EVENT LOG: WILD HEART PART TWO

[inthenightmods]

EVENT LOG:
WILD HEART PART TWO

characters: everyone.
location: all over town.
date/time: march 23-26.
content: in the aftermath of the kidnapping, recovery begins and information comes to light.
warnings: n/a

everything has changed and now i can't tell what matters.

Welcome to part two of the WILD HEART event! Kimiko and the Hunt are here to stay for the next three days, and will be answering all your questions below. If you've got questions for us, hit up the OOC post! Further details on how the Wild Hunt will work as a longterm mechanic will be released in our next gameplan, so stay tuned!

Certain status effects lingering from the torture have been sent out to a few random players, and have all been sent out at this point!

RECOVERY

For the next three days, the Wild Hunt seems intent on making themselves as useful as possible. To that end, they've set up a few temporary stations.

In survival skills, they'll teach others how to set traps, make rudimentary weapons, and find shelter within the woods. The teacher there is firm, but by the end of the first day, has set up a small competition to see who can make the most efficient traps and weapons, with prizes including small toolkits, perfect for home repair, and, oddly enough, small pieces of candy.

The station at the Greenhouse is all about horticulture and farming both. They teach skills about how to plant and grow food effectively, as well as what seeds require what kind of care, how to tend to flowers, and what plants are most useful in healing. There are no prizes in his lessons, unfortunately, but for characters who stay long enough, he'll show them his pride and joy: a flower in a pot that blooms only in the light of the moon.

Finally, over in medical training, there's a woman who knows her stuff when it comes to first aid. From sutures to emergency response, she'll teach characters how to deal with most common injuries. She even has a practice test dummy, who bears the unfortunate scars of lessons long since past. Characters can learn CPR, how to effectively administer stitches, tend to burns, and other such necessities.

While they won't always work for free, at least right now, the Wild Hunt seems intent on charity. Lessons are offered freely, services given without any thought of payment.

THE HUNT

[The woman who stands behind the bonfire seems, if not at ease with herself, at least outwardly calm. Her hand are clasped behind her back, her stance steady as she waits for everyone to settle down and around.]

Good evening.

My name, for those of you who missed it, is Kimiko Yasutake. I'm the current leader of the Wild Hunt. You may have seen us around . . . I'm sorry if we ever scared you, but supplies are limited, and frankly, it's easier to steal a suit than try and make one. Ordinarily, we live out in the mines.

We've a group of people from past resets. People who were just like you once. We woke on the ferry after our deaths, and for a time, we lived in this town and tried to get on with our lives.

But that wasn't enough.

[She pauses, then. Takes a breath, hesitates, and then resolves herself.]

I-- before I go on, I want to tell you a bit about myself. I think it will help you all understand.

I was a farmer when I was alive. A rice farmer, specifically. My entire family was, and we always had been. And we had a horse. Just the one. She was a vital part of it, though; without her, my father couldn't take as much into town to sell.

And then one day, she misstepped and broke her leg.

Horses can't recover from that. I don't know if any of you have ever dealt with one, but they just can't. It's inhumane to keep them alive afterwards, never mind try and set the leg. It's agony for them, and it usually ends with their deaths regardless. But we needed that horse, and so he tried.

And then, three days later, we had to put her down anyway, because she was suffering. Only a sadist would have kept her alive.

This world is broken. You must see that. It was vibrant once, alive, just as we all once were, but that's gone now, and you can't grasp for things you've lost. You can't . . . this isn't life. It's a pale imitation of it.

So please . . . try to understand what I mean when I tell you that the Wild Hunt's goal is not to hurt others. We have no interest in making you suffer in the least.

But to allow this place to live is every bit as cruel as my father leaving that horse alive was. It's selfish to keep that portal open, to force tens of hundreds of souls into living here only to be reset or killed or eaten. And I refuse to allow it to keep happening. I simply will not, I cannot in good consciousness force others to go through this over and over again.

We're the Fire Snatchers, yes. Because we believe that extinguishing the lanterns, the bonfire, the lighthouse, and killing this world once and for all is the only humane thing to do. Even if it kills we all of us stuck here as well.

[There's a pause, and then Kimiko exhales slowly.]

If you have questions, I'll be around for three more days.

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Comments

daylight vis lornlit. | original. | ota. (open to four responses total.)

[sunborne]

i;; at least things can't get any worse. (march 23 - 24.)

[ he realises something is wrong when postmaster general shuns him.

day- day just wants things to go back to normal. normal as beacon can go back to during situations like these. he had dropped by the post office to see if he has anything, out of habit more than anything, and he feels the usually friendly atmosphere change upon him setting a pede inside.

postmaster general eyes him with a wariness that he's never been subjected to before and no matter how hard he tries to interact with his friend, postmaster general is not having it. it's the same at the scrapyard, the school, the forests near the village- the spirits make a point of keeping far and away from him, staring at him and judging him with a quality he doesn't like.

all the spirits, he realises, are avoiding him. he can't deny that as he leaves the library at some point, unable to speak with the librarian like usual. he sees someone is approaching the library and before he can stop himself- ]

They hate me. [ day feels his face heat up with how unhappy he sounds and how he blurts it out like that. he ducks his helm, murmuring a quiet apology. ] I- I didn't mean to dump you on that. Sorry. It's been a weird day.

ii;; never felt so alive, and so dead. (march 25.)

[ by the time the 25th rolls around, daylight is done. he's been tortured. he's been shunned. he's back to feeling like a freak of nature with how he feels like he's coming apart at the seams.

he's trying to keep his mind occupied in the greenhouse, focusing on the private little project he's been working on for some time. it helps a little bit, keeps his processors busy and his servos busier with planting and digging and keeping notes of what is getting what. but it all tilts up as he's leaving, as he's thinking maybe today is a good day despite the fact his lantern is flickering and he feels sick as a dog.

a brief wave of dizziness washes over day and his tanks cramp, painfully so. it causes him to stumble, to let drop his wheelbarrow that was wheeling out of the building.

the clattering, screeching sound of metal and clay and plastic so, so much for his tired senses and he feels the tensions and frustrations that's been building up and up and up and up in him finally-

screeeech-creaaaaaak--

with a screech that sounds inhuman with how it's all static and white noise and incomprehensible fury, day grabs the upended wheelbarrow and flips it, causing it and the materials and the tools to further spill out and scatter about in a more spectacular, messy fashion. day kicks at the scattered tools for emphasis, throat stuck with all the rage and curses he wants to say but can't bring himself to say just yet.

he finishes kicking his shovel a few good meters before he realises. oh... is someone here? ]

... [ he stares at the person he now sees, his optics a strange (green) reflective quality in the darkness. ] Oh.

You saw that. [ it's not a question. ]

II

[worthallthis]

[Soldat had heard the noise at the tail end of their "morning" patrol and come running, alarmed at the idea of someone potentially being hurt. Given the electronic nature of the sound, they could only think it was Daylight, and Daylight had been hurt enough.

They skid to a stop at the greenhouse door, just in time to see Daylight launch the wheelbarrow and engage in a little temper tantrum.

(Hey, buddy, we can relate. Seriously.)

So the answer to Daylight's not-question is, clearly:]

Yes.

[A pause, then they add:]

I usually punch trees. But kicking works, too.

[sunborne]

[ upon realising it was a good friend of his - someone he can trust to see him in a situation like this - day relaxes and manages a smile for his friend.

then day pulls himself up to his full height... if only to curl up again, looking down at his servo while apologetically twiddling his thumbs. ]

I- [ he takes a deep breath, trying to calm his flustered and raw nerves. (though that's a bit of a struggle, thanks to how dizzy and achy he still feels.) ] I can't do that. Um- Kick the poor trees, I mean. [ he shakes his helm for emphasis, looking worried for the aforementioned plant now. ] They don't deserve that.

... The wheelbarrow and the other things didn't deserve it too but... I guess I lost my temper.

[worthallthis]

Trees don't deserve to be cut down, either. Still do it. Safer targets than houses or people.

[Soldat pads the rest of the way in, feet as quiet as they can be when wearing combat boots. (They survived the torture sessions somehow, it's amazing.)]

Wheelbarrows and tools and trees don't feel, anyway. Figure it's fine. Sometimes tempers boil over. It happens.

[Having seen Fjord's eyes already, the faint green glow of Daylight's eyes doesn't startle them. They don't even react at all, though maybe it helps explain the loss of temper. If the whole torture thing wasn't enough.]

[sunborne]

[ day's eerie-looking optics flicker, surprised by soldat's statement. but... the more he thinks about it, the more it makes sense. it helps unwind the sense of unease and worry that's been building up in his chassis, enough for him to feel like he vent properly again.

(not exactly but close enough.)

finally getting himself together, day kneels down and begins to gather up the scattered tools and supplies that he can salvage from his outburst. ]

I... I never had it happen like this before. [ he looks at soldat, concerned as he bits the bottom of his lower lip. ] I mean- I won't lie. I get mad, yeah. I yell. I pout. Sometimes I cry. But I never... did this.

[ 'this' is accompanied with a gesture towards the far-flung stuff, unsure of how to address them properly. ] And over something small. I only tripped and. Yeah.

[worthallthis]

[Soldat starts doing the same, crouching slowly to pick up some of the more distant fallen tools.]

Only cry sometimes, huh? Better than me. I cry all the time.

[They do flash Daylight a little smile at that, to show they're joking. Telling the truth! But... jokingly. Because they sure have cried a whole lot, these past few months.]

Seems like sometimes it's the little things that get me most. Big terrible things-- I'm used to big terrible things. But the small shit, that's what throws me over into needing to destroy something.

[sunborne]

[ day is smiling back, grateful for the joke that helps him feel less awkward in the wake of him throwing his tantrum in the greenhouse.

ducking his helm back down to try and refocus his attention on gathering back the items, day ruminates over what soldat told him and it... it makes a lot of sense to him, the more he picks at it and turns it over in his processors. ]

Yeah, [ he says, at last. he sounds pretty relieved to be able to admit this. ] That's what it felt like at that moment.

I guess- I guess that saying is true then. 'A drop can cause the cup to run over.' It was okay until then and. It wasn't.

[ he manages to get all the seed packets that were within reach of him, counting them, one by one, to ensure he had them accounted for. ]

... Does it get easier? The whole... [ he gestures to the scene before him and soldat. unsure of how to express it with words so it's a good thing actions are louder, huh? ]

[worthallthis]

Probably makes it worse if there's more bad things. No reserves to fall back on.

[Which may help explain why Soldat goes from blank to panic in .5 seconds. And possibly also why they cry so damn much. There's a lot of bad things in the background of their mind at all times, and piling more on just tends to break things.

They consider the question a moment.]

Maybe. I'm told I'm doing better than I used to be. It's hard to tell, sometimes, though. Might need an outside perspective.

[They do look over at Daylight specifically, though. Eye contact is easier with him, since he doesn't technically have eyes.]

It's okay to be mad or upset, though. Or sad or afraid. Especially after shit like that. You know that, right?

[sunborne]

[ ...

the way day looks away the question, frowning to himself, is a strange reaction. is he- ]

Yeah. I know. I shouldn't, um, try to repress my feelings and stuff when it comes to these sort of incidents. It's not healthy in the long run.

[ he hesitates for a few seconds, buying himself some time by arranging the seed packets on the ground for when he has the time to put them back. ] It's hard, I guess. Because I still want to... I'm going to sound dumb, I know, but I still want to believe we can work together. All of us.

[ and that includes the green-eyed spirits. maybe. possibly. hopefully? ever since vanitas asked him if he was still willing to forgive the spirits for what they've done, he's been mulling over his answer then and his answer now.

he tries to smile at soldat and day makes it a point to make his winglets flutter. ] So... Do you think me punching some trees and kicking wheelbarrows are okay for stuff like this? I promise to give a heads up for the latter.

I

[legalcy]

[Minimus stops before the library entrance.]

Who does?

[It's not uncommon for soldiers to form irrational observations about themselves after a terrible battle, but that doesn't mean they should be left alone. Fortress Maximum needed healthy contact with others after when he went through, and so does Daylight.]

[sunborne]

[ after hesitating for a second, day decides it wouldn't hurt to talk about it a little bit longer. if only to get it off his chassis- ]

The Librarian. They don't want to talk to me. [ he takes a few deep vents, trying to keep himself calm. ] None of them do.

[ presumably, day is referring to the other spirits who hold shops and establishments around beacon. ]

[legalcy]

[Maybe Day is imagining things? Maybe it's one of those things that people who are used to others talking to them would notice. Having no one with whom to speak is normal for Minimus.]

You could have another party ask them why they are upset. [...] There is an application on the tablet for ease of communication, is there not?

[sunborne]

I know that. I've even been updating the app with supplementary materials and everything and-

[ daylight winces, realising he was taking on a tone to mr. ambus. he ducks his helm, winglets hiking down in shame. ] Sorry. I- I think that's a good idea. I just need to find someone to be the other party.

... Can you? [ he looks at mr. ambus with big and pleading optics, his winglets fluttering with hope. ]

[legalcy]

I was going inside to check on the bookcases. I can make some conversation. [It's easy, really. This isn't like he's going to talk about himself.

Minimus nods a short "goodbye" and steps into the library. He hasn't had much practice in communicating with the spirits (especially when his Universal Translator doesn't work), but he is patient. All of the important phrases can be said with the proper combination of notes.

He exits the building half an hour later with a contemplative look.]

Ah. You've been waiting this whole time.

[sunborne]

... I had no reason to leave yet.

[ last thing he wants to do is make mr. ambus hunt him down around beacon or wait back for a reply. it made sense to stay where he is. (there's not much for him to do, anyways, with how the other spirits he would have visited would ignore or shun him.)

day wrings his servos as he stands up from where he had been sitting, nervous-looking. ]

Well- [ he tries not to be too eager. tries and fails, because this has been nagging at his much-abused tanks. ] Did the Librarian tell you anything? About why they... you know... don't want to interact with me?

[legalcy]

[Minimus folds his hands behind his back: his typical way of delivering military updates when he had his old identity and wanted to seem big.]

The Librarian appears to be afraid of you, as do the other spirits. This is the case with some of the others in Beacon, not only you. [That should be comforting, to know that Daylight is not the only one with this issue.] They would not specify why they were afraid, unfortunately.

[sunborne]

[ oh! okay. day knows how this goes, actually. he adopts a similar posture to mr. ambus, surprisingly fluid in his motions as he stands at attention, waiting for the debriefing. he seems used to doing this kind of thing...?

and while he looks disappointed by the fact he can't find out what exactly is the problem with him, he's also relieved they don't hate him on a personal level. but the knowledge that they're scared of him (and others) does worry him. ] Oh... Did they let you know when I'm, um, not scary anymore to them? Or something?

i. (hope a late tag here is okay!)

[arsarcanum]

[ Sora's just left the library himself! Emergency or not, he still comes in every week for his volunteer hours and to catch up with the Librarian. Sure, jury's out on whether they actually understand his fumbling on the ocarina, but any practice is good practice, or at least he'd like to think so.

Day's tone surprises him, but he'd been among the missing. Sora's not about to scold anyone for anything, considering how terribly he'd lost it himself the week before. ]

Hey, don't worry about it. [ Sora looks back at the library, then at Day. Only one spirit in there, as far as he can tell. ] What's up?

(it's cool! sora and day bonding times post wild heart madness yessss)

[sunborne]

The Librarian. And the Postmaster General. And even the doggie.

[ the scrapyard dog growled at him when he tried to reach out and pet them earlier. that hurt a lot.

he takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself once again, and explains his situation: he's dropping by to greet the spirits, as usual, but they've been... wary of him. looking at him funny and doing their best to avoid interactions with him. ]

I don't know why but they don't seem to like me anymore. I try to ask what's wrong but that, I guess, counts like as an interaction or something. They're all avoiding me.

(yeah!!! ty :) )

[arsarcanum]

[ Sora pulls a face, aghast. No, not the doggie. ]

That... doesn't seem right. You're Daylight, there's no reason to avoid you ever. [ Sora looks between Daylight and the library again, this time both perturbed and thoughtful. He has a suspicion that he knows what's happening, but it's not enough to make him say anything - it's just a theory, something that reminds him of something that happened to Carmilla... and he doesn't want to ride that train of thought, because that means confronting something, uh, pretty difficult!

Either way, it doesn't matter. Sora's sure this isn't Day's fault. ]

I could go in and ask them what's up? No promises, but they were definitely talking to me earlier today. [ And if Daylight gives that an okay, Sora will go for it! In fact, he might actually just be running off without letting Day answer that, oops. Two seconds to stop him, Day! ]

[sunborne]

Could you?

[ day hates how eager he is when he responds to sora's offer but- but he really needs help right now. he now knows the librarian won't speak with him and the others definitely won't, given their past interactions, so someone else will need to step in and ask.

so sora coming in with the clutch is really appreciated. he nods his agreement/acceptance of the help, watching sora now runoff in search for an answer. out of impulse, he cups his servos over his mouth and calls out to him: ] Oh man- Sora- I owe you more gifts than ever for this! Thank you!

[ realising how weird that must sound, he calls out again to sora's retreating form: ] The other gifts are for your birthday! We're birthday buddies, by the way!

[arsarcanum]

[ Sora waves and runs inside! Dude on a mission is a go. After about a ten minute wait, Sora runs back out, looking a bit perturbed, but not entirely confused. ]

First, don't worry about the gifts, my birthday was a couple of weeks ago! Second, they... didn't really say anything. [ He shakes his head. ] I think they understood the question, but when I tried to get a straight answer, they were like, not supposed to talk to you? Either that, or something was making them not talk to you. I tried to ask how they felt about you, but they couldn't give a straight answer for that either, and I think it was starting to stress them out. [ He looks up at Daylight, apologetic. ] Sorry, that's everything I know for sure. I have a couple of guesses, but I don't know if they're mad or scared of you. I don't think it's anything you did, though.

greenhouse

[knifecollecting]

[Jo isn't deliberately seeking Daylight out, but she's been worried about him. All of the kidnapping victims, honestly, though Daylight especially. She knows he had been trying to work with the green-eyed spirits.

This had to be devastating for him. She's struggling with how to check in with him, though that is answered when the Greenhouse comes into view and she sees the robot coming out.

The noise makes her crouch instinctively, looking for the source of the sound before it dawns on her that it is Daylight himself producing it.]

Be kind of hard not to. [Her attempt at a teasing smile fails badly, betraying her worry.]

Hey.

[sunborne]

... Hey. That's. That's some timing, huh? [ jo isn't alone in her attempt to make a smile, at least. day tries to mirror her action but does it a little too perfectly. complete with the inability to keep the true feelings - for him, anxiety - at bay.

he kneels down, trying to make him smaller and less scary-looking towards jo, kicking himself mentally for losing his cool in front of his friends. ]

Sorry. I didn't know what came over me. [ he stills for a second, servos hovering awkwardly over some tools, before he resumes picking things up. ] I do, actually, and I'm sorry for it. I shouldn't have let my emotions get the better of me there.

[knifecollecting]

It's okay. [She isn't very scared as he kneels, just worried. She opts to watch him pick up the tools instead of trying to help because she isn't sure it would make him feel better.

Jo lets out a breath and clears her throat.]

It's okay to feel bad right now, Daylight.