synflux | PRE-FIGHT EVENT #1

PRE-FIGHT EVENT #1

PRE-FIGHT EVENT #1

CONTENT WARNINGS: natural disaster, PTSD, mind-control, psychological trauma, violence, delirium from heat, temporary blindness, hallucinations, dead bodies.

▶ 001. STORM CHASERS.

After weeks of searching for clues on the kaiju and missing people, the desert landscape begins to blend together. Didn’t you pass that cactus earlier today? That rock formation looks exactly like the one you passed the other day. It’s natural to loop back around when conducting a search but doesn’t it feel like everyone has been going in circles more frequently?

The heat isn’t helping either. Temperatures start to rise and continue to rise to all time highs. The sun is unrelenting and the only reliable shelter they have are their campers. Prolonged exposure outside will result in heat exhaustion, dehydration, and delirium.

Warnings will be sent to the Outsiders via their implants to keep them up to date with the weather as well as providing health tips such as reminders to stay hydrated or seek shelter during the hottest parts of the day. They will also receive warnings for sand storms and tornadoes called dust devils. The storms start of short and relatively weak but gradually begin to last longer and become more powerful. Pretty soon, Outsiders will not be able to see ahead from the dense sand and wind.

Outsiders will be told to chase after the storms and if they progress far enough, they will begin to find traces of people. They will find random belongings, articles of clothing, and occasionally, human remains in varying states of decomposition. Eventually, however, they will start to find survivors suffering from extreme fatigue and dehydration. They speak incoherently to themselves and as soon as they regain their strength, they try to run into storms while calling out to things that people can’t see.

Outsiders can wait for emergency caravans to arrive from Vegas to take survivors back to the city or they can take back the survivors themselves and use the opportunity to restock on supplies.

▶ 002. THE STORM CALLS.

The sandstorms increase and grow stronger until eventually, they last entire days. The sands shift, the grounds shake, and something thunderous can be heard in the dust. It becomes harder to see out in the desert and it’s almost like the storms are trying to hide something. At the edge of a storm, sharp eyed Outsiders may catch sight of a great shadowy serpent in the heart of the storm. Messages to their implants will urge them to get closer and investigate but be careful.

The storm grows stronger as they approach and the camper vans may slow down or get stuck in the shifting sands forcing some of them to proceed on foot to make visuals. Eventually, they will get close enough to finally establish clear visuals on their target: A giant sand worm. It’s size is not immediately clear due to the poor visibility and it being partially underground. However, the worm also sees them and when it does, it glows. The light catches on and reflects against the sand particles and that’s when it hits some of the Outsiders: A sudden splitting headache followed by an inability to look away.

Some outsiders may suddenly find themselves entranced by the worm; hypnotized. They will begin to see mirages and hear voices calling out to them in the storm. Captivated Outsiders will find themselves wanting to run into the storm to chase after the phantoms, some of them images and figures of people from their past and present back home. If anyone attempts to stop them, they will become irrational, violent, and turn on their friends and allies. Some Outsiders may begin to view their allies as enemies and attack, turning on one another in a gruesome frenzy. Some of the hypnotic beams will effect those still in their campers, turning on their friends and other Outsiders.

Outsiders will have to restrain each other to keep them from running into the desert or harming each other. In the chaos, the worm disappears into the storm. The psychic effects of the monster will weaken after the worm disappears and the storm dies down but it may leave some characters feeling overwhelmed and confused in the aftermath. Some will remain in an erratic state for several days, occasionally acting normal. In the insanity of all of this, Outsiders may have picked up another Outsider into their camper van for their protection or camper parties remain shuffled. It's up to the ones unaffected by the psychic attacks to watch over the others while retreating from the desert.

▶ 003. CITY OF DREAMS.

Following the disaster of the first sighting, LILITH will order characters to return to Vegas so they can assess what happened. En route to Vegas, some Outsiders may notice some side effects from the prolonged exposure to the sandstorm. They may experience shortness of breath and coughing as a result of breathing in so much dust. Furthermore, they may experience a splitting headache or pain behind their eyes. Their implants may lag, glitch, or go completely offline which will render them temporarily blind in one or both eyes. It seems that the fine sand and dust combined with whatever psychic damage the worm did may have messed with their implants and crossed some sensors which is all the more reason to return to Vegas for treatment.

Outsiders may become lethargic and experience vivid daydreams while they are awake or regular dreams while sleeping. In these dreams, they may relive memories. Some of these memories may be pleasant but others may be traumatic or things characters would rather keep secret. Unfortunately, being in close proximity to someone suffering from these effects will force a link through a glitch in their implants and drag other characters into the dream.

These links will function similarly to how simulation training works. The dreams they visit appear to be very realistic and characters can experience pain and be hurt within the memory. They will be able to interact with the memories. While in these memories, they can try to wake up the memory holder to bring them back to reality. Who knows, maybe helping each other understand what is real and a dream may even make them more resilient to the worm’s attacks the next time they go into the desert...

▶ 004. REST & RECOVERY

As characters recover from the psychic effects and implant glitches, LILITH will try to assess everyone’s biometrics to understand what happened. Characters who need therapy or counseling after reliving some horrible memories of theirs will be provided sessions via their implants. They now understand that the worm has some sort of psychic mind control power that it can use on victims. It is currently too dangerous to go back into the desert until they can come up with a proper defense against it.

Outsiders will be ordered to stay in Vegas and focus on recovery, given two queen side bed hotel rooms again OR if they would prefer to stay in the camper vans, that is also fine, with their same room mates or new ones. They are confident that they can fix the implants with the right upgrade but they aren’t sure what to do to stop people from following the call of the desert and making them act erratically. What is important is that LILITH sticks together.

In the meantime, those who have recovered, and even those who are experiencing these issues are ordered to remain close to one another; a buddy system of sorts. Each Outsider will be given designated groups to keep tight watch over one another while in Vegas. They will be responsible for physically checking on those in their groups and making sure one another’s whereabouts are properly tracked in order to avoid losing anyone to the desert.

LILITH encourages Outsiders to hang tight and wait for instructions before adventuring back out into the desert.

▶ 005. AFTERWORD.

In light of the results of the scheduling poll, here is our first event with a preview of the kaiju. All side effects from either the sandstorms or the worm kaiju can last for as short or as long as players would like.

For the daydreams/memory share, players can decide how they would like characters to experience the memories, whether it plays out in front of them like a movie or if they're reliving it by acting out the scene all over again or a mix of both. We encourage you guys to have fun with it and use whatever format feels most comfortable.

As always, feel free to leave questions under the QUESTIONS thread. All tags on this log are worth 2 points and will count towards June AC.

EVENT BREAKDOWN (CLICK TO EXPAND)

1. STORM CHASERS: Outsiders, still in the now expanded Mojave Desert, face problems with heat and sandstorms, resulting in dehydration and delirium. Still, LILITH encourages them to press onward in their camper vans and desert approved attire. Many dead bodies are found, but those that survive, Outsiders can keep an eye on survivors until emergency care can come pick them up.

2. STORM CALLS: A glimpse of the creature causing the problems is seen beneath the sands surface: a giant sandworm. It attacks LILITH recruits with psychological damage, causing Outsiders to hallucinate memories of their past, act erratic and violent and turn on LILITH crew. Outsiders are tasked to wrangle in one another and retreat back to Las Vegas to recover.

3. CITY OF DREAMS: Seeking refuge back in Las Vegas, character's implants go haywire from the psychic attacks, causing a memory share between characters that are close enough to one another.

4. REST & RECOVERY: Outsiders are placed in hotels again, or if they prefer to stay in the camper vans. They are tasked to keep an eye out on one another and sit tight for further instructions while LILITH assesses their data and next move to wrangle in the sandworm. Outsiders are to wait until given instructions.

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Then give up on them.

[ Those so-called geniuses, that is. Honestly, he should have realized that earlier if he was really that smart... But she won't tell him that, now that would be just rude. ]

Use your intellect to make life better for humans! Help them overcome their need for beings such as us.

[ Because honestly, gods just make life worse for humans. They're selfish, they don't care who or what they hurt and they're often single-minded. ]

That is the true potential of humanity that must be fulfilled. Not the longing for gods to look at you.

That has always been my intention! I did not achieve all that I have just for Nous' recognition! My desire to help humanity has always been genuine!

[ Well, it had been, for the longest time. But then everyone started saying it was only a matter of time before he would be recognized by Nous—his parents, his mentors, his colleagues, and even the public. Then it became questions—why hadn't he been recognized by Nous yet? With all those achievements under his belt, surely, if anyone was worthy of recognition, it would be him, right? Was there something wrong with him?

At some point, he, too, had started yearning for Nous' gaze. Believed that he deserved it. Even he was not immune to the pressure from his peers and the public. Day after day, he laboured with hope in his chest until that hope shriveled up into a bitter, rotten carcass that sat lodged in his being, unable to be excised until now.

How utterly idiotic of him. Had any of the members of the Genius Society yearned for Their gaze? No, he reckons. None of them would have. Because it is not Nous' gaze that they covet—it is knowledge itself. Nous was only a means to an end for them, never the objective. And Nous, in turn, would only look upon those who share that goal with Them, because humanity has never been Their concern. And never will be.

This is where he differs from Them and Their chosen. ]

...I will never be one of them. They have forsaken humanity in their desire for knowledge. I... refuse to discard humanity.

[ Because he cares about them. Because he loves humanity. ]

Edited 2024-06-10 05:40 (UTC)

[ Ah, she's gotten through to him! The goddess sparkles - quite literally - as she smiles at him. Surely this is because they're in a dream, but alas the truth is much more confounding. Ereshkigal just sparkles whenever she's particularly happy.

Trying to explain it would bring those geniuses down to their knees. ]

Good.

[ She takes a step back and claps for him very enthusiastically. It's easier for her to deal with determined people than with people who cry. She wonders if he'll remember that when he emerges from this memory...? ]

Yours is the potential to surpass gods. And any deities worth their salt will encourage you to embrace your humanity.

[ Nous can suck it. ]

[ It's not the strangest thing he's seen. He would not comment, even if this was reality and not a dream.

And yes, he will remember this. It'll be odd, to have received a pep talk from this self-proclaimed goddess for an event of his past, but he will recognize the kindness behind it (and proceed to never openly acknowledge it because he is not a man that deals with his emotions very well). ]

In the end, the Aeons are only the embodiment of the Paths they walk upon. There is no room for them to consider anything else.

[ He cannot be so singular in mind, because he is human. He will always be human, because it is a human that should help and save humanity, not an Aeon, or a Genius, or anything else.

There's a shift to the dream. Not a visible one, but something in the atmosphere changes, and Ratio blinks, the veil of the memory lifting off him. He looks at Ereshkigal with clear eyes this time. ]

...so it's my memory this time, hm?

[ Oh...? Is that change...? Yes! ]

Ah, you've regained awareness!

[ Back to being the big meanie she met during the maid accident. Hopefully though, that means she really did help him! Maybe he'll even be nicer and less rude. ]

I was starting to think I'd have to electrocute you for you to snap out of it.

[ It just works. ]

I will thank you never to consider electrocuting me, now or in the future, regardless of what state I'm in.

[ Ereshkigal... if you're a goddess, do you really comprehend how fragile humans are??? Don't try it on him. Please.

Anyway, he walks back to his desk, picking up the letter from the IPC with a rueful smile. It's been a long time since he's seen it. He hadn't disposed of it, but it was locked somewhere under piles of files and paper in his personal archives. ]

It was difficult, to let go of my desire for Nous' gaze. I spent much of my late teens and early adulthood coveting Their approval. Though the brain may know one thing, the heart is slow to believe.

[ She's very good at dealing just the right amount of electrical damage so that it doesn't kill, he really has zero need to worry. Admittedly, that she can do that may be a worrying thing in itself, but details. ]

Honestly, I'm surprised... Your world's technology is very advanced.

[ More than the modern-day Earth Ritsuka comes from. ]

Where I come from, we gods left the human world when we were no longer needed. [A pause.] I suppose those who long for those "aeons" gaze help maintain their existence.

[ That or it works in a radically different way, with rules she can't possibly guess on her own. It's curious, either way. ]

Regardless, you can be proud of having grown past that need. Many are those who never do.

[ He sighs, shaking his head as he places the letter on the desk again. ]

You misunderstand the nature of the Aeons. They do not serve humanity, nor are they sustained by people's faith and prayer, as some fiction depicts gods to be. They are ascended beings, treading upon Paths imperceptible to mortals and wielding powers we cannot fathom in service of those Paths. They exist separately from humanity and are not controlled by us.

To the eyes of humanity, Aeons appear to be the physical embodiment of philosophical concepts, such as Elation, Erudition or Preservation. Any individual who finds these concepts resonating with them will often choose to join factions that align themselves with an Aeon. Regardless of if the faction has had direct contact with the Aeon or even actively opposes them, any who tread upon the Path of the Aeon can be said to serve Them in some manner. But... [ He pauses for a moment, thinking over his words. ] ...few yearn for Their gaze in the manner that I did, for it takes an exceptional individual who strongly resonates with Their Path to draw Their gaze. The ordinary person may pray to an Aeon, but they do so knowing the Aeons will not respond.

It is fact that I have exhibited capabilities well above the average person, and my numerous accomplishments match those of the Genius Society, the ones who have received Nous' gaze. Thus, it was not unreasonable for me to expect the same, and many people thought it was a foregone conclusion. But I never received Their gaze... nor do I expect to in the future.

[ Wow, that's a lot to take in at once... Thankfully, most of what he says makes sense. Though she's not sure why he speaks of gods being sustained by people's faith as "fictional." It is partly true in her world. ]

Mhm, so more akin to alien gods...

[ Outer gods are always such a pain. No wonder only people who lost their humanity are acknowledged by that Nous. It is not a divinity of the human order to begin with. That together with the other information he gave her leads to a logical conclusion: ]

You said few yearn for their gaze... Do those who receive Nous' gaze usually long for it? Or do they just accidentally get it as a result of their achievements?

[ That is because they only exist in fiction where he comes from. If any other gods exist besides the Aeons, he has seen no proof of them. ]

...that is not a question I can answer definitively, as I do not have insight into the Geniuses' minds, but based on what I know of them, I would hypothesize that they do not. It is merely a natural result of their single-minded focus in the pursuit of knowledge.

[ And that was where he first started to err. If he had truly been one of their ilk, he would have never yearned for Nous' gaze, too busy with his head in the books seeking knowledge. ]

[ The proof is right before his eyes! Hmpf. Regardless, his answer is exactly what she had expected. The desire to become a "genius" makes becoming one impossible. ]

They remind me of mages...

[ Single-minded focus on the pursuit of knowledge? Absolutely zero $^*à given as to the consequences of their actions. Yep, sounds just like them. ]

Well, you're not like them. So remember this and I'm sure you'll do just fine for a human!

[ He can admit that he had been young and foolish. And too easily influenced by the opinions of others. In the wake of this letter, he'd spent a considerable amount of time reflecting on his motivations, and had eventually come to the conclusion that the words of the public and fellow researchers had influenced him on some level. Even though he'd tried his best to remain unmoved, a decade of lavish praise and insistence that he would one day receive an invitation to the Genius Society had slowly warped something inside of him, until he started yearning for that membership himself.

The lesson he learned was to be even more thorough in vetting his own motivations and desires, and be even more distant from his colleagues and students. To remain impartial and uninfluenced, he had to keep himself separate from all.

It is perhaps a lonely existence, but it is one he chose for himself. ]

I am not in need of such assurance now. This memory occurred a few years ago—I have already drawn my conclusions from it. All that is left... no. It is nothing but lingering emotions, befitting the desire I held for a better part of my life.

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PRE-FIGHT EVENT #1

▶ 001. STORM CHASERS.

▶ 002. THE STORM CALLS.

▶ 003. CITY OF DREAMS.

▶ 004. REST & RECOVERY

▶ 005. AFTERWORD.

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