EVENT #10: AFFLICTION - IC POST

[abraxasmods]

Event #10 - Affliction

go to the OOC event info & plotting post

---

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

[satanicpanics]

[ Eddie has never held any normal person in such high esteem. Rock stars are like his superheroes, and it’s absolutely a very important thing when he compares someone to them. And then Steve agrees that he would be a decent teacher, and it’s his turn to feel touched. ]

Yeah? Thanks, man. Wanna tell that to the two times I repeated senior year?

[ He isn’t bitter. It’s not really a thing he has to worry about anymore, after all. In fact, he smiles because no one’s ever implied he’s a particularly intelligent person. It means a lot; it really does.

He paces the length of the counter, silent for a moment, until he pauses to glance at that absolutely awful door again. ]

Yeah, well, at the very least? It’ll keep curious minds such as mine from wandering too far. Sorry about that, by the way.

[ He knows by now that the Horizon isn’t in its normal state, and just about anything can happen. It doesn’t matter how good of a job they do boarding the doors up. Those sentient vines could find their way in here and pry them open again, but Eddie knows how this works. They’re people, normal people, and they do things to make themselves feel better, even if it’s not totally logical. Sort of like when you’re a kid and somehow, hiding under the blankets is enough to protect you from the monsters in your closet. ]

So…Scoops Ahoy, huh? Good gig. I think I’d have eaten my weight in free ice cream if it were me, though.

[ He absolutely knows that the sailor suit uniform is absolutely no one’s idea of a good gig, but he’s not aiming for mean spirited here. Just casual and slightly jokey. ]

[gynvael]

[ Geralt leans his shoulder against the wall next to Kyle, arms folded once he's relinquished the pick. The tension in him is not absent so much as better suppressed—appears, mostly, in the way he can't help looking around the room sometimes. As though waiting for more to appear.

Nothing does. Thankfully.

His attention cuts to the dog. He taps a finger against his arm, swallowing a rising impatience to get the fuck out of here. ]

Are talking canines common where you're from?

[ That's not a dog, is it? Its scent. It's—hm. But as forthcoming as Geralt is, he isn't without his own sense of consideration. Some things need not be said out loud. ]

[ushiri]

No.

[ His answer is short and clipped in irritation as the wire gets jammed for a second.

An Oracle possessing a dog is definitely not a common thing, in Basawar or Nayeshi, for that matter. But with the way he's concentrating he's neither in the mood nor able to elaborate. Barely notices when the dog begins some kind of strange answer, her voice distracted and far - ]

They cuts us. They takes the meats and leaves only the bones so that we sees...

[ - something clicks within the lock. ]

There.

[ The lock opens. Suddenly, the dog whines and rushes forward, pushing the door open whether it is meant to open that way or not, it just does. Kahlil rises quickly, following after her through the doorway and into the dark. ]

Wait!

[ But Geralt will hear nothing after that. Not the clacking of a dog's nails on stone or wood, not the sound of boots falling after them.

The pair of them are gone. ]

[cointosser]

[Were it some other topic, he may have laughed at how frank the answer is.]

You're rather upfront about that. More than I would have expected from... [From not a fighter, perhaps. Or from someone who is not from his world, who does not face the daily treacheries and monstrosities that do end up creating so many corpses.

Jaskier licks wine from his lips, then takes another sip. He is suddenly reminded of precious Alucard, with his beautiful hair and feather-soft eyes, turning cold as he recounts the murder of his parents. Waiting, Jaskier thought, for some sort of judgement.]

If it haunts you, then I hardly think you are so evil for it. [What else can a man do but move forward?] It's when a death means nothing that a man is truly lost.

[cointosser]

A tempting offer, though to be fair, he's rather enchanted with her bed considering how many times they have tested its sturdiness. Besides, breaking a bed is a bit out of his realm. At least intentionally.

"I don't suppose you have strips of velvet? A shame we're not in the Horizon." Not, he thinks, that he would prefer some image of themselves fucking instead of here, where it is all very real, and often messy, and sometimes a bit funny, too.

He bends down, kissing between her breasts, as he looks up with a light in his eyes all of a sudden. Oh, yes. He has plans. It feels as if they come as quick as birds landing to roost. Plentiful.

"I have an idea." And because they are in this mood, a hint wild, and he has always been curious about the idea of -- well, frankly, literal chaos in the bedroom -- there is a pull of his magic, and vines begin winding up around the bedposts, reaching across towards her wrists. Strong, thick vines, with velvet-soft leaves unfurling.

But no matter what mood he is in, he is Jaskier. And he pauses the vines only when they have lightly ringed her wrists. "Not too tight? Not too... strange?"

Magic could be a hint strange. Plants not withstanding.

[hextechhead]

[ In a way, it is similar to that, Jayce speaking a horrible truth expecting judgment, because it still is something he judges himself for every day. It'll always be this sword hanging over his head, ready to chop him down, but in a way speaking about it is the way forward. Jayce isn't cold though, he's pained. Regretful. He has no ability to mask his emotions. ]

It rotted me from the inside when I first got here, it had just happened. I wasn't the person I thought I was. A hard thing to learn about yourself.

[ Jayce had never been a violent person. It was his one and only fight, as he told Jaskier moments ago. If someone asked him if he was capable of that even days beforehand, he'd laugh at them. Him? No. Never. He's always been soft, but those last few days back home had made him into the worst kind of iron. ]

I kept it a secret from Viktor for months so I guess in a way being honest about it now is my way of trying to be better. Those people deserved better, from me and the world we lived in.

[ They didn't go to work that day expecting to die. Even if the Undercity was hard and it was always an option, they were just people. Trying to survive in a shitty system. They didn't have to be angels to deserve a better life. Jayce thinks that wearing that guilt up front is the best he can do sometimes. ]

Sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. Not really the best way to try to get to know someone better.

Hey no worries! I've kept you waiting long enough!

[lackingtalent]

[A charitable take on Hythlodaeus' mindset regarding dragons would be that he seemed the sort to value life- enemy or otherwise. A more critical view would be that he almost certainly had the mindset of someone that was quite unused to having to side with the lesser of two evils and as thus, had lived quite the privileged life. Regardless of Claude's take, charitable or not, it is plain. He appears wholly unused to conflict.

When Claude makes mention of the fact that he originally came to this world alone, he cannot help but allow himself a small wince of sympathy in the form of his eyebrows furrowing as well as his eyes drifting downward; for yes. To him, that is a situation that most certainly calls for such a display. It is nothing short of a nightmare for him. For he, personally, could not ever imagine being truly alone. Fondness for some individuals from other worlds aside, the mere thought of having none around that truly knew him, that he truly knew...

...Oh, it is disconcerting.]

Indeed. And mercifully, might I add, those close to me are within the same nation. It was an easy thing to reunite and stay under the same roof. Quite convenient, as well. Yet, if I may say so, I do hope that since your arrival some you know and trust have been called forth as well. If nothing else, for the fact that I think a man as charming as you should be very much missed by all you have left behind.

[A somewhat impish smile follows. For what could be said? There is no lie. They are strangers, most certainly. Yet Claude's company thusfar has been nothing short of delightful- strange smells and sights aside.]

And, of course, while there certainly is a novelty to meeting with those of other worlds, I think that sometimes our most grounding influences... or mine, anyway... are the ones we have known the longest. Perhaps you possess a strength far beyond mine- yet I fear without the company of my brethren, I would feel rather lonely indeed.

[He falls silent when the composition of the tea is detailed. Pine is certainly a different form of tea from what he is used to. Yet he can think of nothing better in a place such as this. Refreshing, not overly sweet- and with a long-lasting undertone of mint.

...Mint, of course, being the exact opposite of the earthy rot that seemed to permeate the very air a few moments ago. To his (slight) dismay and (slight) embarrassment, the table is cleared in immediate order. So. He leans back in his chair again, this time keeping his bright gaze fixated upon the youth's face in a somewhat playful manner.]

Well. As I've spoiled your usual, I should think that I have an obligation to provide something new. ...So I do hope this works.

[It is clear that he appears a little concerned over the idea of exerting power within someone else's horizon (Or perhaps it is a discomfort with exerting power in general?) yet he at least makes an attempt. Which is to move his hand a few inches over the table- just enough so his palm is parallel to the top of it. A few moments of concentration, and...

A small, silver box stands directly beneath it. And oh- he actually seems uncannily relieved that the very tabletop did not burst into flames or otherwise. And as his eyes meet Claude's again-]

This is something from the world I come from; some leaves from the sykonia tree. We consider the fruit, the sykon, to be an enduring symbol of nature. Mostly, of course, because pollination of said plant depends upon invasion via a parasitic insect known within my world as an agaonid- but what those here call wasps. It is breached, entered, and pollination occurs within. Eggs are laid, and the parents then die- consumed in short order by their hatched larvae. They then fly off to begin the cycle anew. Their leavings cause a chemical change within the receptacle- that then forms the fruit.

[A somewhat wry smile follows.]

Of course, following that somewhat harrowing account of the cycle of nature, I would not blame you for not wishing to try such a tea. Thus, I would like to inform you that I have only conjured the leaves. You'll find them untouched by any and all waspkind. This, I assure you.

[Or such it would be, to Claude. For him, touched by Koth of Festering Lands as he is- death was never far away. And it rears once more. For to his sight, as he opens the box, something utterly vile assails both his sight, and his senses. A very mashed up, very rotten sykon lies within said box, decayed wasps, unhatched eggs, and all.

And the smell is utterly putrid. Putrid enough to assail his sense of smell, his sense of taste- even his sight in the form of the fact his eyes are watering. He audibly gags, covering his mouth with his hand in immediate fashion, and he stands, eyes wide.

Yet to Claude, there is no fruit. The box is filled with the very leaves promised.]

[nadine_he_loves]

There might have been some scarves in one of her drawers, but Jaskier seems to solve his own problem before she can offer her own. She watches him with her lower lip caught between her teeth, all eager anticipation. Obviously she knows what, in general, he has in mind. And she trusts him entirely, more than enough to allow him to do it. To be excited at the thought.

Nadine thinks he intends to make use of a belt or pillowcases or something like that. She doesn't expect what he does. But her eyes brighten in surprised delight as she watches the lengths of plants grow. Here, in her bedroom, there's already a plethora of plant life. Flowers for decoration, herbs and other medicinal flora grown for use at work, strange things she's bought in Nocwich and is still experimenting with. Thin vines with flowers and strange little fruits crawl up the window. There is greenery all around. Even the bedclothes have a pattern of flowers. It...fits, in a way.

"Not too strange at all."

She flexes her wrists as the vines curl around her, testing the snugness. She's not about to slip out of them but they aren't constricting. There's a give to them.

Maybe it should be strange, but it doesn't seem it. It's dramatic and appealing and she thinks that she must make a striking image, stretched out pale and naked and wreathed in green.

"And not too tight."

[thedevilwhorose]

Of course I have brothers, I'm an archangel. [Not just the devil, thanks! The amount of people that just assume he's something else, or became something else.

(He doesn't know that it's possible if Jack is just... stupid.)] Yes. Phony. Knock-off. False. Imitation. Alternate. [Ah, does he jab the buttons too hard? Whatever. Weird.] A version of my actual brother from another universe. Thought it would be oh so fun to torture me.

[wiedzminka]

[ She doesn't usually go around shouting it either, but it's a lot easier right now for things to just. Spill out. Ciri purses her lips, almost a pout. ]

It's not hereditary.

[ A few horrible years of nonstop stress and grief in the making, and now a bunch of time in the sun. Her hair is more white than blond these days, so there is a passing resemblance. Secretly, she kind of likes it. The fact it makes people think she really is Geralt's daughter.

She doesn't explain. ]

What's the whole thing with your family, then?

[philancer]

[ He chuckles, shaking his head. ]

I'm not sure it's optimism so much as wishful thinking. [ He's notoriously bad at optimism, actually. ] But this graveyard seems to be falling quiet for the moment. Do you see any stragglers we've missed?

[philancer]

It worked well, for the most part. [ At least until Edelgarde sent all three lands spiraling into war. ] I know I wouldn't have traded my years here for anything. I suspect just about all of us fortunate enough to come here would say the same. Something I never thought I'd say about school, but there you have it.

[ He stretches out a bit more comfortably on the grass, despite the fact that there's still a fire raging not far away. Although thankfully it seems to be dying down? Even if it seems to be a slow process. Not that he knows how long it had burned the first time, he'd been unconscious for a good half of that. ]

So how did you meet Claude. You're not in Cadens, are you? [ He's pretty sure he hasn't seen you around before. ]

gestures vaguely about my own understanding of how chaos and this all works.

[vixening]

"Because it is the Singularity." And her tone has become slightly impatient, now. She knows that Mat isn't doubting her, but it sounds too close. It sounds too plausible that maybe she wouldn't know the difference, and that everything she thinks she knows could be wrong.

It strikes just enough of her own fear that, as usual, anger is her response. "Your taint, what it is you've brought here with you, it wouldn't have this same effect on those of us who aren't from your home. If it was the taint, I would not also be feeling this darkness." The implication she leaves hanging here is from his own explanation - women, where he's from, can control that chaos. Men cannot. But Yennefer has felt it, too - that suffocating darkness, the strange dream.

"What you're feeling is another swell from the Singularity. I assume it has something to do with how we grow closer to the Dimming, but..." Yennefer shakes her head, not having had the chance to speak to Stephen about it yet, therefore not entirely certain of it herself. "You had a dream too, yes? What came to you?"

feel free to drop <3

[shadowthief]

She is pulled to stop, but nods a little at his explanation, "All right," she watches him investigate what apparently should have been nothing more than a loose stone. But... it definitely wasn't, that reaction made it obvious. "What–"

She blinks and her head snaps toward the sound from the other end of the corridor. There's a low, guttural growl. "Go!" she yanks on his sleeve and pulls him with her, her hand finding his own again as she tears back down the hall the way they'd just come from.

[a_better_man]

Mat nods, trying to ignore Yennefer's tone. He's only trying to understand. But he can, more or less, follow the explanation.

"Then it's something that's affecting others? They're experiencing the same?" He does understand that the Singularity is the source of power here, it's what's drawn from. But that doesn't make him feel any better, just worried about different things. Light, he hates all of this.

"I...I don't know, some dark thing. I have all sorts of dark dreams. But if the Singularity is doing this, couldn't that mean there's something wrong with it?" If one source could be tainted, why not another?

feel free to drop <3

[shadowthief]

"I thought I could escape it in the Horizon. It was working, before... I don't know, maybe whatever caused it is getting a stronger foothold in me for some reason." She has no idea, she just knows earlier she'd been with Kaz at her Suli camp domain and everything had been fine.

[a_better_man]

"I'm alright."

They're going to make it and they're going to be fine. Mat's sure of it. They have to be close now, they have to be.

Whacking their source of light sounds very counterproductive, and possibly dangerous when hanging from a wall by only his hands and feet. But he attempts it...and the light does indeed go out entirely for one terrifying minute. There's a hissed curse as everything goes black, leaving them clinging to rough stone with only the sound of their breathing and the distant, echoing rumble of machinery.

But then it comes back, weak and fluttering, but there. Mat shouts down a word of intent to Eddie before resuming the climb. His chest feels tight and his breath is shallow and it feels like forever before his fingers find a proper edge.

"It's here!" His excited cry bounces around them and back down, and he suddenly has a sense of a great, great space. "The top, we did it!"

He hauls himself up frantically, collapsing on the stone ledge and taking a great breath.

[techmaturgy]

"Fine, all right."

He seems to have enough sense not to argue, given the fact that she's escorting him into a potentially dangerous situation, so he'll follow along for now. He's more familiar with the Grand Academy of Science than this, but if he were to sneak in, this is probably the way to do it.

The good news is that he certainly has some experience, in this department, and despite his fairly unique gait, manages to keep pace quietly and efficiently. He'll let her take the lead, at least until he sees something he recognizes.

[ofthesword]

Right. Guess it isn't all the time. What'd, a ghost spook you too hard, then?

[He tries for the joke, but it falls flat. The worst thing about asking questions about someone else -- even bein' curious for a second -- is inevitably it gets turned around right back to him. People poking around. Asking questions even he doesn't want to answer for himself. Even if he wants answers, too. If he fucking deserves them.

Nero scratches the back of his neck. With a sigh, he turns the key, the engine rumbling to life. As smoke tickles under his nose, he heaves up with a second, heavier sigh, waving the smoke out of his face.] Fine! I get it.

[He collapses heavily onto the bench in the back. The engine quiets down as the van starts moving forward, the wheel spinning itself. Maybe, in the corner of Ciri's eye, she can just make out a shape like a person at the wheel from the curves of the smoke.]

It's a long story. And a stupid one. [He stops there, and it seems like he might just stop there permanently. But he peeks a look at Ciri, genuinely curious, palms rolling up over his knees.] Geralt's a good dad, right? I mean, he's got that whole gruff thing going on, but I just get the feeling that he... you know. Gives a shit.

[He should really stop there. But he's Nero, and Ciri's not a mind-reader like Wanda (as far as he knows), and --

Fuck, it's not like being here takes his mind off of it, is it?] Well, six months ago I found out I have a father, and then I found out he's a complete dick.

[He pauses. Belatedly, in true Nero fashion:]

Wait, you just meant the hair, didn't you? Shit.

[cointosser]

Not to take away from your whole doom-and-gloom feelings, Jayce, but every man is capable of death. Whether they choose to believe so or not.

[He firmly believes that. In the end, it only comes down to how desperate they become. And how they choose to react to that desperation. It does not mean every person would kill, given the choice. It only means it is a choice in the first place.

Boy. Not exactly the sort of conversation he'd been expecting right out of one of his newest performances. But despite the heavy tone of Jayce's confessions (if that's what they are, and as he goes on, Jaskier fully believes it must be), it still feels... hmm.

Not heavy. Not dark.

It's almost enjoyable.]

I don't mind. [He shrugs.] Where I come from, you cannot throw a rock without hitting a murderer or two. [Oh. That was not really the right choice of words. But -- you know, he sort of lets himself keep going, when he once would have stopped. When he would have realized he is not speaking things that should be spoken.] And is that it? Nothing else to confess? If you want Viktor to trust you, you really should be rather straightforward about these sorts of things.

[cointosser]

If she were to ask him, the flora aesthetic, of course, fits them perfectly. (And he can humbly think that he may have inspired some of it.) A funny thing to think, however, when he is about as far from a druid as he is from an elf. Once chaos decided to gift itself to him, and chose flora as its vessel, though...

There is mutual understanding now. Him and plants. Especially, he thinks, in this desert.

He smiles. She is, indeed, an image. An overwhelming one, he thinks -- the sort that may have men turn to religion, to cults, when they are truly close to rapture. A beautiful woman, hair splayed as a halo around her, the earth itself holding her down.

"Tight," he replies, with his fingers tracing down her belly, moving down between her legs in a teasing, swirling design. Never has Jaskier ever gotten straight to the point when he can tease and torture and revel in it. Now, with permission -- "But not too tight." As he traces his thumb over the joint of her thigh, moving towards her center, he kisses between her breasts. "Forgive me the prosaic thought, but... you truly look as a goddess would."

[cointosser]

[Perhaps Jaskier should be more concerned that Alucard admits to mass murder so simply -- but honestly, they would not be such good friends, he thinks, if the man wasn't upfront about it. Pretending it is not true does not change what is true.

All right, even for Jaskier, the whole chest opening thing is a lot. He pales, but he can't help but --

Oh, god. He might be getting off on this. Not --

No. It isn't sexual. It isn't anything like this. He's. Wrong. Of course there's plenty of bastards who deserve a good, hearty death, but (paint the walls red, leave the grass so soaked with blood that even those still standing slip and fall into it.) He shakes himself, and it's a war inside his head for the moment the feeling swelling through him like pleasure wars with his utter revulsion.

He cannot take seeing that sight again. He can't. But he --

He swallows bile and sweetness all at once.] Perhaps we can spare me the details when I'm already a bit fucked up as it is. [It's said frankly, without bite. Honest.] You're right. It doesn't. But I do think something is... I don't know. This is more than the dead rising and causing a ruckus again. [He holds his hands up, covers his face for a moment, rubs his temples.] I completely goaded you into that answer. Ooh, this is insanely fucked. Just -- promise me if I ask a nasty question, you don't answer it. Or I'm going to throw up on one of these bloody graves.

feel free to drop <3

[shadowthief]

She nods, "All right," she'll follow his lead, not necessarily because he's an adult, but because she actually respects him- in her experience, sometimes adults are more clueless than the kids they deign to teach. Sam is firmly in good standing with her, though.

The wind makes amiable conversation hard to sustain, and she keeps her arms folded across herself during their trek through the snow just to trap a little bit of heat into herself.

It's awhile before she really notices it, but when she does, she tugs on Sam's sleeve and points at the light up ahead in the distance. "What do you think that is?" Could it be a house or a building, maybe?

[cryptsleeper]

I think the questions aren't helping on my end. It's so easy to fall into--

[Alucard groans, pausing to pinch at the bridge of his nose. Jaskier is right. This is more than last year's little adventure. They're goading each other. They're making a feedback loop.]

The lack of filter means I can't make promises. Maybe we should find something to occupy ourselves that has less conversation, or I should go cook and say nothing or--

[In a word: fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.] I need to occupy my hands and not my mouth. And don't respond to that.

[shadowthief]

It's still so novel and new, Kaz reaching for anyone at all, it takes her by surprise every time still. It's just a little bit of a thrill every time his hand finds hers, because it's more than she thought he'd ever bother trying.

She's really glad she was wrong, for once.

He actually leans closer and she holds her breath, scared to blink or breathe or move and threaten to ruin the moment. If it were Jesper, she'd lean into him, too, but the lines are much blurrier with Kaz. Her voice is soft, little more than a whisper, "This isn't the first time she's been here without really...being here. Ghost. Nightmare. Whatever."

Inej levels him with a look, one that needs no words to get the Really? of it across loud and clear– but she'll have some for him anyway. "And you... believe that?" she tips her head a little to one side, eyebrows arching in a challenge. "Then it must apply to you, as well."