[ As in: this is not the first time. ]

[ Istredd is not going to question how it's still happening, because it's possible Ciri had no interest or inclination toward practicing an ability. Some people don't. And asking that isn't going to get them anywhere good, because Istredd always puts his foot in his mouth. Instead he gets a look at the creature trapped in his hand. It is trying to escape, banging back and forth in the fake glass.

Another one hops around his legs and he manages to kick it away, startled by the bizarre way they act. He glances around to make certain no one can hear them, as people are either around or trying to chase down the creatures themselves. ]

We still don't know how you created these in the first place, right? It was just a strange creation?

[ As far as Istredd knows, her original abilities are surrounding the ability to scream until monoliths explode. No one's really been around Elderblood individuals enough to know what they are capable of. And because of that, well, he's a little curious. Is this an ability only here? Or has she always had it?

He's purposely avoided asking her because they weren't on good terms and he didn't want to be annoying. ]

Geralt didn't tell me about what you learned one way or the other. [ Typical Geralt. ]

[ Automatically, when Istredd kicks the creature away, Ciri brings the heel of her booth down on it. It squelches unpleasantly, and stinks. She wrinkles her nose.

Looking back over when Istredd asks how she does it, Ciri hesitates, glancing around as well. She nods toward the edge of the nearby tree cover.

If anyone might be able to help her figure out what's causing these things to appear and anything else about them, it'll be Istredd. She and Geralt could only get so far.

Once they're a bit more secluded, she begins. ]

The first time it happened was just outside the Singularity crater. I tried to portal out of danger. Got pulled there instead.

There was a scuffle with some aggressive wildlife. I got injured.

Near as I can tell, the first time... these things grew out of the earth where my blood landed.

[ Istredd takes their little trapped one over to the tree cover with her. He is glad they've landed in a place between them where he can ask questions and get answers without hostility. There are a few reasons why he was grateful for that group vision, and bridging the gap between them is one.

Just for extra protection, he speaks a spell that creates a bubble of sorts around them, so their words cannot be overheard. It's now a safe space. ]

Elder blood having such a strange response to the land here ... I suppose it can't be that surprising. Your blood holds within it powerful magic, and so does the land here. But for it to lead to creation is a surprise.

[ All of Abraxas is teaming with power and magical energy. He's proven for himself through study that the area around the crater doesn't have any vast more power than anywhere else; all of the earth here is magical. But manifesting creatures is a step above what makes sense. ]

Feainnewedd would grow from your blood, theoretically, so maybe that's what this is. A merging of a flower with ... whatever else this is.

[ Ciri actually listens to him carefully, not interrupting. ]

...I had considered that. [ For once, it doesn't come off snappish or impatient. ]

I have also considered my ability to open doors to monsters from other places.

You see, these creepy flower fellows aren't the only ones I've summoned here. More recently, I accidentally created some flying insect types. No blood involved.

[ An edge of frustration creeps into her voice. Not with him, though. With herself, a raw, helpless undercurrent of anger beneath the words. ]

I don't know how I did it. I thought maybe it was the Singularity again, but considering the first time, the way it relates to what I've done in the past, back home--

[ Ciri doesn't say it aloud, but as her eyes search Istredd's, it's clear she's asking for his help. If there is any to be offered. ]

[ Istredd's eyebrows go up at her saying she's summoned other creatures too, but he's not necessarily surprised, just filing away that information. They've come a long way where they can talk about this freely with each other and he doesn't hold the same anxiety and tension he did before. If she's sharing her thoughts on this, it's because she knows he can be trusted now. ]

Your power can open up monoliths, gates to other spheres, so it's not surprising you can accidentally do something similar here. The key part is accidental.

[ He can hear that she's frustrated and angry over it, so much is out of her control, and she reminds him a lot of Yennefer in how this hangs over her. He meets her eyes and tries to think of how he can help. ]

We've captured this one. [ The creature he intentionally caught. ] Maybe there are experiments on them we can attempt to understand what it's made of better. But Ciri, with all due respect, what you really need is to train in your magic. I know it's not something you asked for or want, but it's a part of you, it followed you to this sphere.

[ She flinches -- tries to hide it, but it's visible despite her efforts. His words hit like a blow, and it makes her angry and frustrated but also it still hurts. Ciri's shoulders tense defensively, like a bristling cat.

She blinks hard, refusing to accommodate the threat of tears stinging the backs of her eyelids, squeezing her throat tight. ]

You think I haven't tried? You think I'm just fucking around on purpose?

[ Finding herself here, she'd been terrified it was her fault at first. But even if it wasn't, this creature is. The others like it. And there have been other mistakes, other accidents. Despite Yennefer's training, despite her attempts at control. ]

I'm very much aware I'm the problem.

[ It thankfully hadn't been too difficult to arrange something with Barnabas' help, as he currently lives with the butcher and his wife, and so Tifa was able to negotiate for some fresh cuts of meat. There are a lot more Summoned mouths to feed and Himeka isn't here, meaning that cooking duty now fall to her.

She's on her way from the butcher's back toward the inn, and while she would normally take a chocobo, it looks like they're all being used right now, so she doesn't mind hoofing it.

She's good at power-walking.

Yet she's distracted from her walk when she hears the loud bleat of a startled goat. The goats have been even larger menaces than usual lately, as if all the changes have set them off as well, but this one sounds distressed.

Tifa glances over just in time to see a strange plant-like creature skitter up to her. That's when a stranger calls out to her, ordering her to just stomp on it.

Tifa's hands are full with the package of meat that she's holding, all wrapped up in butcher paper. Yet that doesn't stop her from bending her knees and then spinning into a roundhouse kick, sending the strange creature slamming into a nearby tree, which seems to kill it instantly.

She doesn't recognize the woman with her strangely white hair, but she knows that hair color is not as out of the ordinary here as it was back home. ]

Are there more of them?

[ She hasn't seen monsters quite like that one around here... ]

[ That's even more involved of a stomp than she expected. Ciri stops a few feet away, wide-eyed. Impressed, even. Her gaze follows the body of the creature as it slumps down the tree, twitching post-mortem. It oozes a dark, sap-like liquid that smells mulchy and pungent. ]

A few more. They-- ah.

Ran past me. Scattered. I think I saw three or four more.

[ Her eyes move from the beast's corpse to its killer. ]

You have good reflexes.

Didn't even drop your bags.

[ A few more? While the one that Tifa just kicked into oblivion didn't seem too dangerous, that doesn't necessarily mean anything. Don't judge a book by its cover, right? The smell that it gives off after its death is putrid, making her worry that it might have been capable of poisoning someone or something.

So, the fact that there are more of them wandering around so close to the settlement isn't great.

Though Tifa is briefly distracted by the woman's comment, which draws a laugh out of her as she shrugs. ]

Guess all the training's paid off.

[ But this isn't really the time for idle chitchat. ]

Do you know which way they went? I can try to help you take them out before they cause any more trouble.

[ Although she will probably have to stash the meat somewhere in the meantime. At least it's cold out, meaning that she shouldn't have to worry about it spoiling if she leaves it for a bit. ]

[If you ask Jaskier, this is what he gets for doing what Geralt asks him to do. It's simply the way his life turns out, as if a dimension-hopping sorceress needs a bard looking after her.

But here he is, gallivanting around Solvunn's three main communities in search of her. Or. Well, that was his excuse. What he's been trying to do is outrun this bloody goat they gave him that, inexplicably, has attached to him after it somehow put together that he can make an unlimited amount of vegetables. Though Jaskier is not entirely sure if the animal understands where the vegetables are coming from, only that there are more of them every time Jaskier tries to get away from it. Another cabbage. Another carrot. Another --

Gigantic bug.

Jaskier screams, unloading his lute and hitting a bug so hard with it that it, put simply, explodes, splashing buggy juice all over his boots and Mog, who was trying his best to ride on top of his goat.

He's got a bloody circus following him, and now -- that is a swarm.

He screams again.] Help! Take the goat, you bloody bastards! At least rid me of this impossible-to-satiate creature!

[Though he says it, he is adamantly defending his goat with his lute; Mog seems to catch onto this same desire and starts flapping his wings and diving at the bugs to smash them against the ground with a hiss.]

[ The insects are a first. She's never seen those before-- and that's all she can think for a beat too long, watching them fly off in different directions with a sinking dread. Fuck.

And then she'd lost them. Too slow to react. Cursing her own foolishness, Ciri picks a direction and goes in search of her unruly creations.

Finding them becomes much easier when a loud scream indicates something may be awry. More than that, she's quite sure she knows that voice. ]

Jaskier! Don't-- [ She closes the final short distance between them in a Blink, appearing in the midst of the chaos. Next to the goat. (A new pet?) It bleats loudly, and promptly headbutts her leg.

Ciri swears, staggering to regain her balance. ]

Stupid fucking goat-- Wait. Don't kill them all.

[ Mog's battle against the insects is quite impressive, though. ]

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[ OPEN ] monster hunting club, the remix.

Ciri | OPEN

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so sorry about the delay ;~; thanks for tagging me

no worries! c:

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for ciri

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