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logsinthenight2020-06-16 03:00 pm
nextnightmods) wrote in logsinthenight2020-06-16 03:00 pm
EVENT LOG: WE ALL STILL DIE (PART TWO)
EVENT LOG:
WE ALL STILL DIE PART TWO
characters: everyone.
location: around town.
date/time: june 16-18.
content: spirits are sacrificed, and revelry turns to catastrophe
warnings: gore, violence, psychological horror. please cw tags appropriately.
this tree it will die without leaves
The music fades away as a soft-furred forest spirit with a powerful warble of a voice and the body of a large moth calls everyone to attention. The other spirits usher everyone, with masks on faces and instruments in hands, to gather up at the harbor.
For a spirit, the speaker is eloquent enough - it mimes and dances, peppering movements with melodic speech in the spirits' language, as it demonstrates the rising of the sun that might once have happened here. As it bows, three spirits walk forward and stand side by side. One is only a few feet high, lumpy and pale purplish, wearing a paper crown. The second is black and birdlike, with an elegant floral mask and a pink ribbon tacked to its chest. The third is vaguely human-shaped but for the long, thick hair (?) that cascades from its head and covers its face, and for the long, slender-fingered hands that rest tucked against its chest and sweep downward to its knees. These three are soon joined by spirits with long, scythe-like claws that stand at attention. The warbling moth spirit begins a chant, which the other spirits soon join in, and as the volume reaches a roar of demand and triumph and fervor, the three clawed spirits move quickly and precisely, slicing open the bellies of the three sacrificial volunteers. Their bodies shrink backward and begin to slowly dissipate as if melting, but buckets and bowls are quickly passed forward and much of the gore and meat is collected, and passed one by one through the crowd of spectators, spirit and Beaconite alike - and all are offered a share.
Many of you have eaten spirit flesh before, haven't you? Some have even done so recently. Surely, this is something you all want, isn't it? After a full year here, the spirits have learned so much about their current neighbors who gather around the fire. Some even offer the bowls while shrinking away in what might be fear, while others cackle and chirp and insist on sharing all this fresh food with their friends.
Meanwhile, the changes you may have begun to notice the day before manifest more strongly now. A hunger that won't abate for anything and anyone. A unique manic euphoria, difficult to diminish and hard, if not impossible, to shake that draws one into the music and demands everyone participate in the festivities. Lastly, a violent tenacity to lash out at anything that acts to get in the way of the celebration.
The compulsion starts as a gentle longing and escalates to an incapacitating urge to run without a care through the dark woods, to hunt, to forget all responsibilities. The spirits begin to dance and play their music in unison now, and they march south and east, away from the harbor and toward the village, and it is infectiously fun. In the distance, another band plays an enthralling tune which can just be heard through the miles of forest, and the spirits gather so that they - and you - may join them and bring everyone together to celebrate.
You will come along, won't you? You'll bring all your friends, too. For those who join in, the grandest celebration awaits over the next few days. You are free to pursue your instincts, to lash out, to consume. To dance until your feet are raw and madness overtakes you. To join the parade, and all it entails.
The few that did not partake in any of the festivities at all will find themselves clear of mind. They can do their best to try and keep those under the compulsion from falling to their instincts, though it could provoke violent, miserable results. Once the maddened party joins the parade, trying to pull them out would be incredibly ill-advised. The spirits in the parade and the characters under the influence of its thrall will not tolerate any interruption of the celebration. The parade will chase them down, slice them open, tear their flesh from their limbs. This is a party for light and life! Anyone not with the parade is against it. Death surely will suit them better instead.
ooc notes:
SPIRIT INTERACTIONS: As mentioned previously, anyone who posts top-levels under the SPIRITS header means you are open to spirits doing a bit of threadjacking. We will not be consistently maintaining long threads with spirits, but they will be able to come and go from threads between characters. Please bear in mind that serious injury or death is a potential result of these interactions and so posting a toplevel to this header means you accept this risk.
POTENTIAL DEATH: This event couldn't have come at a better time, as the death mechanic has thankfully been restored. If your character dies in this event, please report it here! And remember, as it was just restored, there might be a few quirks to the system...
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no subject
she closes the knife up, but keeps it in hand. just in case. ]
Why did we start this?
no subject
He needs to get out of here before he hurts her, or before she catches him with that knife.]
Dunno. But we shouldn't continue. I don't want to hurt you.
no subject
I don't, either. [ to hurt him or have her hurt him, and the throbbing of her wrist suddenly has her full attention. she looks up at him, remembering suddenly - ] Your knee - can you walk?
no subject
[He tests it to be sure by putting his weight on it and shit that hurts worse than he expected, yielding a hiss through his teeth at the resulting pain. But he gives it a second try, more slowly, and he can at least stand on it.]
Enough to get away from all this.
[Which he needs to act on fast. The pain brings clarity, and he steps back again, half worried that if he instead turns his back and walks off quickly she might relapse and sink that blade into his back. But the faster he gets out of here the less likely he'll be lured back in by that music himself, he suspects. No time to waste.]
You should too.
no subject
[ the pain's helping her own voice grow stronger, override the parade's effects on her mind. that's what had started this, wasn't it? they don't want anyone to leave the celebration.
he brings up that she should leave, and she knows he's right. but it's not just her that she has to worry about. ]
I'm not here alone. I need to find him first.
[ matthew had coasting by on the bare minimum of participation before. if this is how she'd reacted to rosi trying to leave, she's terrified of what someone might try doing to him. ]
no subject
In another situation, he might be more concerned for her, and for Matt who he knows is the "him". Right now, he just wants out before he's called back by the music, before he turns on her or anyone else. He nods as he continues to back away, staggering a little thanks to his wounded knee.]
Good luck. I hope you both make it out.
[He's far enough now, it's probably safe - so finally he turns to see where he's going, and holds his lantern out to make his way out through the woods, to envelop himself in silence and hope he's broken the spell of the march.]