EVENT LOG: ENTER MR SANDMAN (DEFENDERS)

[inthenightmods]

EVENT LOG:
ENTER MR. SANDMAN (DEFENDERS)

characters: those who signed up as defenders for the event
location: all around Beacon
date/time: november 16-29
content: the defenders attempt to drive off a spirit invasion
warnings: lots of horror! body horror, psychological horror, gore, violence, etc.. please cw all threads where appropriate! mods will do the same

in your closet, in your head.

It all happens in a matter of moments. Your friends, your companions, and even some people you aren't all that fond of; everyone who took so much as a bite of the spirits' feast suddenly collapses into a comatose heap. Which is bad enough already, but the worst, by far, is yet to come.

Before anyone can really figure out what's happened to the sleepers, the woods surrounding the town come alive with sound. Rustling, screeching, clicking, howling, and under it all, the characteristic hoots and whistles of the forest spirit tongue. But these aren't the friendly creatures that set up the banquet in the first place, and they aren't the familiar faces (or masks) from around Beacon. As they begin to emerge, bursting forth from the trees, these spirits reveal themselves as a horrifying army of terrors. And sprinkled among them, distinguishable by the emerald glint in their sockets, are the infamous "green eyes", the dangerous spirits that appeared once before.

Attempting to talk to these spirits is a moot point, made obvious by their immediate assault on anyone they get close to. They attack with claws and teeth, with limbs far stronger than they have any right to be, and the green eyes, as they are wont to do, will try to get into your head. Somehow, they seem to know what it is that scares you most, and they don't seem too hesitant to use it. It's not clear what they want— are they here to eradicate you? To frighten you? To send a message?

Whatever the case, one thing is very clear: you and everyone else, sleeping or waking, are in serious danger. Are you ready to defend Beacon?

QUICKNAV
comms	|	network • logs • memes • ooc
pages	|	rules • faq • taken • mod contact • player contact • calendar • setting • exploration • item requests • full nav

Comments

[pure_havoc]

[aw c'mon Vanitas, where's your mid-battle quip game? Though yeah that thing is disturbingly ugly, he won't disagree]

Depends on your taste, I suppose.

[apparently it doesn't like its victims standing around being sassy either, because the words are barely out of Cao Pi's mouth when it lunges at them. He strikes fast, aiming at the long-fingered hands while whirling himself out of the way, but clearly not fast enough as the spirit somehow comes out of it with all its limbs. Heads up Vanitas, it's in between them now.]

[evulsed]

I'm not interested!

[ He's more of a gloat before and after kind of guy. Which is all the more obvious for the way Vanitas doesn't answer and keeps putting space between them. In fact, he's about to making himself completely scarce once the other guy is engaged in battle— but that initial attack doesn't do anything but put the spirit closer to him.

And now Vanitas is the object of it's attention, and all those limbs, so close to the ground, make it inhumanly fast. Vanitas only narrowly avoids getting grabbed, and half of it is because he throws up a dark shield— a shimmering wall of translucent black that deflects the monster's hand millimeters before it makes contact.

Vanitas steps back and summons his key blade in the same instant his helmet materializes and hides his face. This close it reflects the ghastly image of the spirit back outward like a mirror. ]

[pure_havoc]

[now those are some neat tricks, being able to summon a weapon out of thin air is something he's only ever seen demons do. But given that Vanitas is as much a target of their attackers as he is, looks like he's not a demon. Right, then.

While the spirit is focused on Vanitas, Cao Pi charges from behind, blades held low, right up until he gets close enough for a swing. As he does so, he smacks the ends of the swords together to form a single weapon with a much wider reach, which he spins to try to hack at some of those limbs again. Score! Not a deep enough cut but a cut all the same. It naturally brings the spirit's focus back around to him.]

Keep it pincered, don't let it circle behind!

[evulsed]

Idiot, it doesn't need to get behind you!

[ Though he understands the man's position. Letting it get away, at this point, could put it into a blind spot. It was dangerous enough in front of them. The reach on the arms of this spirit is unnaturally long, longer than the reach of Vanitas' keyblade. He's more than happy to let it's focus go back to its primary target.

Instead of coming close, he holds his free palm up and pulls up on the shadows. Tendrils like vines reach up from the ground underneath it and grab two of the spirit's limbs to arrest it's momentum. ]

[pure_havoc]

[Cao Pi bristles a little - he's supposed to be the one calling everyone idiots! how dare! - but squashes his reaction in order to focus. This is no time to get huffy. He slides back to the side to keep the spirit hunting him while those rather fascinating powers restrain it, and then it's his turn. It's been long enough since the last time he called on his hidden powers, they should be ready for another go.

Breaking the swords apart again, he sweeps them in a circle to call up the ice shards that rain down as soon as he points one blade at his target. The spirit still lunges at him, but comes up short thanks to Vanitas and takes the hits. If the ice does any damage, it's not obvious, but what's clear is that Zihuan has definitely pissed it off. The limbs not held back still thrash at him and he can't back away fast enough.]

HHH SO LATE SORRY

[evulsed]

[ Vanitas doesn't, really, care what happens to this guy. In fact, if he let it go and let it dismember him it'd certainly give Vanitas more than enough time to get away. What it is, exactly, that drives him to stay and keep fighting is hard to say. Nothing altruistic. He doesn't know this man, and even if he did, the odds were 50-50 that Vanitas still wouldn't just leave him to his fate.

So he doesn't bother trying to step in to prevent the man from getting injured. If he could use a sword like that, he should be more than aware of how to fight properly. Vanitas, instead, raises his open palm higher and curls it into a fist. More shadow spools up from the ground like a living thing, wrapping up the spirit's limbs and reaching for it's midsection like great pythons. ]

[pure_havoc]

[the teamwork is enough, Cao Pi is sure they've got this. He takes advantage of Vanitas holding it down to charge in and skewer the spirit. Any thoughts that they shouldn't go for a massacre like last time are long gone, it's clearly kill or be killed here and he's not the merciful type]

Finish it!

[because he has no idea if he can stab the shadows too, and the whole black on black motif is making it hard to know where to stab anyway. If he's wounded it with his blades, it should take one quick snap to finish off the spirit and allow them to focus on the next...and the next, and hoo boy there are a lot of them starting to pack in, straining through the trees and blundering into the square.]

[evulsed]

[ They're going to be swarmed in minutes. This spirit might be taking up all their attention but they'll be severely outnumbered soon. The number of citizens in Beacon didn't match up with what lived in the woods. Vanitas' first foray out into the forest told him that point-blank. His gaze cuts briefly to the side, to the swell of creatures coming in to the square.

Vanitas grits his teeth and surges forward, banking on their combined efforts that the spirit won't be able to grab him backwards when he pushes Darkness into his blade and brings it down in one big cleave. Maybe he's lucky, but he comes down hard on the spirit and the shadows holding it down undulate when his weapon comes down. The shockwave that reaches out from the impact ripples out, almost invisible in the low light, though the blow-back from it rustles Cao Pi's hair and clothing.

The spirit goes still, but if Vantias is honest— he doesn't know if that means it's dead.

Vanitas doesn't step off the body, but instead pushes away, back flipping over himself to reset to his original position and turning his helmet toward the oncoming swarm. ]

These things shouldn't be here.

[pure_havoc]

[if nothing else he'll step on what's left so that if it moves, he'll know instantly. Damn things.]

Nor should we. This is a losing battle if we stay here, we need to get everyone back to our fallback point. [in case you don't remember] The Invincible. Quickly.

[what he doesn't do is pause to grab any sleepers. Most of them have been taken care of but Cao Pi is still of a mind that even if this dark-clad figure who looks sort of spirit-y himself is stronger than he is, he can also use a sword and thus needs those in his hands, not a comatose body. Others can finish the evacuation, he's here to fight.]

[evulsed]

You think I'm coming with you? Dream on.

[ There's a laugh in Vanitas' voice, one of incredulity, that echoes behind the reflective surface of his mask. Why on earth would he want to go where everyone else was going to be? Targets were much easier to find in a big group, and if they were all going to congregate in one spot— to Vanitas' thinking, that just makes them all the more vulnerable.

But he's never been taught to rely on other people— only his own strength. He turns his keyblade over in his palm, backing away from Cao Pi. ]

[pure_havoc]

[well, he certainly wasn't expecting that kind of betrayal in the middle of a battle. What the hell, dude.]

What are you doing? Don't be a fool! There are too many of them, we're all better off working together!

[which is pretty wild coming from him but at least Cao Pi knows the value of an army over a lone wolf]

[evulsed]

Better you than me.

[ There's no aggressiveness in his tone; just that same incredulous kind of laugh lingering behind. ]

Let me know if your little get together works for you. If you can survive long enough to get back, that is.

[pure_havoc]

[grr, brat. Fine, Cao Pi isn't going to hang around and save him either, turning swiftly and trudging back toward the table of vulnerable victims]

If you die, on your own head be it.

[and he won't forget it, either]