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

[gynvael]

The Moirai? [ His arms fold across his chest as he regards her, curious. She seems so cheered by the memory, it's the first time Geralt doesn't weigh what questions to ask over the subject. ] I didn't, either, at first. Then I realized protecting her meant teaching her to fend for herself.

[ He'd only ever brought Ciri to Kaer Morhen to keep her safe. Not to train her. Then the walls had practically crumbled around them overnight. He doesn't regret it, putting a sword in her hands. Not when Ciri took to it like a fish to water. Maybe he just regrets the circumstances that led him to do it at all. But it is what it is. At least it means here, now, he worries a little less about her wandering the desert alone.

A small pause passes. A few more people shuffle by them, the sun growing hot in the sky.

Fuck it. If they're going to talk— ] Drink?

[monomachy]

[Their conversation, so at odds with most others she's had over the past few days, fills her heart with relief and joy. She feels as if she's spent an eternity talking to other people about the war, when she has spent so much energy trying not to think about it at all. This is a far more pleasant topic of conversation.

She spends a moment casting around for the correct words to describe the Moirai, and eventually settles on the closest translation.]

The three Fates. Spinners of life, from birth to death. [Not even the gods were exempt from fate, from death. Diana knows that very well.

For a moment, she looks solemn.] It is not an easy lesson for a parent to learn. [Gods knew it took Hippolyta centuries to accept it, and that had been with Antiope's insistence.

Her eyes light up once more, and she nods.]

A drink sounds lovely. Do you know a place?

[gynvael]

[ Oh. Mm. That thing. Geralt tips his head in a gesture that suggests he is far more familiar with the concept of fate or Destiny than he ever wanted to be. A relentless bitch, seemingly.

And no. It isn't. Though with Ciri, it was more complicated than that. Her determination to train was always rooted in something darker than a childlike desire to be as those around her. Teaching her to defend herself was one matter; teaching her not to forsake everything, her life included, for vengeance was another. ]

Never quite intended to be a parent. [ Or maybe it was that he never thought he could be. Least of all to a princess.

He steps onto the path. He's familiar with many places in Cadens, and the taverns are at the top of that list. Not a lot else to do around these parts. She's new, isn't she? He's not seen her before. ] I know several. Should probably avoid the others, though.

[ Mag's inn is out. That's become a local haunt for the Summoned and he's not interested in another cascade of memories. ]

[monomachy]

[She doesn't miss his expression, and briefly wonders why he feels so; Diana has always taken comfort in knowing her destiny. It's given her purpose, something to strive for. The Amazons' sacred duty is the cornerstone of who Diana is, and she wouldn't give that up for anything.

Diana moves along with him, gaze drifting from one street marvel to the next. She's been in the Free Cities for a little while now, and she still sees things every day that astound her.] You seem to be doing alright. [Diana has never had children of her own, but her childhood was (comparatively) long, and she grew up with one mother and many, many other parental figures in her life. She knows what it is to look to someone with admiration and love; she'd seen that on the girl's face.

She realizes something then, and asks:] What is her name?

[Her tone is conversational, not pressing for an answer. She remembers his face when she'd first mentioned seeing the girl--he's protective of her. Another thing few parents are prepared for, she thinks.]

That's fine with me. [Somewhere quieter sounds better, for now.] Lead the way.

[gynvael]

[ He glances over his shoulder. A flicker of surprise crosses his face. Does he? He's never questioned his ability to protect the girl. It's what he knows. But anything beyond that—no one's been there to really say one way or another. Other than Jaskier, he supposes. And Ciri herself. Maybe that's part of it, too. A lingering doubt even when you think you've done your best. ]

Ciri. She's here with me. [ That much, he'll share. She lives with him; he isn't hiding what she is to him. Only what the rest of the world back home thinks she's supposed to be, what she's capable of. ] She isn't a young girl anymore.

[ He does not clarify that she specifically grew up in the years he doesn't recall. It's a complicated matter that he doesn't want to get into. Instead, he leads them down the street a bit and turns into a tavern tucked under some stairs. The door's rickety, but it's decent for an ale, and not too crowded. He holds the door briefly for Diana as he steps inside. ]

What were your people training to fight for?

[monomachy]

[Diana wonders if he felt what her own mother did when she realized her daughter was no longer a child. It's taken time away from Themyscira for Diana to realize that Hippolyta's resistance to deploying her armies was born of fear, yes, but not fear of losing the war--fear of losing her daughter, of breaking that last piece of her she still held from her childhood. The reliance. He hasn't said Ciri can take care of herself now, but Diana doesn't doubt that for a moment. She'd seen the determination in the girl's eyes. That isn't something that just goes away.]

Does she still train? [Genuine curiosity, but she thinks she already knows the answer.] If she does, I'd be happy to spar her any time. [A moment passes, and she adds with a little smile:] Or you.

[The tavern reminds her a lot of the bar Steve Trevor took her to in London, and she hesitates for half a breath before following him inside. She's stronger than her memories. She has to remember that.]

We train for the war to end all wars. [She scans the tavern, habit taking over as she searches for all the things Antiope taught her to search for: entrances, exits, danger, allies. It's so automatic that her train of thought continues without missing a beat.] It is a long story, five thousand years in the making.

[She frowns, finally letting her gaze land back on him.] I thought I had ended it, but now... I'm not so sure. [It's a hard thing to admit, but the more she's learned about other worlds, the conflict that plagues them as well, it's becoming more clear that what Ares had told her may be the truth: that men start their own wars, regardless of outside influence.]

[gynvael]

Mm. She hunts, same as I do. [ He trained Ciri to fight, but more important than that, he trained her to survive. No amount of skill with a blade can save you if you've zero notion of how to find your way in the wilderness. He grew up in the frozen mountains, but the desert's no different. Both will swallow you whole if you won't take the time to understand it.

His lips curl faintly at the edges. ] She'd like you.

[ He can keep in mind to introduce them. People do not stay, always, in this world. Ciri has lost those close to her before, and the truth is, she's spent enough of her life alone, losing one person after another. She could use more friendly faces in the city.

He slips into a chair, a table in the corner away from where the crowd tends to gather. His eyes linger on her for a moment. That statement sounds entirely too fucking naive to be coming from her, and yet.

He tips his head: curious, studying her. ] War doesn't end through yet another war. Unless it's one that leaves no more people left in the world.

[monomachy]

What do you hunt? [She'd assume game, but she knows there are other creatures in the desert that the locals talk about with fear. From the look of the training he put the girl through, she has a hunch that his prey isn't anything so tame as deer or fowl. But it's always nice to have confirmation. And to know who has experience with the monsters.

Diana follows him to the table, and watches him right back without an ounce of reticence. Though the seed of doubt has been planted in her heart, she still wants to believe what she grew up learning. Who would she be, without that belief? That isn't something she's had the time to even consider.

The corners of her lips turn down.]

I killed Ares. [She's learned that unfortunately, her gods aren't widely known here, just as they were no longer known in the world of men, but she doesn't think to clarify. She looks down at her hands resting on the table for a moment before looking back to Geralt, brows drawn together.] His death should have been the end of men's corruption, and of their wars. But... I'm no longer so certain of that. [Saying it aloud feels like a betrayal, but also allows something in her to shift for the better. Like a weight she's carried has become different, if not exactly lighter.]

[gynvael]

Just monsters. When I'm paid. [ Now and again, when he isn't paid, but that's not a fact he especially advertises.

I killed Ares does not mean much to him. There must be more to it, what she's saying; she seems to believe it so wholeheartedly. But then, that is how prophecies work, isn't it? She has not called it as such, but reading between the lines, that's what it feels like. Thousands of years in the making, an end that is meant to change the world. That's all a prophecy ever is. ]

People corrupt themselves. [ He isn't saying anything new, he imagines. Though her story is a nice thought. That the death of one could solve the planet's bloodshed. ] It's no one's responsibility to prevent that.

[ If nothing else, he's found those who believe too zealously that that's their calling grow to be the most corrupted of them all. Good intentions and whatnot. ]

[monomachy]

[When I'm paid. Yes, Diana had come to learn the importance of currency in this world very quickly. She could only subsist for so long on gifts from city folk she did odd jobs for. Something more... steady is becoming more appealing by the day. So she offers:] If you ever need an extra blade, let me know. I have some experience with monsters. [An honest offer, but one she won't regret if he never takes her up on it.

Though he nearly echoes Ares' words, she doesn't recoil from them. The longer she's spent among other people from other worlds, the more she realizes that this may be the truth. But Diana, like the rest of her people, holds fast to the stories and legends she has heard her entire life. Ares is the root cause of men's evil, and killing him should have killed that, as well.

But perhaps she'd been too late. Perhaps his influence was too deep now.]

I can still try to help people be their best selves. [She's stubborn about it, with a steadfast belief that was, yes, five thousand years in the making. One that defines who she is. That isn't an easy thing to just let go of.]

[gynvael]

[ What she gets in reply is a tip of his head that neither rejects nor accepts her offer. He'll keep it in mind, on the rare occasion he decides he needs another. He isn't surprised to find yet another seeking to pick up a contract or two—the Free Cities seems to attract them. ]

Mm. [ It's a vaguely thoughtful sound. A long pause follows. ] After we finish training, we're sent out to kill monsters, knowing there will always be another. We do it, anyway. For coin or—

[ Or because that's all they know. What else were any of them made for? He gives a small shrug. The world is shit. There's little use in trying to change that, but there's not much use in languishing over it, either. They still have to live in it, however they decide that looks like. ]

We make our own purpose. Doesn't matter if the monsters will still be there long after we're gone.

[monomachy]

[It's less that Diana likes the idea of hunting for money, and more that she knows her own strengths. She's unlikely to get hurt in the field, and has been learning to hunt and track for a long time. It seems like a way to make money that not only plays to her skillset, but also serves to keep the townspeople safe. Very much a win-win, as far as she's concerned.

Diana looks down at the table briefly, eyes tracing the grain. It isn't that she doesn't understand what he's saying--she does, very well. But to her, he sees the world through the eyes of a man, a mortal. That the span of his life isn't long enough to make the kind of change he or others might like to see.

I wish we had more time. All Diana has is time. She doesn't plan to let any of it go to waste.]

My purpose isn't mine alone. It belongs to all of my people. But it is still what I would choose. [She feels that, in her bones.]

[gynvael]

[ A long moment, where he studies her. His gaze is steady; not meant to unnerve, but not especially caring if it does, either. There is something about her that seems to have struck a cord with him. Not in the sense that he feels as she does. Not quite. It's more as if, she is telling him something he's given up believing in a long time ago, something that perhaps specifically, deep down, he wishes he had not. That every so often, he wonders if it's one more thing stolen from him by the world.

But he and wishes have never been on good terms. So there's little point in them. It's not about him, anyway. These days, he thinks—there are still things he can give Ciri, if not himself. ]

If the choice is yours, [ he says eventually, ] then that's all that matters. Though if I were you, I'd have another drink before I worry about saving men.

[ You know. The general answer to most things. Temporarily, at least. ]