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ABRAXAS MODS ([personal profile] abraxasmods) wrote in [community profile] abraxaslogs2025-02-09 11:58 am

EVENT #23: CROSSROADS - IC LOG

Event #23 - Crossroads
For the past few weeks, you've been stranded in a foreign territory or have had others stranded with you. Officials have assured everyone that the situation is temporary. They've been working hard to secure negotiations that would return everyone home...if that's what you want, of course. For anybody who wishes to stay in their new territory, authorities have promised that this is entirely possible. No one will be forced to go back if they don't want to.

The letter that arrives in the second week of February will say as much. It'll also emphasize that you must go to the exchange and that every Summoned has to be accounted for, or else the exchange may fall through. Even if you don't plan on returning - or you were never sent somewhere else to begin with - you'll still have to come.

The meeting will be held on neutral ground near the Singularity's now expanded crater but at a safe enough distance away. On FEBRUARY 18, portals will open to take you there.
While we will detail the incident leading up to characters fleeing, the majority of the event will be focused on characters surviving in their respective scenarios.

Remember: once you've chosen a SCENARIO for your character, they'll be rescued by the minor territory assigned to that scenario and will stay in that territory for the duration of March.
At the Exchange
The air of late winter is crisp even in the barren landscape around the crater. The Singularity stands tall and silent to the natives, but the Summoned will feel an electricity in the air. It might be magic seeping out from the cracked ground or it might be the tension that weaves the three mightiest nations closer together. The last time all three met here was for the Peace Summit three years ago. Now they meet again on the brink of war.

The territories have assured you that they anticipate everything to go smoothly. As you arrive, there is an attempt to cultivate a friendly atmosphere: Thorne has brought warm fur cloaks for anyone accidentally in the Free Cities who may be without, the Free Cities steps forward to announce compensation for any Summoned who were employed and could not attend to their job or business under the circumstances, and Solvunn declares it will be hosting an evening feast once all the Summoned have been returned to their rightful places. You even see Thornean mages and Free Cities officials chatting diplomatically, if superficially.

But as the exchange gets underway, the atmosphere begins to shift...and suddenly, nothing is as it seems.
Chaos Erupts
As a Summoned, you feel an electricity in the air. It might be magic seeping out from the cracked ground or it might be the tension that weaves the three mightiest nations.

Stillness falls across the gathering as each side waits for the other to make the first offering. An introduction that necessitates negotiation.

It never comes.

A flash from the north blinds you. Thunder drowns out all sound. The sharp scent of practiced magic rises into the air. Gunfire cracks in response. As explosions erupt around you, the facsimile of diplomacy tears like wet paper. Shouts are barely audible as soldiers, guards, and village elders rush forward.

You find yourself pulled between forces. Are they trying to hurt you, save you, or something else? A Thornean guard pushes you to the side. You can't tell if you were deliberately shoved into the line of fire or if it was an accident in the chaos. Someone else grabs you: a hooded Elder bearing the symbols of the Old Gods and urging you to come with them to safety. They can protect you from these dangerous nations, the Elder insists. The Gods have spoken.

As mayhem bleeds into the ground, the crater begins to shift and grow, reaching out to feed. The earth trembles. The soldiers, guards, and Elders notice too late as the crater expands far quicker than anyone could expect. It shatters stone, uproots trees, and swallows whole the natives who cannot withstand its powerful energy. They disintegrate in front of your eyes. Others cry out warnings and begin to flee - but they can't outrun the Singularity.

You are different. If you are one of the older Summoned, you'll remember being able to enter the Singularity's crater. In the past, it's dragged you into the Horizon...but not this time. Instead, you feel lulled by the crater's encroaching borders. You wonder if your best chance at surviving is to step into the crater where no native of Abraxas can reach you. Some of you might run toward it as a result of this conclusion. But, you may also have your doubts. If you try to flee with the rest, you'll find that you, too, cannot outrun the Singularity. As its reach extends across the entire swathe of neutral territory, you are inevitably sucked into its embrace and flung into a whirlwind.

On the Run
As you are teleported through a whirling vortex, you glimpse flashes of your domain in the Horizon. Indeed, for a few moments, it appears as though the domain itself has emerged and is now in the real world with you. Then you blink, and the sight vanishes, leaving you discombobulated.

Once you've gathered your wits, you realize you're nowhere near the original exchange site. If you attempt to use your powers, the effects are unintended: your fire spell causes rain to fall instead, or perhaps you accidentally summon a broomstick instead of your sword. It might last for a couple of hours or it might last for longer. The more powerful the ability, the longer it seems to take for it to start working correctly.

Regardless, you'll need to find each other somehow. Luckily, the Network is still working, so you can communicate with one another at a distance.
Northern Mountains
Though spring is on its way, the mountains are a tundra. Temperatures are frosty, but not as icy as they would've been a month ago. Maybe you've brought some warm clothes with you or the others have a spare cloak they've packed. You might've even brought a snack or some warming potions. Anything will help as you gather your bearings and try to determine where to go next.

If you were unlucky enough to have been one of the victims of Josselyn Creed's cult, you may recognize these ridges. Of course, everything rather looks the same when it's snowy and full of trees, but it's certainly possible to discern that you've been in these mountains before.
Characters in this scenario will go to NOCWICH.
Threats
◎ Revenant
A hoarfrost revenant has lived on these peaks for centuries. 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 announce his coming. His touch brings instant death, made clear by the frozen carcasses of animals left in his path.

With your arrival, he is now prowling in search of you...but if you encountered him before on these mountains, you'll notice that something's different this time: he does not attack. Instead, he will stand and watch - and if you, too, watch him for too long, you'll begin to grow warm. You'll then subsequently be overcome with the urge to remove your stifling layers of clothing despite the plummeting temperatures. Best hope someone not under his sway snaps you out of it.

◎ Whiteout
In the morning, you might be eager to get moving again. Perhaps you've been assigned foraging duties or you need to search for more firewood. As you leave your makeshift shelter, you realize the wind is whipping. Soon, a thick blizzard swirls around you, blanketing your surroundings in white. In the distance, you hear eerie howls...and you're not sure where you are anymore.

Be careful you don't trip and fall. With some concentration, you should still be able to find your way back home with the limited visibility...or, you might get lucky and somebody will come to your aid.
Resources
Though the mountains are dangerous, they also have what you need - if you know where to look. Snow hares can be hunted for food and any rations you might've had on your person can be shared among each other. Thick evergreen branches can be used for roofing. Alternatively, you can hunker down in a cave instead.

Most significantly, you can trek to an abandoned cabin containing some prechopped firewood that you can take, as well as an iron pot hanging over the cold hearth. Don't linger in the cabin too long, however. The more you stay, the more it feels like something is watching you. In the shadows, you spot two red eyes flickering in and out. You can't tell what this strange creature is, nor will it stop you from retrieving the few things you need, but eventually, the cabin's door will slowly open on its own, sending a clear message: it's time to leave.
Living Forest
Contrary to its name, the Living Forest is filled with seemingly dead trees. Like the Duskwoods, not much light penetrates, casting your surroundings in a dark gloom. Unlike the Duskwoods, it contains no giant mushrooms. Instead, the ground itself is covered in a thick moss, making every step you take feel as though you're walking upon a layer of marshmallows. Hidden in the moss itself are small vipers waiting to strike, each bite containing a venom that numbs the affected limb for several hours. Hazards are made all the more difficult to see due to the lack of light. While not pitch-black, the forest is gloomy and shrouded in a dark haze.

Those who've been to the Feywilds might not recognize where they are at first, but as you travel, you might notice something familiar: bright green and blue pear-shaped cocoons. Dozens of them hang from branches above you and will soon give birth to the aggressive spindled pear moths. As you study them, they begin to twitch, as if close to hatching. Maybe you shouldn't stay in this area too long...
Characters in this scenario will go to THE FEYWILDS.
Threats
◎ Strange Travelers
As you explore the murky woods, some of the trees shift oddly. You realize they aren't trees at all. Instead, they are figures on stilts, wandering in an endless circle. They do not speak. They are utterly silent.

One of them is holding a human-like infant. The child is also silent. While they won't actively threaten you, they have defended their territory with blinking mines stuck to trees and laid along the ground. The smooth steel and oddly modern lights imply a technology that far exceeds what should exist in Abraxas. Further, the mines don't seem to be powered by any magic at all.

Walk too close to a mine and you'll set it off, releasing a gas that knocks you unconscious. When you wake up, you'll have been dumped someplace far from where you were and must reorient yourself - if you can. Your belongings are untouched and you have no injuries beyond a few bruises or scrapes. It seems these Travelers aren't seeking to harm anyone unnecessarily, but they clearly want to be left alone.

◎ Flytraps
Massive Venus flytrap plants are one of the few plants that appear to flourish in these forests. The plant is difficult to spot in the dim light. Its vines will lash your ankles and trip you, then drag you toward its gaping maw. Its mouth is lined with sharp teeth and a corrosive spit that will burn your skin, eventually dissolving you into a paste. They're most prone to attack if you're carrying something that smells tasty: rations, freshly hunted meat, or foraged mushrooms.

Fortunately, the plants aren't too difficult to kill. A burst of magic or a few slashes from a sharp blade will release you. Still, in a situation such as this, even a twisted ankle or an infected cut could make a difference in your survival. Try to avoid the plants where possible.
Resources
As you explore the Living Forest, you might stumble across an abandoned garden that hasn't been harvested and is in full bloom as if it's spring. A variety of vegetables such as carrots, onions, and cabbages can be found, as well as some herbs for wounds and potions. The area shimmers with Seelie Magic. When you examine the crops closer, you realize that some of the garden is beginning to wilt and rot as the magic fades before your very eyes. A sign of what lies in the Feywilds, it would seem that all things Fey have left this realm altogether, leaving behind only remnants of their diminishing spells.

You can freely harvest the garden. None of the crops appear to be dangerous and the garden looks truly abandoned. However, you'll need to work quickly. The magic won't last until sunrise, so take what you can - you won't have the opportunity to return. Of course, don't overburden yourself, either, or attract predators with what you're carrying.
Open Ocean
Your arrival in the ocean will be more of a shock than the others as you splash into the water. Curiously, though it's still winter, the water isn't as cold as you might expect. It's almost unnaturally warm. As you struggle to stay afloat, the current begins to push you toward something floating in the distance: a large raft covered in moss. It resembles a small land mass, floating in the open sea, with a small curve like a hill or a hump...or the shell of a turtle.

It's possible a few of your fellow Summoned have already found refuge atop the creature's back or you might be among the first. Regardless, you'll want to help search for the others...and the island itself appears to be searching with you. Summoned who have been around a while might remember the Sea Giants who have come to your aid more than once. This may be yet another friendly Sea Giant - not quite the turtle some of you previously met, but perhaps a relative or a friend.

While the creature will try its best to keep you afloat, stormy winds and tall waves will still violently rock the living raft and may sweep away those who aren't careful. Make sure you hang on tight to the vines growing along the surface.
Characters in this scenario will go to THE NETHER.
Threats
◎ Leviathan Attack
Though leviathans are a predictable threat in the ocean, it doesn't make them any less dangerous. Appearing in all shapes and sizes, the one that rises from the water in the dead of night is difficult to discern: you glimpse massive teeth and glowing yellow eyes that, from a distance, resembles the blinking signal of a lighthouse. The leviathan will attack the creature who serves as your raft, who will struggle to defend itself.

You can help in any manner you wish. Attacking the leviathan or casting wards will aid the friendly turtle. While the leviathan is not easy to deter, it can be driven away if faced with enough aggression and will eventually leave in search of easier prey. Don't lose anyone overboard. Any Summoned who falls into the water while the leviathan is attacking will be swallowed up. Avoid its thrashing tail spikes, too.

◎ Aggressive Seabirds
More of a nuisance than a threat, seabirds are a constant menace, squawking day and night and attempting to steal rations, clothes, and other supplies that might be left unattended on the raft. These birds are quick and massive, swooping in and disappearing in an instant. They won't attack without provocation, but anyone trying to take back their belongings will find themselves assaulted by beating wings and sharp talons.

You can chase them off with rocks, sharp objects, or small spells. Supplies can also be warded, but with many people's magic working oddly, the wards might not last as long as they should or may backfire if struck too often by the birds. It may be a good idea to touch up the wards or assign someone to guard your things the old-fashioned way.
Resources
After a rough night, you'll awaken to discover that your raft has brought you to a small island. It's unclear where this island is from or whether anyone has ever mapped it, but nonetheless, the island exists. More importantly, it contains crabs and mussels that can be dug up. You can also find, inexplicably, some coconuts. Possibly bespelled by a Thornean mage who washed ashore in the past, these coconut trees have continued to flourish for decades, if not centuries.

You won't be able to spend long on the island. As the tide rises, more and more of the island begins to disappear. Soon, the water will swallow it up altogether and you'll be forced to board the creature's back again with your findings. Don't get greedy. If you linger too long, your efforts might be washed away with the tide.

Rescue
As your resources dwindle and your situation grows more dire, a glimmer will shine in the distance. You peer at it, curious and, perhaps, a bit anxious. Is it another threat? Is it a rescue? Or is it something else altogether?
Please wait for the WRAP-UP before proceeding to write your character being rescued. Full details will be provided on the Wrap-Up that will help inform what your character will be doing in March, including which NPCs your character will be seeing and the exact manner in which your character will be rescued.


thearchangel: (i love my GUN)

Garrus Vakarian | Mass Effect | Justice

[personal profile] thearchangel 2025-02-10 06:05 am (UTC)(link)
( Prompts below! Garrus is heading to the OCEAN, and will end up in THE NETHER )
thearchangel: (SHOCK AND AWE!!)

THE EXCHANGE | ota

[personal profile] thearchangel 2025-02-10 06:10 am (UTC)(link)
1) WAITING
[He is on edge. Garrus is shifting his weight amongst the others brought in from Solvunn. He's still wrapped up in his makeshift cold weather gear, but, given how damned tall he is, he can see over most peoples' heads readily enough. He's scanning the crowds for someone in particular, but can't make them out. There's just too many people.]

[So he'll opt for regaling whomever is next to him with what he's seeing. Figuring they might not be able to see over the assembled as well as he can. Also, he has to do something to really combat the uneasy energy, the weird electricity, he can feel down to his bones.]


Can't make out what they're all saying. No one looks angry - not yet. Most of them look pretty calm about this whole thing. Too calm...

[Or maybe that's just Garrus being a paranoid weirdo.]

2) CHAOS
[He was not, as it turned out, just being paranoid.]

[The flash has him reach out, to try and cover the Summoned nearest him in sheer reflex. The gunfire has him do the same, but with more urgency. Pulling them down, to try and cover them, keep their heads down while things start to go crazy.]


Are they firing on us! [It's supposed to be a question, but the chaos is too loud. So he just ends up shouting. There's no good cover here, there's just - just the crater.]

Let's move!
Edited 2025-02-10 06:41 (UTC)
thearchangel: (hello i have a thing to say)

OCEAN - closed to Shepard

[personal profile] thearchangel 2025-02-10 07:07 am (UTC)(link)
[Turians don't like the cold is a phrase he's uttered hundreds of times, under his breath. A phrase he's said far fewer times is no less true, but he never really figured it would be as much of a problem, is - swimming for us is more like flailing with occasional drowning.]

[Case in point.]

[When you're fleeing a random Singularity explosion and you step from solid ground into empty air, and land in water. Water with no bottom. This is no pond. This is no river. It tastes like salt. It's salt water. An ocean. There will not be a river bottom, a lakeshore, to stand on.]

[Garrus does his level best. He tries. Moving his arms, his legs. Some semblance of swimming motions. The heavy cloaks he'd put on in Solvunn don't help. But he can't spare the time to claw them off. He's too busy trying, and slowly failing, to keep his head above water.]

[For a second, he can see something - a shape, a rock, a ship? - ahead, and makes a game attempt to get closer. He's fighting for all he's worth, kicking, clawing. Everything he can think of and it just isn't enough to fight gravity. To call out, before a wave crashes over his head, and the sudden, accidental inhale of water does him in. Of all things...]

[Survived the Reapers, the Collectors, this whole world... and now the ocean is going to do the job.]
earthborn: (feign disorder and crush him)

[personal profile] earthborn 2025-02-10 07:22 am (UTC)(link)
[Not Today!

Shepard isn't sure exactly what happened. Some kind of explosion, feedback, or attack, and then some Free Cities idiot had fired his gun in response, and then... The same thing as always; a crowd of people abruptly transformed into a herd of stupid, panicky animals.

In the chaos, the transition from whirlwind to ocean water would have been almost seamless, if not for the ocean's fervent chill. She hits the water at speed and is immediately a dozen feet under with a mouthful of saltwater. Training takes over: Shepard drops her jacket before taking the first stroke, the sodden deadweight a useless burden, and only wishes she had fewer laced on her boots, which are worse. He head breaks the surface and she gasps an inhale just in time to spot a flailing talon, and a vanishing crest. She'd know him anywhere, by any sign.
]

Garrus!?

[Shepard dives, kicking mightily after the struggling shadow of a Turian. He's wild, panicked, drowning, and she takes a solid hit before she can grab him and thrust them both back upwards towards the air. He's heavy, and nothing like hydrodynamic, but panic gives her more strength, and when she manages to get them both to the surface the sunlight is almost oppressively bright by comparison.]

Gar— [She can't keep her head fully clear, but it's enough for a breath. She focuses on keeping him high enough to breathe, treading water stubbornly in her waterlogged boots] Garrus! Talk to me!

[Dead or alive, she'd rather drown than let him go, but if he's conscious then he can make this easier.]

Garrus!
thearchangel: (Call me "birdman" one more time...)

OCEAN - OTA

[personal profile] thearchangel 2025-02-10 07:46 am (UTC)(link)
1) Leviathan Attack
[Oh that's not good. That's not good at all. They don't have any heavy weapons. They don't have anything - ]

[Nope, focus. He has his crossbow, somehow managing to survive the whole experience. Not to mention... the new bonus that comes with it. He's got his talons dug into the greenery, the vines and plants serving as a brace, a platform. Something to hold onto.]


Aim for the eyes!

[Which he will do, with an odd sort of glow surrounding the crossbow as he fires. Somehow, despite the creature moving, the gleaming bolt hits home.]

[He'll do what he can to pitch in on the fight as well - either supporting someone who might be in danger of falling overboard, or throwing rocks and bolts at the encroaching tail.]



2) Resources
[Resource gathering, such as it is, seems ideal, given the circumstances. Circumstances being the local alien still hasn't fully recovered from his brush with the sea. His lungs don't seem to want to stop hacking up water, making it hard to breathe on occasion. He's doing what he can for the survival effort.]

[One of the cloaks he'd kept from Solvunn is repurposed. Piled full of coconuts, and the shells people keep telling him are edible. This contraption is sitting up the beach a little ways, while Garrus...]

[Garrus has it out with a crab.]

[It's a pretty big one. And if caught, would be a great source of protein. He's doing his best to stab it with a sharpened stick, but the activity is irritating his already angry lungs, causing him to stop and cough every few stabs.]


This - shouldn't be this damned hard.

[Stupid crab. Stupid ocean.]
thearchangel: (Oh turian Jesus what.)

[personal profile] thearchangel 2025-02-10 08:05 am (UTC)(link)
[His brain doesn't want to function properly. Not waterlogged, choking, like it is. It grinds to life enough to realize there is air, and ragged, thick gasps force his lungs to work again. Short ones, shallow ones. Too much damned seawater got in for more than that.]

[How is he - ? He should move, this is just a brief reprieve. A couple uncertain, determined, kicks, before thoughts start to grind to life again.]

[That's an order. And more importantly, that's an order from a familiar voice. Relief almost makes him sag in that sure, steady grasp. But he keeps trying to move. Keeps trying to stay functional. Talk. Can he talk? Is there enough air? Enough time before he goes back under again?]


Told you - [He hears himself rasp.] - flailing. Drowning.

[Garrus Vakarian, everyone, the man who could be two steps from death and still think he's the funniest son of a bitch in the room.]
cryptsleeper: (Doing real research)

Alucard | Free Cities -> Thorne -> Forest

[personal profile] cryptsleeper 2025-02-10 12:16 pm (UTC)(link)
cryptsleeper: (he smile!!!!)

AT THE EXCHANGE | Open

[personal profile] cryptsleeper 2025-02-10 12:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[Alucard would like to think he managed a month and change in Thorne quite well.  Beyond the first round of panic which was calmed by communication, Geralt actively checking in on him, and finding lodgings outside of the castle itself, Alucard did as he always has.  He found projects to work on, cooked, and used his leftover energy to try and be kind to those who were letting him stay in their dwelling while they too were flung to other territories.  (He cleaned.  He cleaned so much.)  But his feeling of success, or at least small glimmer of pride in not completely melting down, is no where visible on him at this exchange.  Instead, there is immense relief as he stands around the crater clad in a thick, warm coat (one of the few advantages of Thorne, actual winter), arms crossed over his chest.

To those he knows, he'll offer a small smile, thin and warm.]


I see you endured.
cryptsleeper: (far too still)

The Living Forest -> Stilted figures | Open

[personal profile] cryptsleeper 2025-02-10 12:17 pm (UTC)(link)
--Ssshhh.

[The dhampir extends his left hand, signaling a need to stop moving.  Gold eyes stare out into the impossibly dense forest, and the movement there is.  It is wrong in a way he can't articulate, but he knows is wrong.  In such moments, it is best to stay still.  

He stands there, watching the movement of what at first seems to be trees.  Except trees don't move like that, and the aura radiating off of these not trees has the hairs of his neck standing on end.  Alucard's eyes remain fixed ahead, but he whispers:]


We need to go back the way we came.  I don't think we're going to be able to forage for anything here.
cryptsleeper: (Fangies)

Living Forest -> Abandoned garden | Open

[personal profile] cryptsleeper 2025-02-10 12:18 pm (UTC)(link)
[Alucard stands at the edge of the garden, a thin frown on his face and arms crossed. That the illusion of abundant crops has faded is not the problem at hand. He can live with wilting carrot greens and browning bits of cabbage. They're still edible, and he is making quiet calculations of what needs to be eaten immediately versus what can be saved for a week or so. It is, in fact, a good stroke of luck that the wilting garden is in as good a shape as it is.

The problem is the illusion in the first place.

With a deep sigh, Alucard unfolds his arms and takes a first step into the garden itself.]


How many bags do we have with us?
cryptsleeper: (A moment in thought)

Living Forest -> With the group | Open

[personal profile] cryptsleeper 2025-02-10 12:18 pm (UTC)(link)
[Alucard makes a point of offering services to scout ahead or otherwise find food, he does hew close to the others, saying little. On occasion though, he offers his winter coat should someone look in need of extra warmth or otherwise if they have fallen asleep. Once or twice, he looks warily back at the direction they've all just come from, a frown on his face.]

The magic at that crater was...I'm not sure. On purpose, but I don't know who would have done such a thing.
cryptsleeper: (impale with great prejudice)

Network

[personal profile] cryptsleeper 2025-02-10 12:18 pm (UTC)(link)
ushiri: (pic#15839998)

Kyle | THE OCEAN

[personal profile] ushiri 2025-02-10 04:42 pm (UTC)(link)
( open and closed starters below! hmu here for plotting )
ushiri: (pic#15839983)

OPEN ( turtle time + the island )

[personal profile] ushiri 2025-02-10 04:43 pm (UTC)(link)
the raft;
[ Kyle's supplies for a prolonged trip are meager, though you might remember in the past he's been a source of goodberries. You might approach to ask him for some if you get hungry enough, though he'll offer a frown in response. ]

I can't promise what they'll taste like.

[ If you've had one before, you might remember the jewel-like fruit having a sweet and pleasant taste, while filling the belly and curing minor ailments. This time - the berries in his hand appear in shades of green and purple - still sparkling (and maybe you are drawn to put sparkling things in your mouth, no one is judging you here) - but the flavor might range anywhere from licorice to cilantro to the intense iron taste of brussel sprouts. Maybe you appreciate those particular flavors, but you will notice that the berries don't have quite the same filling effect at the moment. ]
small island;
Here -

[ If you've been staring up at one of those coconut trees, Kyle will offer half of one filled with its hydrating water. With that, he'll go back to cutting them down from the tree - which seems to involve him motioning with his hand as the coconut falls from the branch. He'll settle down with one, the Unseen Edge creating a tear between his thumb and forefinger that he uses to cut open the hardened shell. ]

Do you have a waterskin? [ He'll glance up - it seems he's filling up the empty ones. ]
Edited 2025-02-10 17:37 (UTC)
ushiri: (pic#16104184)

viktor + jack;

[personal profile] ushiri 2025-02-10 04:44 pm (UTC)(link)
[ There's no respite from the chaos that just unfolded - one minute they're at the crater, the next he's watching the ocean come hurtling toward them.

The impact has him momentarily disoriented, and he takes in a mouthful of saltwater as he struggles to get his bearings again - just in time to feel the splash of another body next to him hitting the waves - it doesn't reappear, and without another thought Kyle dives down, gripping Viktor's shirt by the shoulders. The part of his brain still able to function rationally through burning lungs and dark water knows he won't be able to pull them both up - the weight of Viktor's metal attachments has them immediately sinking.

Clutching onto him Kyle tries, half blind, to find the quick release for the mechanical leg braces. ]
Edited 2025-02-10 17:49 (UTC)
ushiri: (pic#15839990)

viktor;

[personal profile] ushiri 2025-02-10 04:50 pm (UTC)(link)
[ The summons for them to gather comes, and even though the wording has him surprisingly hopeful, he's prepared for the worst. They talk about this before they set out, with all the assurances in the message it seems best not to make their intentions known right away - especially since they mean to arrive with packs. Kyle doesn't expect they'll need to run, but he has not yet let go of his survival mode mentality - especially now that he has someone else to look after, someone who is not so accustomed to needing to run on a moment's notice. There are the others too that he worries for - Jack and Wilhelm in particular, the former he searches for in the small crowd.

The Singularity's looming presence and energy is oppressive over a meeting that begins as diplomatically as anyone could have hoped. Kyle remains as close to Viktor's side as a shadow, quiet as he takes in the proceedings, his expression set in a neutral mask.

The initial flash of light blinds him, his other senses drawn to the scent of magic - by the first crack of gunfire he's shielding Viktor with his body - he still can't see but he can hear a cacophony of shouts in surprise, distress, anger. Someone - a Thornean soldier, grabs his arm to pull him away and he reels, shoving them back as another crack of gunfire rings in his ears and he feels the air punched from his chest as he falls to his knees, all that sound around him becoming a dull buzz. ]
Edited 2025-02-10 18:44 (UTC)
stations: (003)

ᴋɪʟʟɪɴɢ ᴀ ʙɪʀᴅ's ᴇɴᴛɪʀᴇ ғᴀᴍɪʟʏ (ɴᴏᴛ ʀᴇᴀʟʟʏ)

[personal profile] stations 2025-02-10 05:07 pm (UTC)(link)
( It's been thirty hours. Thirty full hours since they landed in the water, thirty hours since their clutch save from drowning, and their deposit onto the back of this giant turtle — which, by the way, are probably his second favorite animals of all time. He's appreciative for them, really, he totally is.

It's just these god
damn
birds
won't
shut up.

He doesn't have a book to tune them out, he can't conjure a book, or anything useful for that matter, and so he's just been forced to sit here and listen to the tell-tale squawk;

— hark! louder! louder! louder! louder!

Granted, admittedly, he's mixing up his Poe when he starts reciting tiredly to himself:
)

Late at night there came a cawing, as if some asshole bird yee-hawing, squawling at my turtle shell.

Surely seagulls were guffawing, at my sanity they're gnawing, words in the sand that they've been drawing, sharply written, "Go to hell."


( Sprawled on his back on the shell, crammed in with a dozen other people, he's forced to admit it's not his best work. Ten minutes later comes a pivot, and instead of reciting off-brand poetry, he starts singing; )

Rockin', rockin' and rollin'... down to the beach I'm strollin'... but the seagulls poke at my head, I said seagulls, mm, stop it now-

( And when the third recitation of that entire song loses its novelty, he sits up abruptly, accidentally kicking the discarded pile of useless garbage he's been summoning straight into the ocean. Plastic water willy tubes, wurm on a string, they all plunk into the water in likely the first round of oceanic plastic litter this world has ever seen, and he grimaces guiltily.

They'll probably... despawn soon.

In the meantime, he concentrates — and manages to summon up some more useless garbage. He'd been hoping for a gun, but he kind of figured it might turn out this way, so. Not really a loss.

Thus, Jack starts unceremoniously dumping nerf guns and foam darts into a massive pile in the space beside him. Kyle, of course, gets a good one tossed at him directly, and also immediately gets a demonstration.
)

Alright, so- here. Take this. Stick a thing in, pull the thing back, and you can just-

( Thwack! SQUAWK!! An indignant seagull is pelted in the head, and it jolts back away from where it had been circling their modest little camp.

Admittedly, very satisfying — even though the bird only makes it about two feet away before realizing it isn't hurt, and coming straight back down to start circling again.
)
Edited 2025-02-10 17:53 (UTC)
gynvael: (268)

geralt of rivia | the witcher | forest.

[personal profile] gynvael 2025-02-11 12:21 am (UTC)(link)
gynvael: (qi: 004)

rocket; peter.

[personal profile] gynvael 2025-02-11 12:22 am (UTC)(link)
[ Trekking through the desiccated forests in what he thinks must be near the borders of the Feywilds is not how he wished to spend his day. He is, in truth, especially concerned about what may happen should they tread too close to the Feywilds themselves...or if they have already made some transgressions by crossing this far, whether intentional or otherwise.

So far, no Fey have arrived to confront them.

A rustle above makes him glance up. He glimpses a bushy striped tail. ]


Rocket. [ Geralt nods towards the blinking light in the distance. It's odd. He's been inching closer for the past ten minutes or so, curious what it could be. It doesn't appear to be the flicker of magic. It's much too uniform. ] Do you know what that is?
Edited 2025-02-13 18:25 (UTC)
gynvael: (141)

john.

[personal profile] gynvael 2025-02-11 12:24 am (UTC)(link)
This was not quite the reunion he had wanted with John, but he can admit it is good to have him back, alongside Yen and Jaskier and Ciri. Despite the complications of being lost in unknown territory, he can't say he dislikes being entirely away from the scrutiny of their usual...observers.

Certainly nice to be away from Thorne.

He's taken John with him, both to make sure nothing happens to the other man and because he could use the help foraging for what might be in these odd forests. The trees look dead, but the moss beneath his feet is undeniably thriving.

A shift in movement in the dim lighting catches his eye. He grabs John's arm—holding him back from stepping on one of the many snakes lurking about.

"Careful."
Edited 2025-02-20 20:15 (UTC)
ordinar: (♛ 089)

wilhelm

[personal profile] ordinar 2025-02-11 12:26 am (UTC)(link)
Plot with me here.
ordinar: (♛ 022)

the exchange | ota

[personal profile] ordinar 2025-02-11 12:28 am (UTC)(link)
I. chaos erupts
For a narrow window of time, Wilhelm lets himself hope that the circumspection he's keeping in his back pocket will amount to nothing more than paranoia. Soon enough, he'll be back in Thorne. Everything will be back to normal.

Then, in an ionized flash of magic, the window slams shut, and his hope shatters. Someone shoves him forward. A hand grabs his shoulder. Instinct has him slamming his elbow backward into the assailant's chest, wheeling around to aim a kick at the back of their leg. In the chaos, he trusts only his friends.

Recognizing a face in the wild current of violence, he shouts, "Run!"

Though, he's not sure where to run. There's nowhere to go but the crater that surrounds the Singularity.
ordinar: (♛ 066)

the forest | ota

[personal profile] ordinar 2025-02-11 12:31 am (UTC)(link)
II. arrival
The world stops spinning on three different axes at once, and Wilhelm finds himself hemmed in by skeletal trees and an almost palpable darkness. With his head feeling heavy and his limbs feeling wrong, it takes him a moment to scrape himself up from the spongey ground. When he tries to call fire to his hand, a cold wind wraps around him instead. He shivers. Panic, already gnawing on him, opens its jaws wide.

"Iris?" he yells into the dark. His voice splinters on fear. "Lucifer! Kyle!"

With each name he tries, he strains to hear any response in the hush of the forest. He keeps a hand at the wooden brooch under his cloak, ready to activate its protective charm if needed. In the thick gloom, it's hard to tell if that rustling is the footsteps of an ally or the awakening of an unfriendly creature...

III. survival
He's been through worse, he reminds himself, as the trek through the forest drags on. Sure, he has no idea where he's going, but at least he isn't being hunted down by insane cultists or subjected to experiments that rob him of his sanity. At least he isn't surrounded in the dark by the rotting bodies of those who would never find a way out.

That doesn't stop Wilhelm from complaining, "There has to be something to eat around here besides mushrooms."

He pronounces it with such sharp disgust that you'd think mushrooms murdered his family or something. Then, as if in answer to his grievance, a glimpse of garden appears through the spines of the trees. Motioning for his companion to follow, he moves toward it.
ushiri: (pic#16565795)

[personal profile] ushiri 2025-02-11 03:27 am (UTC)(link)
[ Truly, in spite of widespread rumor, Kyle does not have a blood feud with the avian creatures - except in moments like this. He's been shooing the birds away as peacefully as possible - in part because his blessed bones are not working as they should and it's not worth the risk. He's knows little about seafaring, but there's some hope that at least these pests mean a safe landing can't be far off.

He does not recognize Jack's poetry or song. The 'gun' he does recognize as it's tossed his way - a popular kids' toy in Nayeshi that looks little like any rifle he's familiar with handling. He pushes the dart into place and points it at another circling bird - scowling when he misses the first shot as the wind blows the foam dart off course.

He reloads it, firing a second shot that misses as well. The bird stares back at him with black, soulless eyes. ]


We should eat them.

[ He says this in a flat, humorless tone.

The third shot strikes between the legs of a bird trying to dig through a pack, startling it. He follows up by hurling a goodberry at it. ]
stations: (0045)

[personal profile] stations 2025-02-11 04:28 am (UTC)(link)
( It's kind of funny, actually — you'd think it would be the opposite way around, with Badass Ninja Kyle being the crack shot. Surprisingly, though, Jack has yet to miss a single one. Each and every dart thunks off of a bird head with startling accuracy — not that he seems to be paying very much attention to that. It's an almost absent, mechanical sort of movement. Load the dart, pull the thing back, pull the trigger, thwack, squawk, bloop, and a new trail of slowly disappearing, bobbing foam darts trailing behind them in the water. )

Oh, for sure, definitely.

( He agrees easily, with nary a scrap of remorse. His sanity's hanging on by shreds on a normal day. These fucking birds are sending it out the window, and besides, he's got a very appealing, admittedly cartoonish mental image of spit-roasting a seagull like a rotisserie chicken. That would be really, really awesome right now. )

They'd totally eat us, so... it's only fair.

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