EVENT #10: AFFLICTION - IC POST

[abraxasmods]

Event #10 - Affliction

go to the OOC event info & plotting post

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With tensions heavy across Abraxas and all the destruction that's happened, it's no surprise that the dark shadows which sweep over the land go unnoticed...at first.

Winds initially stir in Solvunn, where the influence of the Old Gods remains the strongest. Slowly each Herald infects Thorne and the Free Cities, as well. The Summoned are the first to feel its effects and are the most heavily impacted.

Though no one will realize it until well afterwards, Nocwich remains unaffected. After all, the Summoned don't reside there.

NOTE: This event will deal with themes of death (people and animal) and horror imagery.

Emergence

It begins sometime in mid-October, around the 18th. Not everyone will experience it at the same time. You might even believe you're spared until days afterwards when you're visited by an unusually vivid dream.

The dream starts the same for everyone: you are going somewhere, anywhere, walking to your bedroom or enjoying a stroll on the beach. You might be driving down a familiar neighborhood. Wherever you're headed, you eventually come upon a stone tablet engraved with your Arcana. Laid on the tablet are three objects:

◎ A dead moth trapped inside a wilted rose, symbolizing Koth of Festering Lands
◎ A teacup inside which sits a single nightshade berry, symbolizing Adlewyrd of Poisoned Tongues
◎ An ornate cracked hand mirror that contains no reflection, symbolizing Sannleikr of Many Faces

Make a choice. Something inside your soul will be drawn towards one of the objects. Maybe you spend hours in the dream deliberating, but sooner or later, you'll pick one of the items up. The moment you do, the other objects vanish and the chosen Herald appears before you. Where one might expect a god to seek subservience, the strange figure instead extends a friendly hand towards you - as though it's greeting you as an equal.

Whispered around you, you hear its name. Then it fades and with it the dream. You awaken.

Affliction

You go about your day as usual. That's when you realize something isn't right. Creatures and people around you behave strangely. You begin to sense that you are the cause.

Depending on your chosen Herald, you'll experience at least one of its afflictions. The effects might start small, then grow. They might rush you all at once. You can't shake what haunts you, though you can try. Spells, potions, and willpower can help keep the afflictions at bay but you won't ever be completely free.

As the afflictions seep into your mind, you start to find shadows of it following you: a dead moth here, a nightshade bloom there, a cracked mirror elsewhere. You may even wonder if it's following you in the first place. What if instead, you are the one leaving these signs behind?

Corruption

The first time you inflict your ability on someone else, you don't mean to. It might be a stranger, some unsuspecting soul, or it might be another Summoned. Regardless, the afflictions that ail you seem to spread through you into another. Someone falls down as if in the throes of an invisible death or secrets spill. You brush by someone and they're suddenly upset and confused.

The more this happens, intentionally or not, the better you feel. You may grow full of life and energy, gain a renewed strength of heart, or radiate a charm that turns heads and garners compliments. The afflictions haunting you could even start to fade or completely vanish. And if you use your newfound power deliberately? You'll feel better even faster for longer. Of course, these boons are temporary, lasting at most an hour or so. When the feeling wanes, you might miss having it.

You are not possessed. You can't control this power that spreads through you, but how you respond or behave is up to you. You could be attracted to the allure of power, enjoy the boons you are granted, or realize you can gain relief from your afflictions if you choose a victim. Not everyone will fall headfirst into the pull. Some are not easily swayed by power, some struggle to overcome their dark impulses, and others would rather endure their suffering than inflict it on someone else. But others still might succumb to temptation and turn on those around them with purpose: once, twice, multiple times. The choice you make is yours alone.

Blight

With the call of the Herald at your fingertips, the world around you twists. No one knows whether this stems from you and your newly imbued afflictions, or if the Heralds are exerting power on their own. It's for sure easier to think of what occurs as the influence of something monstrous beyond your control. No matter the cause, the earth is changed all the same.

Omens

The omens arrive shortly after the initial Summoned receive their dreams, but they don't come to every faction at once. SOLVUNN is first, being home to the Old Gods' shrines, before THORNE and the FREE CITIES follow only days afterwards. Depending on where you are, the omens will affect things a bit differently.

Solvunn

In Solvunn, the ground stirs. A desiccated hand breaks through the grass, a cloven hoof. Human or animal, they crawl forth, animated against their will. Some might attack, but most do not. At the same time, crops around the settlements begin to fail. Some chickens lay rotten eggs while cows produce spoiled milk. Any livestock that perishes overnight will surface in the mornings with empty eye sockets - pecked out by crows or gnawed on by rats. From a distance, the ocean can be seen bubbling as leviathans beneath thrash.

Worth noting is that many of the dead are concentrated around the shrines, especially the ones deep in the woods. They're too decayed to recognize, and some might not even move from the site, as though they are waiting for the earth to take them again...or as though they once chose to give up their life at this very spot.

Summoned can assist by helping to cast spells or place warding charms around shrines, farms, and gardens to protect crops and livestock. As a commune, the Solvunnites will share their resources as much as possible and would appreciate those who might lend a hand bringing supplies, herbs, and offerings to neighbors who are lacking. The Summoned can also brew a common herbal remedy to aid any animals who have fallen ill or to help purify the well water.

Free Cities

In Libertas, the dead buried under the rubble dig themselves out. More crawl forth from graves in Cadens' cemeteries. Beasts and bandits slain in the desert wilds rise, hungry or searching for the ones who killed them. At the same time, dead fish wash up onto the shores of Aquila while birds fall dead from their perch, dropping like flies from an unknown illness. Vultures and other scavengers begin to prey upon the eyes of the dead, leaving behind hollowed-out corpses.

Worth noting is that in the Badlands, a few very old and skeletal corpses rise with a metal plate or two screwed onto their bones, which are also oddly elongated. Only one or two make their way near the city. The army is quick to dispose of them before many can notice. They will not disclose any information about this and will claim these are just monsters like anything else.

Summoned can assist by going on patrol with the soldiers to put down any risen dead. Merchant caravans are also hiring escorts for their journeys. Additionally, they can help look through any received supplies and packages to make sure the food isn't rotting or worse, use a special dissolving compound to purify the waters, and donate staple food items to refugees and the less fortunate who can't afford the rising prices.

Thorne

In Thorne, the dead emerge only from the outskirts of the castle city. Thanks to information from one of their Summoned and their recent monitoring of the Singularity, Thorne was able to act swiftly and was able to ward any royal or otherwise significant burial sites. Graves and tombs of less importance, though, will not be protected in the same way. There are fewer encounters with eyeless corpses, though some animals might appear outside the castle in such a state. Normally extravagant dishes from the Castle's kitchens use simpler ingredients as they struggle to ration their food stores.

Worth noting is that a few unexpected corpses make their way up from deep under the castle in places beyond the dungeons. These are twisted and mangled, missing limbs, heads, fingers. The castle guards are quick to dispose of them before they get too far into the rest of the castle, but one or two may be spotted.

Summoned can assist by contributing to the wards around Castle Thorne and the city, using spells to put down the dead without mangling the corpse, and taking inventory of food stores. Further, in Nott the situation is more dire for anyone who is traveling there to continue assisting with repairs following the attack. Nott will welcome help with any problems caused by the omens. It'll be clear the kingdom has neglected the city somewhat. Thorne will claim the Castle takes priority, of course, due to King and Queen residing there along with the entire royal court.

Apprehensions

Across the factions, locals are beginning to catch on that something isn't right with you, the Summoned. No one will say it outright, but there's an air of caution and wariness around you where you go. Merchants might be quick to hand you your wares so you'll leave or locals give you a bit of space when they walk by. Chatty innkeepers are more reluctant to hold lengthy conversations.

Much of the time, it may not be conscious. The natives might simply sense something off that instinctually makes them want to put some distance between them and you. The only exception? If you've chosen Sannleikr of Many Faces, you'll continue to exude your charm towards people you encounter. At least for as long as you continue to inflict that ability you've been gifted.

Displacement

Everyone responds differently while in the Horizon. You might exert better willpower over your afflictions or you might feel its effects more strongly. It all depends on the individual and their mindset. Regardless, the Heralds are only one part of the equation. There's a much bigger disturbance going on.

It could happen as soon as you enter or it might be as you're stepping over the threshold into another's domain. Whatever the case, you are suddenly not where you're supposed to be. Instead, you're in one of two places depending: transported into a domain you never meant to go into or in a foreign setting altogether.

Visitation

Whether you're the one transported or someone teleports unexpectedly into your space, the Horizon becomes unpredictable for the next little while. Rooms normally locked to strangers, areas you yourself may not even realize exists - you and your fellow Summoned continue to pop in and out despite your intentions.

The effect isn't painful, just disorienting, like missing a step you didn't see or stumbling through a door into a too-bright room. The person whose domain you've inadvertently visited might sense an unwanted presence, whether they're inside the Horizon or not, or they may be completely oblivious. This will depend on the strength of their connection to the Singularity and the Horizon.

Not to worry. You won't be trapped or anything in these cases...unless the domain you land in happens to seal from the inside. You might stumble on secrets you weren't meant to find, though, locked away in someone else's mind.

Ensnared

The less fortunate will be pulled into a space that they've never encountered before. The bizarreness of it resembles the glitchy visions that flashed through a few months ago, but rather than an image flickering by, you are now inside the space itself.

Trapped between minutes to hours, you can't use the Horizon's creation magic as normal. Attempts will falter or go sideways: trying to fly out might cause you to tumble, tools and objects are broken or not quite right, wounds don't vanish or heal completely, etc. More significantly, you can't seem to send or receive messages through your connection. Anything that manages to come through will be garbled and distorted. It's as though the place you are in is just out of the reach of your control.

Luckily, you may not be alone. Someone else may have gotten lost alongside you. They might already be there when you stumble through or they might arrive after you do. They might even fade out sooner than you, unintentionally leaving you behind.

Eventually, you'll be released back into the Horizon proper, spat out in a random place in the Horizon. While you're stuck, though, you can try to survive, explore, sit and wait it out, or make friends with your fellow trapped partner. Each area has its challenges and quirks that you'll need to deal with.

Scenes to Explore

JUSTICE ◎
FULL IMAGE

High in the clouds, these snowy peaks are as cold as they look. Giant marble hands reach out, though their sheer scale means you might not recognize them as hands from up close. You can scale the mountain, but if you try to go down, the hands will flip the mountain, which sends you tumbling to the top again.

It's up to you whether you can be injured when you fall. Maybe the snow will feel like marshmallows, or you'll break a bone on the jagged rocks. No two experiences are the same. If you have a partner, they could end up faring better than you despite being in the same place.

Conjure some warm clothes or a log cabin even if you wish - they might not manifest perfectly, but it'll be better than nothing. At least the view's fairly nice...while the sun is up. A blizzard will come through by nightfall. With it arrives a strange hovering light that entices you or your friend to follow it into the frozen darkness. What draws you out depends on you. It could be a familiar voice, an image, or a simple compulsion. If you're lucky, the person with you is unaffected and can try to stop you. Or maybe you're the one desperately chasing after the other person?

---

THE CHARIOT ◎
FULL IMAGE

From a distance, it's hard to tell if they're shipping containers or houses stacked atop each other. A gooey mess covers the ground below. Oddly, the smell isn't as unpleasant as the goo looks. It smells like bubblegum or cotton candy, artificial and sweet. When you first fall in, you might land inside one of the homes, on top of the stacked structure, or the ground. You can try to reach anyone else who's there with you, but be careful: the ooze is spreading. Climb if you must or move from room to room. If you don't keep moving, you risk getting sucked into its sticky mass.

Each block of a home is different. Some are furnished, whereas others are empty or filled with strange knickknacks. Some might even have subconscious creations spawned by you. Keep ahead of the gloopy substance, and you'll be fine, probably. Or you can try to fight it back or block its path by sealing yourself in a room or otherwise, which can slow it down significantly. Mostly, you'll have to hope you fade out before the pink mass completely consumes the landscape.

---

THE WORLD ◎
FULL IMAGE

The hazy neon glow obscures a nothingness that seems to extend forever. In the middle of the wet ground are several stacked television sets with wires plugged into nothing. Inexplicably, there's also a cat. At first, it appears perfectly normal, but keen observers will notice that its behavior is on a loop where it will walk a certain path, pause at specific intervals to lick its paws, and meow at set points. It does not acknowledge any of its intruders. You can break its loop by picking it up, at which point it'll go limp as a ragdoll. As soon as you set it down, it'll resume its actions as before.

While you can see the same images as someone else on the screens, it's also possible you'll each see something different despite being in the room together. What you see is up to you. It could be an old fuzzy movie, home videos of your childhood, trivia questions you have to answer correctly, or even a memory or vision you wouldn't want to share. Words or faces taunting you could appear between staticky flickers, or maybe your very thoughts are projected onto the screens for anyone with you to read.

Break the televisions if you want, but given a few short minutes, they'll reform between one blink and the next. Looks like you'll have to keep watching until you're released.

---

THE FOOL ◎
FULL IMAGE

Sprawling and massive, you're unlikely to recognize at first that you're trapped in a labyrinth. Stone walls rise around you, and your surroundings are pitchblack. Manifest a torch or a flashlight if you can, though these will be prone to going out at inopportune times. Escaping over the walls will only send you into another section in the maze.

As you navigate the twisting corridors, you'll encounter any variety of trials and troubles: gaps in the ground, spiked traps, haunting whispers, monsters, decaying corpses. Some of these might've formed from your mind, others might've spawned from anyone else who's trapped with you.

If you aren't alone, do your best to locate your fellow Summoned. Voices do carry and echo over the walls, and there could be landmarks that help you find each other. Finding the exit, however, is another matter. Walk and climb all you want. A way out is impossible until the Horizon chooses to set you free.

Players can pick any scenario that interests them from the four choices above. Unlike the visions from before, characters can accidentally be trapped in as many of the scenes as you want, as many times as you want. Another option is that they can stay trapped in only one scene while a variety of characters fade in and out to join them, or some combination of the two. Choose what works best for your plans.

Each scene will once again carry an associated Arcana etched somewhere inside it, which can change from person to person or instance to instance. It might be on a wall, a table, or on the ground. Characters with a stronger connection to the Horizon are likely to be trapped for longer but the extent of this is your choice and it won't ever exceed a few hours. It's also your choice whether the afflictions continue to haunt them or not. If you want characters to deal with both problems while stuck together, you're welcome to!

Generally speaking, there are no restrictions other than that they won't be able to communicate with anyone outside the area, they can't escape it until the Horizon chooses to release them, and their creation magic will go wrong just enough that it'll make things tricky.

Comments

[catholica]

Rogers.

( if matt realizes that he's been found out, he doesn't show it. he'd known that could happen, sure, especially when in such an insular environment but it's not important to keep his identity a secret right now.

he's not going to stand on the sidelines and do nothing just so people don't know who he is. so, if it happens, it happens.

he nods at steve and once he hears the crunch of footsteps, the way that they cure away from him and towards something, matt follows, trying to give steve some backup.

he's got whatever's crept up on them handled but matt angles around them, takes out another one with a bodily tackle and then several sharp jabs to the thing's face. )

[satanicpanics]

[ And that’s when Eddie does really freak out. Steve appears. He doesn’t take the elevator; he appears, and it’s so sudden and unexpected that Eddie nearly jumps out of his skin. He swears loudly, and as he attempts to recover, all he can do is offer Steve an incredulous expression.

You think I want to be here? ]

Well, you know what, Steve? I woke up today and thought, "hey, I sure do miss that creepy fucking monster version of Hawkins. Sure would like to pay a visit", so here I am!

[ He throws out his arms and drops them back to his sides just as quickly. There’s both a quiver of fear in his voice, and a stab of anger at having been frightened even more. He really doesn't mean to take it out on Steve and he knows logically that this is no one's fault--the Horizon is just off right now, and there’s been something wrong with every domain he’s been dumped into.

His anger disappears quickly, and he doesn’t need to be pushed; he all but stumbles backward, but stops just short of getting back in the elevator. He pauses, glancing just over Steve’s shoulder at the bloody stains on the floor. Laughing nervously at the sheer horror movie quality of it all, he drags his hands down his face and shakes his head. ]

Look, I know it’s not exactly the best time or place, but is there something you need to discuss?

[gynvael]

[ A grunt comes in answer on the other side. This place, he has learned, is pointless. There isn't a way out that he knows of, and it spins and morphs at will. But Thancred is here and he imagines the man isn't one to sit and wait. Doesn't feel right to let him go alone.

He stands back to size up the wall. Smooth. No real footholds. At least not yet. He presses his hand to it, concentrates. What forms is little more than a sheer wall of rock, but the faint grooves in its surface will do. It also seems to have stretched even higher than before. Which. That's fine. He'll make it.

His fingers dig into one of the cracks. Then he begins to climb. It takes some minutes, inching his way to the top. Eventually, a head of white hair appears. Geralt hauls himself onto the narrow ledge. It's the first time he's stood atop the labyrinth itself. The view is disconcerting, not especially helpful. But he thinks he can see a glow of firelight to the west, after a few turns. Either a trap or a place of refuge. Likely the former.

He scales down on the other side, dropping the last several feet in front of Thancred. ]

How long have you been trapped?

[londonbound]

"...Mat."

Rhy breathes his name a few moments too late, stilted at first, his body stiff in Mat's arms. He presses his face into his friend's shoulder. There, he stays perhaps too long, with no apparent intention of moving away.

[londonbound]

[ It's faint, this voice carried on the wind. It whips around him, each word coming as if from a different direction, confusing to make out at first but coalescing after a few moments of concentration into a sentence. A question echoing his.

A woman's voice. He cannot place it with all the interference from the noise around him and the far distance it seems to travel, but he's quite sure (probably) that he didn't imagine it.

Or maybe he's just thoroughly losing his mind at last.

Rhy decides to risk it. He grabs onto that strand of hope and holds on tight. ]

I can hear you. [ He's yells out again, turning one way and then another, trying to figure out if the voice is coming from a certain direction so he can look for the source. ]

Keep talking. Please. Where are you?

For Yennefer

[a_better_man]

Something is very, very wrong.

Things going wrong aren't unusual. But now there's something wrong with him. He's been seeing things. Dark things. Things that aren't there, that only exist for him. This is it. This is what he's been dreading. The coming of the voices and the visions, those first signs of his slipping sanity.

For months he'd allowed himself to be lulled into security. He's been channeling regularly for months and months now, the better part of a year. And no madness. Not even a hint of it. Until now.

Harried and distressed, there's only one person he can go to right now. He hastens to Yennefer's, pounding on the door and not giving a damn if he's interrupting her at anything. He knows the hour is early, but he has no time to spare.

"Lady Yennefer! It's Mat! I need you now!"

[familysucks]

Lucifer is not always right, but when he is, it often seems to be about the things that matter most. Michael frowns, this time directing it towards the empty space beyond the windows instead of his brother.

"Or that. It would be like Him."

When Michael thinks of the times their Father abandoned him, they seem to multiply. There was the moment God left Heaven, but in truth, it happened long before then. Chuck wrote him an ending He never intended to fulfill. The alternate version of him had found that out first. How many iterations of that story had taken place? Then their Father had come back and left him in the Cage. Even after he'd been free from Hell, Chuck hadn't bothered to seek him out.

He'd been forsaken a long time ago.

It is not fair. Part of him wants the opportunity to drive a blade through His chest for what He's put their family through, for what He did to Adam, for everything. Part of him wants to be free of his Father for good. Part of him will always be loyal.

It's difficult to be torn in so many directions at once, especially for someone so accustomed to knowing exactly what he needs to do.

"I've yet to run into any of your demons. Dean Winchester is here. Castiel, too."

This is information Lucifer might already know. From the way he talks, his brother's been here at least as long as he has. Still, he has no use for this knowledge. Maybe Lucifer does.

For Jesper

[a_better_man]

Blood and ashes, not again!

Once more, Mat finds himself not in his domain but somewhere else. Some place he's never seen but immediately sends chills through him. He's never seen anything like this place before, he's not even certain what he's seeing. This place is diseased, though, that much is for sure. He's standing on...some sort of metal structure, he isn't sure quite what it is. But that stuff...

His throat dries up and he shudders. There's something wrong with it. Mayhap it's the source of the disease in this place. But it's sprawling and there's so much of it, and so little paths between it...

"Fuck!"

horizon; for istredd.

[wiedzminka]

To say that the Horizon has been unstable lately is something of an understatement. The first time she accidentally wound up somewhere unfamiliar, she'd gotten trapped in a place that was definitely no one's domain, nor any part of the Horizon as they can usually access it. After that, one would assume she'd try to stay away, out of this realm while it's so unpredictable.

But Julie is missing. Not out in the real world, where her body is safe in bed, but here. Probably trapped in one of these unfamiliar new pockets that keep opening up. Despite her more logical judgement, Ciri can't bring herself to simply give up and stay away. She keeps thinking that maybe, if they keep trying, one of them will be able to reach Julie.

How long can her body last with her consciousness trapped somewhere in here?

And so, worried, Ciri makes her rounds. She hasn't actually explored much of the Horizon beyond the places she's already familiar with -- Kaer Morhen, the Roadhouse, Bleobheris, Julie's club -- so she has decided to explore to the areas she's hasn't bothered to look in for quite some time, if ever. The Horizon isn't endless, even if it looks that way. She wanders in and out of unfamiliar domains, even hesitantly goes near the crater housing the Singularity, though she pushes down the vague idea that she might try asking it about Julie. It's not like she can hear it. The idea unnerves her.

So she keeps going. At some point, she notices it: the black stone rising in the distance. And the distance itself, as always, is deceptive. Here, the span of apparent miles can be crossed in minutes.

As she approaches, the monolith fills her vision, taller the closer she gets, somehow catching the light so it appears smooth and shiny and yet giving the sense also of absorbing it, the sort of true black that drinks in everything.

"...what the fuck?" Ciri mutters to herself. When the ground begins to shake and Kelpie whinnies loudly, shaking her head, Ciri dismounts, letting her mare run away while she chooses to approach, cautious and uncertain. A low hum fills her ears, resonates in the space inside her chest, uncomfortably.

After a few moments' hesitation, Ciri reaches out to touch the stone.

[vixening]

She feels it too - the shift in something around the castle. Yennefer can’t tell if it’s something to do with the Horizon, or perhaps some kind of charm, a curse, brought down upon them as another step in the war, but she feels it first. That creeping, growing feeling that someone is watching her. Or, maybe, not watching exactly - but that something new is there.

It disrupts her sleep more than anything, antsy and pacing. She’s not entirely healed, but the larger majority of her aches and pains have eased, which has given her plenty of time to dive into her work. In fact, she’s only just returned to her room not an hour or so before he comes knocking, frantic and panicked.

She pulls open the door with a furrowed brow, dressed in her sleeping gown and robe. “Mat? What is going on?” And then, with a quick glance down each sides of the hallway, she pulls the door open and ushers him inside - whatever it is, she’s not going to have this conversation where others can hear. “Inside, here.”

[thearchangel]

"Tell me about it," he mutters, with a dissatisfied little flick of mandible. "Apparently, it can even get worse, if you can believe it." If what Himeka said was true. Fighting dead bodies was, in some ways, easier than "ghosties", as she'd put it. But eventually, a cemetery had to run out of bodies, didn't it?

Would there be skeletons next? Once the more fleshy corpses ran out? How the hell did you kill a skeleton?

The handshake is quick, simple. Any kind of grip posturing has always been lost on Garrus - it's a human thing he doesn't understand. "Probably not. I hear I've got a memorable face. Probably the scars and all." Oh he's hilarious.

He glances down at the crossbow with a frown. "No, but I guess rifles don't exist here. So I'm making the best of it."

[a_better_man]

Oh thank the light, he's not alone!

"Hold up a minute..." It takes more effort than it ought, but Mat manifests a torch in his hand and a bit of light is finally thrown on the place he's found himself. It...does not help much. As he'd suspected, high walls and a path between them and little else immediately obvious. Save for the other fellow he's trapped with.

"There we go...oh, s'you!" The light is enough for Mat to make out Eddie's face, and he relaxes at a familiar and perfectly friendly one. "The tattooed man! Miserable place to meet again, but I'm damned glad you aren't a beastie or a ghoul."

The sort of thing he'd expect to meet in a cavernous stone hallway likely made of nightmares.

[ushiri]

No. I've never seen this place before.

[ At least he can be semi-certain this isn't his own creation that they're trapped in...

They keep walking without direction, Kahlil leaving one hand on the wall as they move. A weariness is creeping on him. His sleep was fitful the night before, his dreams strange and unfamiliar: the moth, the teacup, and the hand mirror. He hasn't thought about it much since he first awoke hours ago. A mildly disconcerting dream seems a silly thing to bring up now, with how precarious their current situation is -

Suddenly Claude's voice interrupts his thoughts, and then the odd whirring, a noise he can't place. ]

- the what? [ He's moving as he's whispering, trying to follow Claude's command, and out of nowhere something slams into his back, sending him skidding on his side down the hall past Claude. His vision is all black night and stars as his head slams into the stone, and he struggles for a moment to get on his feet.

The whirring sounds much, much farther away from where he's landed. ]

[supersoldier]

[She’s fast, but thankfully, so is Sephiroth. The edge of her sword draws near the high leather of his boots, cutting close to the knee, shearing past the material but not quite drawing blood at such a vital spot. A long half-step back, and he puts more distance between them, eyes raking across her.]

What are you doing?

[He’s on the defensive, of course, making no move to follow up with a lunge of his own. Beyond the angle of his steel, he looks at her, cat’s eyes sharp — why would she attack him? What’s happened? Have these strange influences, muddling the minds and emotions of the Summoned as of late, affected her, as well?

The timing’s bad. Fighting in a corridor is disadvantageous to Sephiroth, who prefers a longer blade than most. He’s going to have to angle his weapon just right to even keep himself defended against Ciri’s agile movements.]

Ciri! Snap out of it!

cw: mentions of homophobia

[ushiri]

[ Kahlil has been dealing with his afflictions with a higher level of avoidance, especially after what happened with Jack. When he's able to sleep he dreams about it: lunging at Fikiri with the Unseen Edge, and as the hot splash of blood hits his face its Jack's eyes staring back at him in surprise and betrayal.

Dayyid watches him in hallways, only for a second glance to reveal a cleaning woman or footman going about their business, oblivious. Some give him odd, wary looks, but that's no surprise given the omens, the living bones that crawl from beneath the castle lately. The guards are quick to dispatch them, and he has yet to see them himself - but whispers persist.

He's relieved the find the bath unoccupied this evening, quickly stripping down to nothing and slipping into the warm water. He's in the middle of scrubbing himself when another figure appears - he's reluctant to turn to look and see who it is (real or imagined), until whoever it is speaks - he has better luck banishing the intrusive face when the voice doesn't match.

It's Rhy that he hears, which under normal circumstances isn't unwelcome. The scent of wine lingers in the air as Rhy slips into the water next to him, and Kahlil takes the bottle with a slight raise of one eyebrow. Good view, gives him a second of confusion, and luckily he stops himself from blurting out what view? like he's looking for a window. He's harmlessly flirted with women in the Lisam house to get information, but this is the first time in a very long time that a man has so openly done the same toward him. He second guesses it, especially with how Rhy seems to have already started that bottle all on his own, but he offers a smile as he takes it from Rhy. ]

You're very generous. [ He says, still trying to gauge the situation - or stalling. Rhy has always been kind to him, and Kahlil would be lying if he tried to claim he didn't find the other man attractive.

He knows this place is not like Basawar. But every temptation he'd ever given in to as a youth had been desperation and alcohol-fueled. The memories remain even if most of the physical scars are gone from his face, from that night Dayyid had caught him - ]

Celebrating something?

[ There's a light teasing quality to his tone, but now he's really stalling, taking another small sip and instead of handing it back to Rhy he places it down farther away. Probably better that he doesn't drink more and both of them end up embarrassed. Rhy is by far one of the most handsome men in the castle, with his pick of equally beautiful companions. Kahlil feels old and damaged in comparison, his body a map of scars and the strange red snake tattoo on his chest that he can't explain. ]

[princessvegas]

[ The voice doesn't seem to be coming from any one specific place -- in the otherwise complete silence, it doesn't sound any louder or clearer no matter how she angles her head. She keeps looking at the blob because there's nothing else to focus her attention on, but she doesn't think that's what's talking. If it were the blob, wouldn't it have spoken before now? Can't it see her?

No, she doesn't think it's the blob. ]

I don't -- I don't know where I am. [ She answers honestly, her voice carrying the frustration, the desperation of being lost. ] It's like, a desert with a pink sky, and a thing in the sky that hums.

[ Honestly, she wants to just scream wordlessly. She doesn't know what to say, can't even describe the only other living thing here. It looks like a jellyfish fucked a wad of old gum and had a baby, except enormous and it won't shut up. ]

Where are you?

[wiedzminka]

[ She's smaller than Sephiroth, and though she wields a longsword, her movements are precise even in this small space. She uses it to her advantage, forcing him back, harrying him toward the stairs.

Through the rush of battle, she can hear her name. It's simply that she's decided to ignore it. When the voice tugs at her subconscious, something else takes over, bloodthirsty and eager. She becomes angry that this thing is taunting her, calling her when she knows it is nothing but a monster, maybe even a nightmare. She is alone.

Inevitably, she always ends up alone. ]

Shut up.

[ Ciri snarls, stepping in with a forward thrust at his stomach. Before her blade even reaches it, she can smell the blood, see the flesh rending, viscera tumbling out.

It is so sudden, the vision surprises her into a second of hesitation too long, her sword not quite reaching the full length she'd intended. ]

[supersoldier]

[Unwilling to fight back with equal furor, his options are limited if she isn't going to listen to reason. Her assault in this hall is quick and nimble, in a way that even he cannot manage based on physicality alone; the best strategy is retreating closer to the stairs, where he might be able to leap down to the first floor common area and give him more room to maneuver.

But a different opportunity opens up first. Something flashes in Ciri’s eyes—he cannot know what—and she hesitates. She misses just short of his torso, and Sephiroth backsteps again, then swipes his blade up hard, with the hope of knocking hers straight out of her hand.]

[thedevilwhorose]

"I know," Lucifer says, disdain thick in his voice. His lip curls. "In the grand scheme of our timelines, they're both earlier than I am," he doesn't know that that's changed, "they thought I was still in the Cage."

He picks up the sugar shaker and smacks the bottom of it against his palm. He hasn't dropped it, you're welcome, Michael. It's clear he's fidgeting. He'd be better with a blade in hand, but they're not fighting, not yet, and Lucifer isn't likely to make the first strike.

For as wild as he's become since they last saw one another, Lucifer didn't want to fight that first time in the cemetery, and it still rings true in the present moment.

But that's subject to change.

Whether or not that means he's ignoring their time in the Cage together, well. That's a separate problem.

"Oh, and Dean Winchester evidently has wings now," he says flatly.

[nadine_he_loves]

Nadine has a glass of wine in her hand already, and the heavy scent of herbal smoke comes with her to the door. She isn't exactly dressed, either, currently wrapped in one of her long sleeve and ankle-length silk robes - a new one, more ornate than usual, with gold colored embroidery along it.

"Mmm, I probably should be studying, but...classes are cancelled for now while they deal with the whole walking-corpse problem. I can put it off."

She steps back from the door to let him in. It's obvious her own window boxes have been suffering the same malady, brown shriveled leaves among the green and newly grown nightshade peeking out from the rest. Evidence of Nadine's own evening is also apparent, a half smoked joint smoldering in an ashtray on the table, the bottle of wine already open and half empty.

"I just didn't want to be alone. I don't know, I feel...restless, sort of. But I also don't want to do anything. I could be doing dozens of things - studying, organizing notes, cleaning the dishes, making supplies...but I don't want to do any of it so I'm not."

It doesn't look like she's interrupted him with her request. Or maybe she had, and that's why he looks so particularly rakish and ready to grace the cover of a romance novel. Either way, she likes the look.

[a_better_man]

Mat doesn't mind the length of the embrace at all, gathering Rhy to him and holding him close.

"Everything's all wrong. The Horizon's all wrong and I couldn't find you there and you were asleep so long..." He doesn't know if anyone can get permanently stuck in the Horizon, but he hopes he never finds out. Was afraid of finding that out.

"But it's alright, you're back now. What happened?"

cw: bugs

[wiedzminka]

[ The clash of steel hits her hard, jolting painfully up her arm with the force and momentum, the angle twisting her wrist. She knows better. She shouldn't have gotten distracted, should have kept her grip tighter, her whole body engaged-- but it only takes a split second to lose control.

Ciri tries to correct her mistake too slowly. The sword is already clattering behind her. Her fingers and wrist smart.

And without hesitation, she's already pulling the silver dagger from her belt. Breathing hard, Ciri falls back into a defensive position, rethinking the optimal way to reclaim her sword.

The blood is gone. She blinks, and it's something else. Jagged wounds all down his arms, skin flayed from muscle and fat. The walls, suddenly covered in dead moths, cicada shells, crawling with flies. The monster -- it must me one of the undead, far more agile than any she's encountered so far (and why does it know her name?) -- turns its hollow eye sockets on her.

Ciri changes course yet again in the span of a second or two, and instead of going for her sword after all, she jumps up and lunges, dagger first. ]

[aquaveiled]

[ It's a valid point to make. A maze of the mind would certainly lead to a few underlying and confusing thoughts. Feeling lost, though, is something they can all relate to at one time or another in their lives, isn't it? If this is someone's Domain--he's right, they're likely not doing well.

Something they should find out if they can.

But if he is open to her company she is ever open to someone else's. ]

Well then, Team Redhead it is?

[ She extends her hand to her new would-be companion. ]

I'm Himeka. I can tell you're not one of the Summoned from Solvunn.

[supersoldier]

[Her sword flying overhead is just a glint of silver and a clatter on the ground, the only confirmation Sephiroth needs to gauge its distance. It’ll be awkward for her to retrieve it without leaving herself open to him, and he can only hope this works to his advantage. He needs an opportunity to truly get in close, to try to snap her out of whatever thrall she’s under, and even if that just means stilling her hands and keeping her pinned until it wears off, then he’s willing to spend as long as needed to do so.

Naturally, she doesn’t make it easy on him. Ciri unsheathes her dagger, and Sephiroth frowns, the line of his jaw gone hard.]

Ciri, listen to me. I’m not your enemy. Whatever you’re seeing, it’s not— it’s not real.

[Cool and controlled as it is, he cannot tamp down the edge of anxiety threaded through his words, only because it’s her. He needs to focus. He keeps a keen eye on her footwork, trying to guess where she’ll head, and after a few perilous seconds pass, it seems she’s simply decided to lunge at him.

So much for his advantage. Sephiroth turns his body halfway to align with the hallway, sword arm flung outwards, useless as it is up close. She misses, and he thrusts his body to the side, aiming to shoulder-check her right into her chest. If she's staggers, he's reaching out to grip at the wrist holding the dagger.]

[aquaveiled]

[ Could be worse. Well, he's not saying it's fine so it's definitely not good, then. Just not dire. He also has his sword out and at the ready, doing a little trimming then or something else?

Himeka purses her lips but nods, accepting the invitation inside if it's offered. From the looks of things it will offer refuge from the cold but mayhaps not these creeping vines. ]

I never took you for a gardener. What is this?