EVENT #7: THE SIGHT

[abraxasmods]

Event #7 - The Sight

go to the OOC event info and plotting post

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The night before APRIL 18, your dreams are disrupted by a vivid image of the same eclipse that occurred last month. The black sun seems to be an endless void in the sky, growing ever darker - until it suddenly opens into an eye that stares straight at you.

When you wake up, much of your night seems a blur except for the vivid dream of that eye. Whether you find it unsettling or try to ignore it, the image is something you cannot get out of your mind. If you ask, you will discover that none of the locals of your faction saw another eclipse. Speak with your fellow Summoned, however, and you may learn that while there was no eclipse that formed over the world, you were not the only one who had this dream.

Of course, dreams don't need to mean anything. You can't feel or see any immediate effects, and nearly everyone around you is going about their day as usual. Maybe you should do the same.

The Awakening

It might happen that very morning or a day or two later. You could be discussing the dream with a fellow Summoned or perhaps you simply brush shoulders with them as you walk by. Whatever it is, as soon as you make brief physical contact, one of you is struck with a sharp pain in your temple that grows into a terrible headache. It's disorienting and painful as the world around you shifts to someplace you may or may not recognize. Like an old film reel, you watch the events of the past play out before you: the past of the other Summmoned. It might be something they would rather hide, a moment of failure or despair, or something they are immensely proud of and brings them great joy - or even a jumble of several images over the course of a person's life. But you see it as if it were real and right in front of you all the same. When you come to, you'll likely find yourself on the ground or bent over, possibly with one or more people around you to see if you're okay. It'll take you a bit to gather your bearings, and the subsequent pounding in your head could last from minutes to hours.

Or, maybe you aren't the one who receives the vision. Instead, as you watch, another Summoned might grasp their head and crumble in front of you. They may go silent or groan in pain. They'll be impossible to shake out of their stupor until it's over. If you ask what happened, they may be inclined to tell you the truth - that you, you were what happened to them.

Or, if your Arcana signs happen to line up in a specific way, you'll see each other in the shared memory itself. You may also find that for certain Summoned, you can help soothe the effects, calm their emotions, or help draw them out of the memory before it consumes them for too long. It's not entirely clear what determines which effect, but one thing is for certain - within each memory, every Summoned as they appear in the past seems to wear the mark of their Arcana somewhere on their person.

For some, they might experience this only once. For others, they might experience it multiple times: with the same person, with several other Summoned, or with a different memory each time. Over the next 7 days, you'll find the Summoned around you are all receiving a glimpse into each other's past, as if the Singularity has awoken an eye within each of you.

Flee for the safety of the Horizon if you want, but you'll find that in there, it's much the same. In fact, inside the Horizon, the other Summoned don't even need to be anywhere near you - just existing in the Horizon space itself together will be enough to possibly set off a headache-inducing vision.

The Factions

What has occurred between the Summoned will not go unnoticed within the factions. While it's difficult to say how faction officials have picked up what's happening, it'll be obvious they do know.

In THORNE, characters will be asked to remain in the castle walls until further notice. Characters will not be allowed to leave the castle grounds, not even to go into the surrounding city, and anyone who is already outside will be requested to not leave again as soon as they return. If asked, they will be told it's for their own safety, given the Singularity is behaving unpredictably and the Summoned have a unique connection to it. Soothing potions and healers are on hand to offer assistance, if anyone is particularly suffering from ill effects.

In the FREE CITIES, characters will find the army by the outposts show more activity than usual. A higher number of guards will patrol the streets throughout the event, particularly in areas frequented by the Summoned. Anyone who publicly and visibly experiences the effects of the memory share (pain, doubling over, etc.) will be offered assistance by the guards. They are generally there to help, but they are also there to maintain order and ensure anyone behaving erratically due to this incident is properly contained. This might include confinement for a day or two if anyone is especially posing a risk, but no one will be punished except in the most extreme cases, as the locals are aware this is not within the control of the Summoned.

In SOLVUNN, the locals will be watching what's happening with a mixture of trepidation and curiosity. Host families and neighbors will be on hand to help with charms meant to offer protection, as well as general care and assistance (soup, blankets, and so on) if your character seems to be especially under the weather or afflicted by the event. Towards the end of the event, more elders and mages will be out and about to check up on the Summoned to make sure they're doing okay. If asked, the mages will say they aren't sure what's going on, but that they are currently divining with the gods and hope to have a definitive answer soon in the upcoming days.

None of the factions appear to be doing much more than keep a watchful eye on the situation - but as the week comes to a close, officials will start making a decision as to what they want to do and how to handle the Summoned who have demonstrated this unforeseen connection to the Singularity.

Comments

[monomachy]

[Diana nods, tilting her head back slightly towards the sky.]

The goddess of retribution.

[meiren]

[ One eyebrow lifts slightly, but he still refuses to pull away. If Wen Kexing wants to lash out at him fine, he can take it. ]

Do you think that matters to me?

[ The question is mild, despite the intense focus on his face. He knows who his zhiji is. He's never cared.

And then he finds himself blinking once in genuine surprise. ]

What would I be hiding?

[meiren]

[ Giving a spy an invitation is just asking for trouble, especially when the spy in question is bored. It doesn't take much to rouse Zhou Zishu's curiosity these days, even aside from the current trips into other people's minds. If the offer is there for more information, he'll take it.

Zhou Zishu doesn't look so different himself, aside from the long tunics he's cobbled together in an approximation of the long flowing robes he'd been wearing in the Horizon. Perhaps a bit more tired and drawn looking. But something like amusement filters through his otherwise placid expression as he studies the man across from him. ]

Relatively new. [ Where does a few months fall, in the scheme of things? As for the other option, well. It's not the worst term to describe him. ] I've been around. Do you usually know every person here?

[falcony]

If Sam's memory had been even remotely closer to that one, it would have been a different situation entirely. Which is not to say that what he'd seen of her life hadn't been traumatic, and that deep in the pit of his stomach he didn't roil with the thought of it, but...well. There was less of a singular person to hunt down. So for now, Sam had to be content.

Part of Sam was curious now what this waffle memory was supposed to be - obviously something good, or at least he hoped. Except there was also a kind of tension in the kid, like he was worried for Sam's reaction, like there would be something he'd see that could have him reacting poorly. From the bits and pieces he's learned about the world where Jesper and Inej are from, Sam can only assume there is some questionable material there, but rather than even try and be worried about that, he instead feels a kind of protective swell in him.

Jesper takes a deep breath, and Sam moves - pulls Jesper in close with the hand on the shoulder. It's certainly not the first hug they've shared, and it's also not the longest, but Sam decides right then it's important enough to act on, to pull Jesper close and hold him just for a moment. A tight squeeze. Then he sets him back again, smiling softly. You would have liked her, everyone did.

"Guess that's one of the things you got from her, huh?"

[techmaturgy]

I suppose you're right.

[But really, it just makes him feel foolish for thinking he could make tangible improvements while working through Piltover's systems. The most he could do was tools for workers, something so in line with the Council's financial interests that they'd have to approve it--but even that was rejected. Now, it seems like he's wasted all of his time.

Not that any of it means anything, because Abraxas is his reality, for the time being. The possibility of getting home, even if he weren't working on a deadline, is slim. Jayce is optimistic about finding a cure, but Viktor is less so. He'll probably die here, in this strange world, one way or another.]

You survived. That's what matters. [It means that for as hard as outside forces tried to end Sokovia, they didn't succeed. Sometimes that has to be enough.

She looks out from the little keyhole where they sit, and he gestures outward to the cliffs below and the towers beyond it, rising up from the ravines, willing them further into focus so that she can have a better look.]

I used to come here to think. You can see it, from where we are. The Undercity.

[funbreaker]

[ There's more thought Thancred could put to what he's just seen and what Wanda told him. If there's anything he's experienced similar to what was described, it would be Amaurot, and that's far too much to unpack right now.

Easier to speak of Himeka.

When Wanda mentions her losing people, Thancred can assume that's in reference to Estinien. They'd like found a spot to share, and with him gone, it had been too quiet. ]

She is very good company. It would be near to impossible to feel alone around her.

[ Thancred nods, releasing Wanda's hands as she tugs back. The pounding in his head has cleared and the nausea is slowly fading. ]

Does it surprise you to hear her called that? She's accomplished far more by now, but her one true love is seeing new sights, exploring the world, and helping others along the way. [ He pauses and smiles to himself, as if hear Himeka's voice correcting him. ] — Oh, and food. Though I'm sure you've learned that much already.

[falcony]

[ he doesn't mean it, not like that, but the reaction comes from his gut - knowing how she'd reacted when lloyd had disappeared, the honest fear she has about her own connection to the singularity. and now that sam has seen what she's remembering, now that he knows what it is she knows, he gets it. and it hurts.

but what julie sees in his reaction he doesn't realize until it's too late - pity that he hadn't meant, at least not in that way, except it doesn't really matter what he means when julie sees his reaction and jerks away. pulls back and before sam can even really gather his bearings through the pain of the headache, closes the door and locks it. all while he stands there, still trying to catch up. ]

Shit- [ sam curses out when he's finally caught up, reaching for the door to find it locked (he knew it was locked) and knocking, hard, against the wood. his temple throbs, but that doesn't matter. ]

Julie! [ he knocks again, no answer. tries a couple more times. ] Julie, come on, I'm sorry. I didn't mean- [ he winces again, the throbbing in his head somehow worse, before he sighs and pulls away from the door. waits for just a few more moments to see if she'll answer, even if it's just to tell him to fuck off.

if she doesn't, he'll head back to his own room, but he has to make sure before he leaves. ]

[carmesi]

[it all comes into focus slowly as he wills his horizon to function under his command, and, in the same way, so do his words. words like 'you survived' from just about anyone else would sound like torment, igniting the anger inside her.

no, not with viktor.

how refreshing to feel really, truly understood. the last time she felt this way had been with vision, and pietro before him. in this world it was peter parker. free of judgement, it is more than a pleasant surprise even now.]

Innovative.

[the word comes to the forefront of her mind, as she sees the buildings and houses accommodating to the geographical challenges of its location. she turns back to him.]

I like this view a little better than your lab. [she smiles lightly.] I can see why you would come here.

I'd like to see more of it some time, if you are up for it.

[carmesi]

[she shakes her head slightly, the comment about food drawing a smile onto her face. it's easy to talk to thancred, easy enough that she can forget the painful memories they saw together. it is most likely reactionary, relief in the fact that he has not raised his voice, questioned her in contempt or fear.

ever since their first meeting, thancred continues to prove to her that— that it's alright.]

It is easy to forget when the most adventure we get in Solvunn is gathering the sheep and trying to avoid angry goats. [the bond she has with himeka is — hard to put into words. they share the same living space, the same bed, in the way sisters would; and that's what it feels like, like she's got something of a sister in her. fretting, smiling, laughing, teasing nero. this place has given her so much.] Was she the one you were thinking of when I told you about s'mores?

[(it's easy—it's easy.)]

—Ryne. Sorry, you look far too young to look like a parent with a kid her age. [she means this as a compliment!] You must miss her terribly.

[carmesi]

[there is something about the way he talks that is surprisingly gentle, and his reaction kept to something more restrained, somehow humbling. unused to such words from a stranger who has witnessed her magic for the first time, wanda finds no words to offer in return—only a smile, and reaching for his other hand. the same process unfolds, of magic from her hands creating the glove of his own: another perfect fit.]

Solvunn— [hm,] Abraxas in general is a little behind on the technological department. [she steps back, bringing her hands back onto crossed arms.] I can turn objects into different objects, if you ever find yourself needing something that you cannot find here.

[princessvegas]

[ There's no response. She doesn't come back to the door. Instead, she just stands in the kitchen, leaning over the counter, hand curled around a glass. Listens to him bang on the door and call for her as she silently drinks.

She doesn't have anything to say. What is there to say? Julie had never had a shot at living in the post-superflu world -- she knows that now. The witch didn't want her, and whatever came after Flagg was determined to take out everyone around him, too. She would have eaten a bullet if she'd stayed in the warehouse all alone forever. It was always her destiny to die.

It had been two months before her twenty-third birthday. She doesn't know how old she actually is now; time doesn't seem to mean very much anymore.

Nothing that Sam can say will change any of it, will make it any better. All that will happen now is that he'll see her as the pathetic, lost little girl she died as, desperate to not be alone and punished for it, the same one who still cries under her bed during thunderstorms even in a totally different world.

The neck of the bottle clinks on her glass when she pours again. ]

[carmesi]

[so, not entirely others that she's taught in her time. wanda looks over as the memory keeps playing out their interactions—wonders what it would be like to have this kind of closeness with others like-minded like herself. she got a taste of that with natasha, but it was all too short-lived.

perhaps for yennefer it also was rather short-lived.]

It looks like you hadn't seen them in a while. [she realizes she perhaps doesn't know a lot about the woman.] Was it a happy reunion?

[techmaturgy]

Yes, if you want.

[He might like that, actually. Viktor built his domain to reflect the places where he spends his time, but it occurs to him now that he could show her Zaun, as he remembers it—the streets. The architecture, the scrappy workshops where he cut his teeth as a teenaged engineer. That’s something he hasn’t even considered doing for Jayce, but it’s apparent by now that Wanda understands in a way he doesn’t. Maybe he can be a little more open about that part of himself, with someone who shares similar experiences.

He offers her a smile—it’s tired, but still genuine.]

Maybe after we sort out…whatever this is.

[carmesi]

[she nods, because she is certain that this acquaintanceship of theirs has extended past a general interest in each other's craft. she could call it a friendship, even. how novel.

and he's right; perhaps it is not the best for them to linger in the horizon, with the memories being blasted into their minds without warning.

before that, wanda wants to clear something up:]

I no longer belong to that group. Most of the people in it— from the memory you've seen, they're no longer alive. Or have retired. Only Sam remains active, but I... I'm done with the superhero gig.

And I won't make the same mistakes I made then.

[lol,,]

[gynvael]

[ The sound she makes sends a pleasant rush through his veins. He pushes her more firmly against the wall, nips once more with his teeth. She grows ever warmer, skin heated, and so does his own. ]

Yeah. [ He breathes out the word, a low rumble.

His grip shifts around her. He works at the buttons on his trousers with an impatience of his own, slips his hand inside. It takes not long at all to give her what she wants, his hips rising to meet her. His eyes fall shut, fingers tightening. ]

[wiedzminka]

[ Ciri's shoulders visibly tighten at the mention of Elder Blood, eyes flashing with a dangerous panic. The fear of everything unraveling, secrets getting out. Her fists clench, but she makes herself take a deep breath, then another. Feeling so sick on top of it all makes for a terrible combination, her baser instincts pushing her toward violence or speed, neither of which is an option; she needs to sit here, and she can't (doesn't want to) hurt Sephiroth, so the energy has nowhere to go, except to make her shiver and tense and try to breathe through it.

He doesn't know. Sephiroth cannot understand what he's actually learned, and without context can do nothing with it, not to endanger her or himself. He's seen something, but he can't explain it. It's fine. ]

I saw your past too. [ she says instead, quietly. ]

They did something to you. Forced you to fight. You were... just a child.

[piqure]

[ peter heaves a breath, and sets his resolve when he is met with her answer. it’s alright she says, and he thinks that maybe it’s alright in only as much as any of this can be. In as much as anything is alright as memories you can’t control play across and around you like a movie and he’s pretty sure this was somewhat similar to the plot from Total Recall.

he’s not in control, and it doesn’t seem like he’ll ever be and the next thing peter parker can do is simply take another leap of faith and keep going.

but she tucks his hair - somewhat of a reassuring gesture that makes him blink up owlishly before offering a minute nod, a press of an uncertain smile. she strides to the door and he follows, a single look tossed back to the New York skyline, to Tony and to his old self, sullen and defeated and grounded.

but then the scene shifts and he’s startled, briefly, by the dichotomy, sunset prickling away into subdued tones. the mood changes, and there’s pinpricks crawling up his spine as he takes the facility in. cold stone, cold light. militant and terribly not unlike where nick fury would have some secret headquarters. if only without the (stark-refined) tech whirring by.

inclement weather shudders somewhere beyond and he watches the scene, momentarily enraptured.

the feeling of grief sits in his chest again, some melancholy that feels a little choked as he looks on at pietro and wishes he could have met him in more than phantom-like recollection amidst rubble. the feeling isn’t as knife-sharp anymore, but it lingers regardless. ] He sounds really great, [ he’s said that before, and he means it now as much as he had back then. ] where - where was this, Wanda? It feels — [ he hesitates, a frown across his face. ] — um, enforced?

[ his eyes move away from the recollection of wanda and pietro, rolling on by like a movie reel. almost like he’s wanting to give them the quiet moment, like he doesn’t want to intrude more than he already is as he looks to the real wanda, his hand and hers. ] You don’t hear everyone’s thoughts like that anymore, do you? That sounds - really overwhelming. [ it sheds more light, in a way, to Billy’s instruction before. ]

[wiedzminka]

[ Ciri stumbles through the sudden, unknown forest, leaning against a tree. Even in the Horizon, where she should have more control, the experience has left her stomach doing flips and her brain throbbing against the inside of her skull. She catches the flash of red, senses the magic, and reacts before even thinking; a sword materializes in her hand, lips pulled back in a snarl. She hadn't meant to be here. Wherever here is.

The woman facing her is a stranger, but the name she invokes stops Ciri in her tracks. Aggression tempered with a tentative interest, her first thought being that this must be a friend of Geralt's, she lowers her sword. ]

...who asks?

[wickedprayers]

[ Much like with the first glove, he watches the second one form in admiration of her unique skill. ]

I noticed. It takes getting used to, but there is something humbling about living such a life. [ He's sure Shepard and Garrus are unlikely to be in agreement right now, though. ] That being said I appreciate the offer very much. You have been too kind, and I am very grateful.

insert *its been 84 years* gif here i am so sorry

[piqure]

[ it doesn't sound right, not really, to place the blame to someone else. there's a million what-ifs that could have differently, but they didn't. they didn't, maybe because they were both who they were and no different timeline would ever truly change that. peter rubs at his temples, pressed his thumbs in until the pressure gives way just a little as stephen moves to lean along the banisters.

hands pass across his face, and he takes a deep breath, exhales with a big oof. ] It's — [ it's not fine, or okay, or anything else that he might say, but it has to be. ] — we all make choices. [ something said by aunt may's recollection or wanda or both, once. ] Aunt May really believed that what we were doing was the right thing, you know?

[ another sniff, a shift in his footing as he looks down to the floor. thinks, not for the first time, that he's tired. but looking back up at doctor strange, he thinks: aren't we all? he can't possible fathom the responsibility of keeping an entire universe safe when he can barely do so to his city. his own family, friends. ] One of the last things she said to me — [ a detail that sticks out. a phrase that seemed to define the lives of several parkers across a multitude of universes. ] — I have a responsibility. That means the good and the bad. I'll have to live with that. [ he's the only one who will remember it. isn't that the cost? ]

You cast the spell, yeah, but I — I asked, and I jumped into it. And it just kind of kept going from there. And you tried to fix it as fast as you could. It wouldn't be fair — [ he stops, the sentence drifting off, trying to fill in the spaces with too many words as he always does. it feels a little empty now. the next words share a bit more resolve: ] — it's not fair.

[ your hands, he thinks, and wants to say sorry again. thinks of how different that stephen seemed from the one in front of him now. ]

late with starbux doesnt even begin to cover it

[piqure]

[ when tony slumps into the chair, the change sudden and sharp and nearly immediate, it has peter lurching forward with a sharp pinprick of senses, anxiety spiking and crawling up to sit at the base of his neck. his notebook clatters to the ground, and he barely notices. ] Mister Stark? — [ peter, voice laced with concern, in sam's kitchen, with hands curled around tony's shoulders as if to make sure he's still here and whole and then there's —

peter, with knees digging into the dirt of a settling battlefield, barely registering the aches and pains that lessen only more and more in memory, voice breaking as the echo of the name rings in both spaces — ] Mister Stark? Can you hear me? [ in sam's apartment, the words are parroted back out loud and his heart is in his throat]

[ in the aftermath of victory, there is a tremble to the words, staring at the ruin that is tony stark, spindling scarring along his shoulder and up his cheek from where the stones' power took root, and the memory is laced with the sort of blinding panic, ears ringing and breath shallow. ] It's Peter — [ the memory says, eye level, hands on tony's shoulders.

the memory of peter tries to collect itself, a desperate little scramble. it's hard to breathe and his vision blurs, eyes sting, and tony's face swims for a moment. ] We won, Mister Stark —

We won. You did it sir, you did it. I'm sorry — [ he isn't immediately sure whose hands drag him up but it makes sense that it's pepper.

it makes sense too, when he watches stark die, with silent sobs caught in his throat, with pepper's words echoing in lingering finality. we're going to be okay. you can rest now, and peter's world shatters with a great loss. not for the last time. ]

[hextechhead]

"We've never really been apart for the seven years we've known each other, it's a little co-dependent, although more so on my side than his." Jayce shrugs with a faint smile because he is pretty aware of the unique nature of their close friendship. Viktor managed to stay here for two months without him and seemed to do just fine, whereas Jayce was flipping out at the barracks for about two days. Different personalities. Viktor was used to being solitary before Jayce.

No one is supposed to get their hands on these in his world outside of a select group, but they aren't there. Jayce is in complete control of his Horizon, almost too much so since he forces the place to be hot when he's in the forge even though it doesn't have to be. He's not worried about Kell doing anything with them. He trusts very fast.

"Maybe not endless, but definitely long-lasting. We created giant magical teleportation devices that can fit entire blimps through using them. They can teleport across the world." So they have extraordinary power all things considered, that is a huge piece of technology the crystals power permanently. It took years to complete, but the Hexgates are immaculate now. And those were with the unstable crystals.

"A lot of practice. And a lot of blowing things up." Jayce shrugs. "In their unstable form, they can blow up half a city block easily if handled poorly. It took awhile to create the right type of containment. It is not glass, the orb, it is a highly refined type of metal that took a lot of chemical work to get right." It looks simple, what the magic is within, but it's not in the least. "You can hit this as hard as you can, and it won't break." He is proud of that as well as everything else. None of this was easy.

"But we had to go through a lot of breakable tries first. Honestly it's probably a miracle we didn't end up blowing ourselves up."

Ronan

[photophobic]

While the entire Summoned population seems afflicted with painful, intrusive visions of other people's memories, it's easy to put all the complicated issues raised by (among other things) Rey's appearance aside. There are real, legitimate reasons not to be close to Ronan, and enough to be done that no-one could fairly accuse Kylo of deliberate avoidance.

But Kylo aches all the same. The spectre of his past waits to whisper poison in Ronan's ear at the slightest touch, but feeling Ronan's disappointment at being kept from Kylo's secrets is a misery all of its own— and perhaps it's no protection at all. In the end, Kylo would rather be rejected for what he is. Ronan deserves to know.

Ronan is with Rhy the first time Kylo steels himself and attempts an approach— and Kylo can't blame him for that, though he does slink off rapidly before Ronan can catch sight of him. Later, when he senses Ronan wondering when he might be coming to bed, Kylo makes his way to the dorm, closes the heavy door behind him and exhales.

Ronan's wondering if Kylo will pace past him to sleep in an empty bed again. Kylo can feel it.

"Ronan," he begins, the heavy weight of his gaze following a breath behind as he turns to face him fully. "We don't know how long this could last."

[carmesi]

[her hexes come to a halt, her magic disappearing as they had formed in her hands. there is no imminent danger within the horizon—even if this woman tried to attack her, she would never reach wanda. that much she knows.

it's helpful in gauging her state of mind seeing her lower her sword.]

My name is Wanda.

[it wasn't a question, though. a statement, rather. geralt's daughter. it's what wanda knows her as, and no one could tell her otherwise.]

I've met your father before.

[meiren]

[ One corner of Zhou Zishu's mouth tips up just slightly as a new figure makes his way into view, obviously a wealthy man complete with an entire retinue taking up the entire width of the street. ]

That's the target.

[ Which only leaves one option. And indeed, when the other, unremarkable man stands he's of about a height with Zhou Zishu, though they appear to have little else in common. The unremarkable figure leaves a few coins on the table and makes his way out into the street, pushing his way through the rich man's knot of servants and guards with a few muttered curses on either side. Still, he makes it to the other side of the crowd without issue and continues on his way, easy to forget about the moment he's out of sight.

The rich man, on the other hand, makes it a ways farther down the street before suddenly collapsing. ]