EVENT LOG: HUNGER AND THIRST

[nextnightmods]

EVENT LOG:
HUNGER AND THIRST

characters: everyone.
location: around beacon.
date/time: september 19-30.
content: some new friends - or enemies? - seek offerings, and offer something in return
warnings: memories may involve violence, death, grotesque body horror. please cw as appropriate.

pining for the things i could have been.

Recently, the forest spirits have been agitated. The crooners, those that remain, chatter noisily and strut with purpose. The lunch lady hunches over their station and holds claws to their face, miming peering through dense brush. The skunk judge murmurs about the ones from the countryside. Word has passed beyond the reaches of Beacon's light - there are people in town, and they are mostly good this time. These lantern-bearers have lasted longer than most. They may even want to help.

Seems these spirits will have to see these people with their own eyes, and test those rumors themselves.

For the first two prompts below, please feel free to NPC spirits yourselves. However, if you prefer, you may post your toplevel under the MOD-CONTROLLED SPIRITS header and we will do our best to drop in and out with interactions as time permits. These are not intended to be one-on-one threads with spirits written by the mods, and you will likely not always want to wait for a mod reply at every step and may find yourself doing some minor NPCing all the same, but we will do our best to keep up with you and your thread partners who tag in!

In that header, please specify whether you want a friendly or antagonistic spirit, or if you want a surprise, you can always say "surprise me!"

ALL MY JOYS.

You come home to find spirits in your wardrobe, with socks on their hands and pants tied in daisy chains from wall to wall. Abruptly they squeak and dive for cover, or crash through windows in their attempts to escape. They steal things that are yours, only for you to find them days later, floating in the lake or buried in the greenhouse. Can you chase them down alone? Maybe you need some help.

Not all spirits are so troublesome. Maybe you turn up at The Landmark kitchen to find that one spirit has already gotten the coffee pot started - well, except it has poured instant cheese powder from a box of easy mac into the pot. But at least it's trying to help! Maybe you can show it how the machine works. Others wind up at Solis's labs where they thumb rapidly through books and peck at computer keys, and more than one takes samples from the shelves and shoves them in your face. Did you need this alien foot in a jar? No?

A pack of roving... branches? crawls around town. They have no mouths with which to speak, but instead vibrate and clack their many tangled limbs together. They grow in number and size, making a thicket of live wood that bars you from a doorway, completely fills up a section of the tunnels under the town - or makes an impromptu and convenient bridge, if you think that climbing on someone's limbs is appropriate. Is it?

Largely these spirits seem neutral, even benign. Confused. They might ask for your help, or try their best but they struggle to communicate even more than the usual forest spirits do. They have no sense of what your personal space is, though, and more than one will reach for a lantern to bring it closer and investigate. Awfully uncomfortable, so what are you going to do about it?

ALL MY GRIEF.

At any moment, the above interactions can go south fast if you meet the wrong spirit. The one who took your lantern? Decides to run off with it, leaving you gasping for air and with very few options if you are to survive. The branches constrict and crush you, or drop you suddenly in the river. Are they here to harm you, or just to test your limits?

Others will be malevolent no matter what. The scrapyard dog snarls and pulls at its chain as it watches the thing that stalks and hunts. A small herd of soft, wooly spirits crouch low to the ground, whimper and pant as if sick or starving, only to turn on you with vicious teeth once you seem invested in assisting. Better hope you have someone nearby who can help you fend them off. Or is it better to try to distract them and make an escape? Will they be convinced to stand down, or will they wear your face as a new mask?

ALL MY BONES.

You are directed by the local spirits to the dense curtain of trees where torchlight fades to darkness. The ones you are familiar with hang back, but nod for you to continue ahead alone, or with a friend or two if you prefer. The more people who go together, the stronger the connection - as indicated by the spirits grabbing at your hands and linking them together, and giving a very serious nod. Bring your offerings whether they be food, stories, gifts, or memories of your own, and hope they are sufficient. Place them on the forest floor, or hold them out to the air. The new spirits will find you, they promise; this is not a trick. Make yourselves comfortable on the damp, mossy ground and wait for the sound of footsteps in the leaf litter.

For this prompt, you are welcome to describe your arrival to the site if you like, but all that is required is a comment with the names of the people involved, and the offerings you bring. Characters can make multiple offerings and visit multiple spirits as many times as they wish.

Afterward, a spirit will lead you back to Bonfire Square and encourage you to tell others what you've learned from your new guests. No fair keeping the goods to yourself alone!

LEFT IN THE LONG NIGHT.

After connecting with spirits, you are led back to the bonfire, to recover and recuperate from the joining of hearts, minds, and memories. You will find yourself weary, in a way the flames seem to help. The glow of the campfire is comforting, tempting. It might be difficult not to fall asleep or try to draw others into enjoying the comforting lull of crackling firewood along with you.

The weariness does fade, after some time around the fire. You're not the only one resting from the experience in the glow of firelight — and there's likely things you've seen to share. Ideas and memories and pieces and figments of past to fit into place like puzzle pieces. Now is a good a place as any to share it, isn't it?

Lastly, those that approach a spirit in tandem will find an unseen consequence. A link between them that isn't so easily shaken by a short stay at the fireside. Characters will find that feelings and sensations seem to move from one to the other without warning. Fear, anger, mourning, resentment, joy, love. Touching makes the link stronger, but even distance isn't enough to stop it. Did you want to share night terrors, even a mile apart? Or to taste coffee, even though you're in the middle of brushing your teeth? Well, too bad. The effects will last for two weeks, whether you like it or not.

QUICKNAV
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Comments

ALL MY BONES.

[nextnightmods]

Let us know who is arriving and what they're bringing! A spirit will be with you shortly.

Rosinante, Law, Mary

[callada]

These three arrive with Mary riding on Rosinante's shoulders, and they will present a very colorful painting that all three contributed to! Well. Mostly Rosinante and Mary. Law added his jolly roger and the other two drew Law around it. It's a "family" portrait! Sure do hope these spirits like art at about a preteen level of competence.

Merwen and Soldat

[worthallthis]

Merwen and Soldat exchanged recipes and learned how to make food from each other's world for this offering: Merwen made a grilled cheese sandwich, and Soldat made a seaweed dumpling filled with chopped nuts and herbs. They deliver both food items together, and sit together in the grass to wait.

Reiju and Soldat

[worthallthis]

Reiju is bringing a bit of technology she's been tinkering with, and Soldat is mostly here as translator and support, though they probably poked at the item a little bit, too. Maybe offered advice on how to open the plating based on the plating on the metal arm, or something. Anyway, have some clockwork decor, spirits.

javert & matt murdock

[policier]

Javert and Matt arrive in tandem, with Javert hovering as close to the other man as he's able. He's protective, and they're both naturally wary. To the spirits, they offer two sets of rosary beads, one from each them, which they place on the forest floor before stepping away.

Fitz and Stone

[rereremembered]

Fitz brings his fancy guitar to play, and he sings a song he wrote a long time ago for a girl named Sam. Stone adds his voice, not with words but resonant tones, a compliment and counterpoint to the plaintive melody.

Soldat, Misty, and Javert

[worthallthis]

It's Soldat's idea to drag both Misty and Javert with them, this time, because all three of them know origami and if two is good surely three is better, right? Javert brings an origami star that Soldat taught him to make, Misty brings an origami frog (meaningful), and Soldat (after seeing the frog) brings an owl (equally meaningful, albeit in a very different way). The three of them stay standing, this time, rather than sit, mostly because Javert is bad at relaxing and Soldat is kind of nervous about dragging them both out together.

elektra natchios

[ultraviolents]

Elektra's offering may not look like a lot, but the meaning and intent behind the gifts it's constructed from held when they were first received hold enough meaning to her that she hopes it's seen as a sufficient offering. She sets the glass bottle, filled with water and dried flower petals, on the ground and waits.

Will and Rosi

[callada]

You've heard of a tea party, now meet a coffee party. These two are bringing a nice piping hot thermos full of coffee and a tray of snacks to go with it - some cut fruit, a few cookies, some fresh bread and butter. Rosinante is cheery enough about the endeavor, while Will is just hoping this will make the spirits leave him alone already. They'll set out a little spread, sit down and wait.

Cao Pi

[pure_havoc]

On the very last day, after much deep thought, Cao Pi shows up alone with his magical wine bottle, a glass, and a piece of paper. The wine is sort of an afterthought, something Rosinante joked with him about. He pours a glass for whoever will be his audience, steps back from it, and waits a few moments. He's not sure what exactly to do, should he give someone a chance to show up, or....

Nah all right might as well just recite poetry into the dark. That's his paper: a poem written in his native script, flowing and elegant. He forces himself to adjust and read it in the proper tongue, even though it won't make any sense to any listening spirits - the point is to show its beauty and rhythm in the original language, which, given his expert recitation, is its own form of music. When he finishes, he sets the poem down next to the glass of wine and lets come what may.

Soldat and Pudding

[worthallthis]

Pudding sacrificed her handkerchief and an hour of her time to learn to sew to help Soldat finish off a lovely patchwork cloak with warm lining, and the two of them bring it out to the spirits' gathering later in the week. They know what to expect this time, with several people already sharing Soldat's head now, but the things they're learning are worth it, as are the connections they're forging.

They lay the cloak out and settle in to wait.

Ashford and Stone

[scarsolderthanyou]

Neither of these guys have any material skills worth sharing, and the food thing has been done half a dozen times already, so they're bringing stories. Sitting side by side, shoulders touching because Stone is a touchy guy, once the spirit shows up they say, "Stories for a story."

It's an awkward sharing, because even between the two of them they have a pretty incomplete command of the spirit language, but they're gonna try, dammit. Ashford tells the tale of nearly blowing himself up trying to race to a lady-friend, by pushing his ship too hard. Stone laughs at him (fondly, fondly) and tells the tale of how his queen nearly bit his hand off at the birth of their first clutch. Both stories involve lots of translating for each other and hand gestures and attempts at communication through exaggerated expressions. It might be kind of hilarious to an outside observer.

MOD-CONTROLLED SPIRIT INTERACTIONS

[nextnightmods]

If you opt to use the first two prompts with some bonus mod-controlled friends, leave your toplevels here! As noted above, please let us know if you'd prefer a friendly or not-so-friendly encounter, or if you'd like to leave it to us to decide.

Rosinante | OTA | friendly for 1, unfriendly for 2

[callada]

1. The Lab.

"Hey, have you seen-"

Rosinante emerges from the storage room at the labs with an armful of mineral samples, all numbered, and a clipboard balanced on top of them, only to slip on something (or nothing, or a mote of dust for all he knows) and slam himself onto the floor. The rocks go scattering across workstations, get caught up in cables, and as he shakes his head to clear it from the jarring fall, he notices that they're not alone in here. He, and whoever else in the lab, have been joined by one of those tall, feminine spirits who stoops down to pick up a stone. The mask it's wearing doesn't look like something it can see through, but maybe that's not a problem as the spirit pops the rock into its mouth and chomps down with hard metallic leaf-shaped teeth.

"Did that just show up in here?" he asks, a little concerned. He knew there were supposed to be new spirits showing up soon, but somehow he hadn't realized they were here now.

2. Downtown

It's finally time to admit his shoulder bag is starting to wear out. He's had it longer than he's been in Beacon, and patching only holds so long. He's carried Mary in this, not just all his things, so it's seen a variety of uses.

He made sure before entering the clothing shop that there was already someone else in here. Normally he wouldn't worry about being alone for a few minutes in the middle of town - even when unsafe, people aren't too far off and help is easy to find. But with all these extra eyes and limbs and teeth around, and with him doing his best to stay safe for the sake of the people who depend on him, it's probably best to be a little extra cautious.

"Anything good?" he asks as he's distracted by a belt. Seems like real leather, nice, but is it too short? He holds it up to his waist to find out.

Bucky/Soldat | OTA | Friendly for I, unfriendly for II

[worthallthis]

I. Joys

Oh not again. Soldat remembers the first time the spirits stole their shit, and they're not happy to re-experience it. This time, they chase and call ahead in their own language, "Please, please I need that!" but they keep their temper in check. It helps that none of the spirits try stealing their knives, this time.

Every day in the kitchen there's a new spirit who wants to "help" with lunch, that Soldat has to monitor them closely and give careful instruction lest their "help" ruins the meal. They know the spirits mean well... but wow is it frustrating.

And they forgo some of their "free" and sleeping time to add another short patrol, to make sure anyone who needs their help in translation with or defense against the new spirits, gets it. They really, really don't want this to go badly. The better the spirits feel about them, the more likely the green-eyes won't find anyone to help them... and the more likely they'll get help against the World Eaters.


II. Grief

Soldat stops at the junkyard like always, only to find the dog spirit there growling. They do their best to soothe them, but the dog keeps bumping them to one side and trying to make a protective stance.

"It's okay," they try to say, "I can take care of myself. And you."

But they're looking around for the source of the danger, as they murmur and stroke the dog's spiky back fur.

javert | ota

[policier]

all my bones

( With how blunt and brusque as Javert is, he's never been adept at diplomacy. He's never cared to learn the spirit's language, knowing that he would only say something wrong, and that there are others among them that are much more sensitive and well-suited than he. He finds it strange, then, that then spirits would encourage him to help with the others that have appeared from within the woods.

He doesn't know what to give as an offering. He doesn't wish to tell a story, or offer out any personal secrets. He isn't quite so sure what the spirits would like best, and so he looks to his partner, or someone who just happens to be nearby, wondering, )

What shall we do?

( He can make something, if he must, but he is an average carpenter at best and only slightly skilled at cooking. )

the long night

( After the ordeal with the spirits, Javert collaspes near the bonfire, his posture slumped and weary. He's not quite as irritable as he ought to be, after having experienced a great many emotions and memories. When someone claims a seat nearby, he doesn't prickle or turn away.

He doesn't notice, either, that he's still feeling someone else's emotions. As the night goes on, however, perhaps his partner will find themselves feeling a little more annoyed than usual, or suddenly frightened, once Javert realizes what's happening. There are moments, too, when Javert is filled with an overwhelming wave of affection. Or when someone lands a hit on him in combat practice, which his partner would feel quite clearly. )

Long Night

[worthallthis]

[It takes Soldat a while to work out what's happening, honestly. Their brain isn't the most stable even at the best of times, and after being basically invaded multiple times by spirit-memories, they're pretty shaky about reality anyway. As they walk wearily to the bed and breakfast for the evening chess match, after a frankly too-short spirit language lesson because they were too tired for the full thing and their students weren't really in better shape, they can feel something not their own, but all it does it make them wince.

(Where is that comin' from? Probably some... leftover... spirit thing. Not edible. No, Pit. You can't eat feelings. Why not. That's stupid.)

Soldat actually chuckles weakly at that, pushing open the door.]

long night

[ultraviolents]

[ elektra is...tired. she doesn't quite collapse onto her seat, she's used to retaining too much control over her body for that unless ill or severely injured, but she does settle into it heavier than she normally would. her hands rub at her eyes and over her face before she hunches towards the bonfire, eager for its warmth as she rubs absently at her wrist - the cast is of at this point, the damage mostly healed, but it still aches every once in a while. javert's presence is noticed but not commented on yet; it would seem neither are quite up for discussion just yet. ]

Bucky/Soldat | OTA

[worthallthis]

I. Bones

Once they know what the spirits want, Soldat sets about coming up with a variety of offerings to share with them-- and with other Beaconites. They take it seriously, and all offerings have special significance based on who they're to be delivered with. Origami with Misty and Javert, food with Merwen, technological tinkerings for Reiju, and a patchwork cloak just delivered by themselves.

Find them sitting in the Invincible with paper to fold, trying to decide on the best items to bring, or exchanging recipes with Merwen in the kitchen, or just around the town with a needle, thread, and a collection of fabric scraps being sewn together. And half the time, they have a spirit sitting nearby, either waiting to snatch something or trying to mimic whatever they're doing.

The actual sharing is... a little terrifying, honestly, to a guy who'se had their brain messed with in lots of creative, painful ways. But Soldat is making a deliberate choice to trust, here, and to do what they can to help bridge spirits and Beacon residents. It's hard, but they're stubborn. They keep going back.


II. Night

After the gifts have been given and received, and the worst of the spirit mischief has subsided, Soldat settles back into their routine. Or... they try to. Things keep popping into their brain, or they keep thinking there's something else in their hands, or that they're somewhere else.

Considering how many people they shared gifts with, it takes quite a while to work out what exactly is going on, and mostly they feel like they're going a little crazy. (Crazier, anyway.) It gets worse the more offerings they make.

Anyone who's wound up connected with Soldat get moments of increased paranoia and need to keep eyes on their entire surroundings, flashes of unexplicable terror of something that isn't there, and... voices: one Brooklyn-accented man who sounds a lot like Soldat only more brash and more expressive; one flat-accented creature who speaks loudly but without inflection and not often more than one word at a time; and one rough, shuddery voice who sounds nothing like Soldat at all but constantly urges the listener to eat whatever's nearby, whether it's edible or not. It's not all bad: there's snatches of music (and humming or singing along to it), a variety of tasty food, warm swells of fondness. But the paranoia is probably the most all-encompassing, and the voices can be jarring. Enjoy your insight into what goes on in your soldier's head, everybody.

[flangirl]

"Soldat?"

Sometimes Pudding feels like she should knock on the kitchen doorway when other people are there already, even if they all live in the B&B together and should expect some amount of chaos. They all live together, but they're... all their own kinds of invisibly jumpy.

And she'd really like to never ever sneak up on Soldat, thanks, even if she knows doing so is nigh on impossible.

"You've been going along with the spirits a lot, right?" She doesn't really bother with small talk with Soldat. It's nice not to have to.

Cao Pi | open

[pure_havoc]

1. Joys

Cao Pi spends so much time maintaining perfect control of himself and his being that when he loses it, it usually comes off jarring and/or hilarious. Right now it's pretty damn hilarious, even if he doesn't think so, as he goes tearing past nearly-naked in dogged pursuit of a spirit carrying his chestplate over its head. The round furball is even faster on its spindly little legs, but Zihuan is at least keeping pace, perhaps finding it a lot easier to run without robes and armor weighing him down. But god he's pissed, occasionally yelling out a "Stop!" as if that's going to work.

Yep he sure is mostly naked right now. That sure is some ancient Chinese loincloth action and nothing else. He stumbles on a root and pauses to hop on one foot to nurse a stubbed toe, cursing willfully in his native language in that brief moment when no instant magical translation will correctly do for what words he just used.

2. Grief

It happens in a moment. Cao Pi is going around minding his business, nothing seems out of sorts at all, and then a slender spirit taller than him bumps into him and takes off into the darkness, and the bobble of light that goes with it is the emperor's lantern. He gets out a yelp and "Come back with that!" before feeling the first wave of effect, coughing and stumbling. Hopefully someone saw it happen and can take over the pursuit before worse happens.

3. Night

Don't worry, friends, the magical wine bottle is here to take your worries away. Cao Pi hovers around the bar in the Invincible, not only because that's where the glasses are, but because it's a lot easier to defend himself, his shit, and his lantern with four walls, a couple doors, and a bar counter between him and most of the spirits. There's a tiny one perched on his shoulder like a parrot, but it's just watching him - and everyone else who comes for a drink. He will pour, so long as you do the honors of topping his glass off in return. Just come and plop down and you'll get a glass, and remember, he doesn't card.

2

[callada]

Indeed, someone did. Rosinante isn't particularly close by - he was just making his way back to The Invincible from a short trip across the river. But the yell of a familiar voice catches his attention fast, and the bouncing lantern even faster after that. He breaks into a run.

Everyone might (justifiably) take him for a bumbling fool at times here, but he's capable of a good bit more, as he proves when, without even missing a beat, he swings down to grab Cao Pi and hoist him up over a shoulder, and keeps running after the light. "Can't risk that getting too far away. Hold on."

This is going to be a pain. He doesn't want to shoot the spirit - it's becoming clear just how important it is to keep on their good side. But if he has to, it's better than losing one of their own, and hopefully the spirits will understand the need for self-defense. For now, he runs on those long legs, trying to gain ground as he leaps over a downed log and deeper into the forest.

"Stop," he shouts out in the spirits' language - one of the few words he's got absolutely down perfectly now. Seemed like a reasonable priority.

Stone | OTA

[scarsolderthanyou]

I. Joys

Joke's on that spirit, Stone has very little in the way of wardrobe. He's got a lot of loose pants and tunic-like shirts, mostly in drab gray and light blue, and one coat. No shoes or socks. Nothing fancy.

So when the spirit digs around, Stone watches from the window (he'd been out on the roof of the Invincible) for a moment, amused more than anything else, then shifts up into his winged form to block the exit. And rumbles mock-warningly. Anyone passing by can see the great pale dragon crouching by the Invincible and wonder what's going on... or ask. Feel free to ask.


II. Grief

As soon as Stone cottons on to some of these spirits being unfriendly, he keeps to winged form a little more than usual, and does a lot of prowling around the various Beacon locations looking for sources of trouble. He's not super into diplomacy-- he's spent his whole damn life doing diplomacy-- but he's very good at protecting.

Also, after a few weeks of lessons with the metal-armed fellow, he can make some of the spirit language sounds, and he can make them in winged form. They're an octave lower than they should be, but hopefully they're still understandable when he growls, "No hurting them. Or I will hurt you."


III. Long Night - for Fitz and Klaes in particular

The two people who shared spirit-memories with him are going to have a fun time. They'll get flashes of fuzzy monocular vision of looking across Beacon from high up (Invincible's roof, probably). There's the overwhelming sensation of smelling and then sifting through the smells to find one that says "person" and one that says "food" and one that says "home". Once a day, they're treated to splashing in cool, pumpkin-smelling lakewater and feeling it on six appendages rather than four, plus a tail. Ever wanted to know what it feels like to fly? Here's your chance, Stone does that at least once a day, too.

He's quick enough to work out what's happening, at least, and tracks down both of them to make sure they know, too. And, you know, to apologize for any weird dreams they might get. "You okay?" is how he starts it.

III

[rereremembered]

And Fitz'll look up from his records-sorting in the school, blink at the old man, and nod.

"A'right, yeah, groovy," he says, clearly over compensating. "The flying thing's a bit...I flew on a dragon once, I've never been one. So that's pretty amazing. How're you?"

With the smoking and guitar playing and poxy human bollocks emotions. And maybe mundane, near-dreamless sleep.

Rosinante | OTA

[callada]

Library

Their discovery keeps Rosinante fascinated for a while. He's seated at a table (on the floor, of course - even like this his knees are bent to fit) delicately paging through an old, worn book. Law isn't far off, perusing the shelves, and occasionally Rosinante glances his way. But mostly, his attention is on their find, and if anyone walks in, he'll wave them over.

"Come here, check this out! A spirit told us where to find this. I guess it hasn't been moved since before the first world eater. There's a map!"

Bonfire

Mostly, the spirit invasion has been pretty fascinating. There has been so much to learn, and Rosinante, ever-dedicated to hoarding information, has his tablet out at the bonfire, where he's busily typing something up.

Keeping busy helps keep him focused, but more often than not the shared thoughts and feelings are pleasant. He has so much love for the few he's made offerings with, and so even when there's a flash of irritation, a shortness of temper, from one of the others he has ended up directly tied to, it doesn't bother him all that much. Besides! He gets flashes of taste every now and then - coffee, rice, chocolate. He savors them, having lost the sense entirely himself.

Pass by, and he'll look up quickly from his work, though. "Hey, did you give anything to the spirits? I'm trying to put together a list for the network of the things they've told us."

Wildcard

Come at him with whatever you got, I'm here for it.

library

[bigtoughgirl]

Meg hasn't been to see the spirits yet, mostly due to wanting to see if it's safe or not yet, but also because she's not really sure what she can offer. She's never lived with a lot of material possessions and doesn't have a whole lot that she thinks would be deemed valuable (there is her soul, she supposes, but she's not making that mistake again), but she's also familiar enough with nymphs, spirits, and gods to know that it doesn't necessarily matter if your offering has monetary value. She'll have to think of it a bit longer.

Meanwhile, she's in the library, looking for options when it comes to what to read, when Rosinante gets her attention.

"A map of what?" she asks, coming closer to get a look.

Will Ingram | OTA

[donttalktome]

Crimes Against Coffee

Stop that— stop it! [Listen, Will isn't normally the type to get physical unless cornered, but this is serious. He's about to climb up over the Landmark's counter and toss this spirit through the nearest window, physical strength be damned.]

That is not how you make coffee, you— that's cheese for Christ's sake. Move, you idiotic— [Oh, oh boy. The spirit turns and Will catches a glimpse of its... face? That sure is a visage of some kind.]

Look, you don't even have eyes, that's your problem. Get out of the way. [Things seem like they're about to go south here. Perhaps you should intervene... but on whose behalf?]

Crimes Against... Science?

[Seems Will can't catch a break with these outsider spirits. First they ruin his coffee and now they're ruining his concentration. He's trying to work in the lab, but these pesky creatures won't stop touching things. He swats at the fingers of one spirit using his tablet, narrowly missing it and smacking the keys of a computer instead.]

Don't you all have anything better to do!?

[You could help. Or you could just point and laugh.]

be gay do crimes, they said, but they didn't think about the poor science

[callada]

The lab is small and so Rosinante isn't too far off, even though he's up in the main house area, studying Dr. Solis' personal library for anything that might help. Yes, probably most of the good stuff is in the computers, but flipping through tangible collections of ink and paper gives its own satisfaction.

Irritation flares up in him like a storm, and he pauses a moment, wide-eyed. Is he angry at something, or someone? No, not especially. Is Law? Is -

Ah. The voice down below registers through the fog in his mind. He has yet to sort out which particular brand of anger tends to come from Law and which from Will, but that clears things up. With his mouth set in a thin frown, he climbs down to the lower level to see what's the matter, and catches sight of the spirits tag-teaming Will, with one dancing away from the swat while another leans over his shoulder and wraps long, spindly fingers around the cables attaching hardware together. That looks like trouble.

In a few quick paces, Rosinante draws even with the spirit and grabs hold of its wrist firmly. He doesn't pull, though - let's get the creature to let go before something important loses a power supply or something.

"Stop," he warns it, one of the few forest spirit words he knows and has already had to use frequently, then peers over his shoulder and down at Will, then past him.

"Watch out, that one's-" coming for the whole keyboard, by the looks of things.

Fitz Kreiner | OTA

[rereremembered]

all my joys

Someone...something, something which may have been someone, has made off with the big furry hat Fitz had arrived with. He's taken his Siberian explorer gear out to air before winter comes, and when he returns to his room in the Invincible he just it vanishing out the window. There's a merry clucking noise from whichever spirit has taken it.

Fitz runs back downstairs but is winded by the time he reaches the path. He holds his lantern aloft, scanning the darkness for fuzz or clucking.

"You bugger," he gasps, wincing. "I'm going to need that hat!"

all my bones

"...so the big one, it eats the littler one." Fitz has been expounding on what he and Stone have seen, and he's completely sober but so tired he's gesturing like a drunk. "And then, when it'd eaten it's tenth fellow spirit, then it got green eyes. The rest've'em seemed fine, cuddly even, but before that?"

He shudders, waves his hands. "we fail, we die. Horribly. S'more."

dem bones

[callada]

Rosinante sits and listens with eyes wide as he works on his cigarette. He's going to need another right after, at this rate.

"Wait, so they... They can transform?"

Maybe just from cannibalism, but maybe not. He casts an uneasy look at their surroundings, where several of the spirits, old and new, are busy dangling from a tree branch, seemingly daring each other to go farther and farther out until inevitably the branch bends precariously, dumping several onto the ground in a pile.

"And now we've just invited a whole lot more of them to hang out with us."

elektra natchios | OTA

[ultraviolents]

HEAVEN KNOWS THAT I'M BORN TOO LATE FOR THESE GHOSTS THAT I CHASE

[ while returning to the landmark from the labs one evening (or afternoon or maybe even early morning), elektra can be found carrying a jar containing the hand of something that doesn't look like it belonged to a human. she's no scientist but the frog spirit who'd found her earlier at the lab had pulled the jar down and laid it at her feet as she'd been working had seemed pretty insistent that she take it home with her. a little strange, but harmless enough, although she's not sure what she'll do with it. maybe treeby will like the decoration.

as she's approaching town, she notices that all the spirits appear quite active. there's clothing and personal items scattered on the ground and hung from branches and in windows. that's much more invasive, but not altogether bad, until...wait a minute. ]

Is that my sweater?!

I'M ALIVE TO FLY HIGHER THAN ANGELS IN OUTFIELDS OUTSIDE OF MY MIND

[ her encounter had been useful, though elektra's not sure what to do with the information besides share it. it had felt like reading the first part of a book and leaving off right before an important detail was revealed, and maybe that was the point - showing the leadup to something big and tragic that had befallen the woman whose eyes she'd been seeing through and the people she'd been responsible for.

in beacon, that could really be anything. but based on the location and the knowledge she remembers the woman possessing, she knows that the mines have something to do with it.

she's quiet as she comes back to herself, lulled into silence and drowsiness until more people start to arrive at the bonfire, looking as though they're in similar states to her. she waits until a few of them start looking (and she starts feeling) a little more lively before speaking. ]

What did you see?

I'M ASCENDING THESE LADDERS; I'M CLIMBING, SAY GOODBYE

[ if you've got something else in mind i'm game! hit me up via PMs or find me on plurk (vdova) if you'd like to hash something out. ]

I'm Alive

[worthallthis]

[Soldat drops down onto the bench just to her bench's left, on the closer end at least. The weariness is familiar, now, but so is the comfort that they got good intel, and maybe made a friend or two.]

Which one. This is. This is. The third time I done this. This time was some poor guy whose body was all fucked up and he saw a World Eater get maybe blown up before he died. Maybe.

[If it was really a successful attack that means, of course, there's more than one of those things, since there was one in a much later memory they saw earlier with Reiju.]