KAIJU FIGHT #3

[synfluxmods]

KAIJU FIGHT #3

CONTENT WARNINGS: mind control, parasitic worms, gore

▶ 001. POSITIVE THINKING.

The aftermath of the last kaiju battle, has had LILITH researchers scrambling to find an adequate way to combat the aftereffects of the kaiju discovered in the desert. While their research is still very much a work in progress, for now… it’ll have to do. In the early hours of the morning, a message will appear on everyone’s oculars, asking them to suit up immediately and meet at the given coordinates, which will act as the Outsiders rendezvous point. These coordinates lead to an abandoned hotel within 1 mile to the outskirts of the strip.

"The system is updating…

The system is updating…

Downloading: ⇓"

A new update awaits each Outsider on their oculars. There is no option to decline, and right away it prompts you through several steps. This update was all in part thanks to the various dreams that the oculars have been reacting to. The researchers for LILITH figured out a way to combat these pesky mental side effects by forcing the mind into a state of equilibrium. In order to do this, Outsiders will be asked to think of their happiest memories. Perhaps, due in part to everyone downloading this update at the same time, people will automatically feel an odd sensation as they think back on these memories, almost as if their mind is connected to a collective. These memories will leave each Outsider feeling fulfilled, or even a temporary sense of high as the download continues. As a result, Outsiders may feel giddy or a sense of calm. Some may be motivated to talk about their happy memories with others the first time they do this.

▶ 002. BREACH OF THE CITY.

Once the download is completed, there’s zero time to rest. It looks like whatever they found in the desert isn’t interested in just sitting and waiting. They’ve come to the city with clear intentions of gradually infiltrating its borders. Who are they? Why, the missing people of course.

Apparently, as part of the kaijus life cycle, it lays eggs, which then hatch into younger worms, similar to actual earthworms. These young worms, unable to protect themselves, control the minds of other living entities in order to do their bidding and keep their own bodies safe. Once infected, their hosts become vicious and hungry for meat, attacking any living thing in sight and trying to eat its flesh to nourish the parasite within.

It’ll be up to the Outsiders in order to scope out these young worms controlling the people of the desert, while simultaneously knocking those individuals out of commission. In some rare circumstances, there will be no turning back for these individuals; if the young worm actually burrows themselves into the bodies of the controlled, they are no more than a reanimated corpse, and will need to be eliminated immediately. The longer these worms exist within these people’s bodies, the larger they grow, and by extension, the more influence they can exert over a larger net of people.

Instead of the camper vans, LILITH has provided other sleeker vehicles in order to quickly traverse the city. The vehicles are equipped for speed and are meant to assist in getting to the various coordinates LILITH sends out to everyone’s oculars. The coordinates all mark where these “controlled people” have been seen via drone footage.

▶ 003. WORM ON THE MIND.

While the attention will be focused on destroying the monsters that have come up to the city, there will be occasional tremors that can be felt that seem to come from far below— almost as if they were cries from the old city that lay forgotten below. Unfortunately, it’s much worse.

In the middle of staving off the attacks from the mysterious creatures, there will suddenly be the sound of the defense alarm blaring, and without any additional warning, something breaks through the center of the city. This will first be punctuated by the sounds of the building around them crumbling, followed by the clear visual of the large serpentine creature they’ve encountered in the desert. The large sand worm doesn’t even pause to regain its bearings. As soon as it recognizes the presence of other organisms, it begins glowing a fluorescent shade in varying indefinable colors—

Thanks to the updates on the oculars, there will no longer be hallucinations that follow any contact with the worm, however, if one stares too long, they will still be met with splitting headaches and a pressing sense of agitation, so Outsiders are cautioned against prolonged exposure. That said, it won’t always be easy to take a breather against such a large creature.

█ █ █ MONSTER DEBRIEF SHEET
NAME: ALITTA VIRENS
HEIGHT: 400 metres
WEIGHT: 1,900,000 kg
CLASS: Extremely Dangerous
LOCATION: Las Vegas, USA
ABILITIES: Mind control. Although full details are UNKNOWN, its young can take control of human and animal hosts. Once under their control, the hosts will become aggressive and hungry for meat, which is theorized to feed and nourish the young worms until they are ready to emerge.
EXTRA NOTES: According to what the researchers have surmised, similar kaiju have appeared on a much smaller scale and are susceptible to water poisoning and electrical shocks. LILITH has not found a way to fully free the hosts from the parasite, but they can be stunned after receiving multiple electric shocks.

"
YAMAKAWA: Angels of LILITH, please be advised of your roles moving forward. With the city already infiltrated, we will need to be quick."

A brief is sent along with her message.

█ █ █ MISSION ROLES:

✖ GROUP ONE: Those who fulfill this role will need to be equipped with brute strength and the ability to survive the attacks in a city that is the midst of being destroyed. They will also need the stamina to keep the worm at bay as the others complete their tasks before also gathering to exterminate the kaiju.
✖ GROUP TWO: With strong mental fortitude, these individuals will be expected to clean up the group of controlled individuals; not all will be able to be saved, and the ability to make that distinction is imperative for this role. Those who appear too far gone will not be able to regain their senses. They will need to be killed.
✖ GROUP THREE: This group will be concentrated on being able to property evacuate the citizens that remain in the city of Las Vegas. Preferably those who are quick on their feet, or are able to stealthily circumvent the dangers in the city in order to get the people to safety would be ideal for this role.
✖ GROUP FOUR: Those with support skills or a medical background will be expected to assist those in the other groups, whether by healing, additional abilities, or by assisting the other groups as needed.

Note: Roles can be decided by the characters themselves as to what they figure is appropriate and most fitted to their skill set. Everyone will eventually fight the worm (so this does not affect the fight mechanics of the worm itself) and people can also jump from one role to another.

▶ 004. LET'S WRAP UP.

The areas the worm has traversed leaves the ground above it weak and unsteady. Due in part to this, those who have evacuated will need to remain in the shelter until further notice. As a result, it’s up to the Outsiders to clean up the city. Aside from the large gaping hole in the center of the city that they can’t address immediately, they are first expected to get rid of the carcasses of the larvae.

Each Outsider will be provided with a suit and will even be given hover packs to scale down the side of these large holes. They will also be given traditional ropes and lines for those who want to get creative with scaling, or who simply didn’t make it there quickly enough to grab a hover pack (with the destruction to the city, some supplies are still in transit). They will be expected to review each carcass and tag which ones can be sent to the lab for further review, and which should simply be discarded as being unusable.

A coordinated effort is needed to adequately dispose of the largest kaiju. The alitta virens will need to be cut into several thousands of pieces, and so work needs to begin immediately. It’s not like the people can return to everyday life with a giant serpent-like entity laying on top of their city. Outsiders should be particularly cautious with it; even when dead, as it still seems to have strange tendrils inside of its body that appear to be writhing even after its death.

▶ 005. AFTERWORD.

Welcome to our third kaiju log!
Feel free to NPC your characters' fights with the smaller kaijus. The main fight with the largest one will be determined via a HP-based system (See below). Feel free to ask any other questions below!

All tags on this log are worth 2 points.

EVENT BREAKDOWN (CLICK TO EXPAND)

1. POSITIVE THINKING: LILITH has updated everyone's implants and encourage them to think of their happiest thoughts to give the technology the mental boost they need. Some characters may feel high or giddy and want to express their happy memories to someone else.

2. BREACH OF THE CITY: The worm larvae have a parasitic nature and are taking over the bodies of civilians. Outsiders are tasks to seek out those affected, killing worm larvae or civilians with parasites who are beyond help.

3. WORM ON THE MIND: The largest worm breaks through the ground in the heart of the city and Outsiders are encouraged to attack within their arranged group.

4. LET'S WRAP UP: After the sandworm monster is killed, Outsiders will be tasked with clean up efforts.

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Comments

[frostfist]

Oh. [ A small noise of surprise. How'd he miss that happening? ] Congratulations on graduating.

[ Seriously, he means it. Even if Raidou is a smart kid, things are complicated enough in Neo-Tokyo that sticking around despite everything to finish schooling is a pretty impressive thing in his book. Besides, isn't that the sort of thing you're supposed to say in a situation like this anyway? ]

I never made it that far, so I suppose that means you're officially more learned than I am. On paper, at least.

[ But he doesn't sound bothered by his lack of formal education, at least. ]

How do you like what you're doing now?

[the_fourteenth]

[At the sound of the surprise, he smiles faintly, with a dismissive wave of a hand.]

Thanks. I was just very glad to be out of there.

[The Raidou equivalent of "I hated schooling here".

The reason he takes his duties so seriously is that he considers this world his home now. If they're lucky, one day, there will be no more kaiju, and he'll have a life ahead of him.]

I do. It familiar to me, from back home. Even if the shrines are still a bit different, they're still quite a lot like they are in my time.

[He has a moment of quiet thought before adding something else.]

After the kaiju attacks, people would be lined up at the shrines, looking for all kinds of help. I thought maybe that might be the best way for me to make a difference here.

[frostfist]

[ Raidou might not be a particularly chatty person, but it's always nice to hear about his achievements and his goals and the ways he always seems to make himself useful. A serious, hardworking young man, and one deserving respect. ]

It sounds like you've really made a place for yourself here.

[ It's a good thing as far as Wriothesley's concerned, especially when he himself still feels caught between two worlds, attention split between the crisis here and the goings-on back home in Fontaine. ]

What about once we get rid of the kaiju? What will you do then?

[ Maybe it's just a dream, but sometimes it's nice to talk about dreams. ]

[the_fourteenth]

[A dream, sure, but one he thinks about a lot. He's thought about it a lot, but not many people have asked him about it. It's something he has a lot of feelings on, but in typical Raidou fashion, he has a hard time talking about it, articulating it. he looks away, expression saddening.]

I'm hoping I can stay. If that's allowed. Perhaps, I should be going home to... to face what is coming to me, as a summoner should.

[It would be his end, in one way or another. Should he go home to face his fate as a proper summoner, or should he stay here and use the second chance he was given? He didn't feel as if he deserved one, yet here he was.

His voice gets quieter.]

Is it right for me want to stay?

[frostfist]

[ It's a tough question, one that's sure to elicit any number of different responses depending on the person asked. It's one he's thought about plenty in the past, during his downtime in the privacy of his room, and on occasion in the company of others.

He could say all sorts of things on the subject, offer up different viewpoints and forms of advice, but at the end of the day.... ]

Why not? It's your life. You should get to decide how to you want to live it, and where.

[ And sure, Raidou might have family and friends back home that would disapprove, or some important duty he ought to be shouldering, but there's still nothing wrong with him to want to stay in Neo-Tokyo even if he chooses not to in the end. ]

Obviously I don't know your circumstances back home or what you might be dealing with. Maybe there's a reason you can't stay. But... [ His voice trails away for a moment before it picks up again. ] There's nothing wrong with wanting to stay. If being here is what makes you happy, then I think I think you should give it a shot.

[the_fourteenth]

[It's your life. Only, it's not. As the Capital's summoner, he gave up his will to serve the citizens and put their will above his own. While he might have failed in those duties, staying here feels like running away from the fate he earned.

But at the end of the day, no matter how disciplined, well-trained, and self-sacrificing is, he's still a teenage boy. A human being. One, who for the first time ever, has gotten a glimpse of a normal life here.

Despite the hardships here, despite being homesick, he still liked it here. He was happy, because of the other Outsiders he's gotten to know. There were many here he cared about and who cared for him.

He finally looks at Wriothesley again, nodding, growing a little in conviction.]

I am. I want to stay. I just wish thinking so didn't make me feel like a coward.

[frostfist]

[ There's so much he still doesn't know about Raidou and so many other Outsiders here. They all have their own stories to tell and a history only they know. But what he does know are the actions he's seen from the young man, actions that have cemented him as someone hardworking and selfless.

Wriothesley smiles, small but genuine, one hand reaching out to pat Raiou on the shoulder. ]

I don't think a coward would be out here risking life and limb to protect the people of both Neo-Tokyo and Las Vegas.

[ Just sayin'. ]

The fact that you're even here worrying about whether or not it's the right thing says a lot. Plenty of people wouldn't even give this decision more than a moment's thought.

[the_fourteenth]

"I am but a sword that cuts through evil. My individual will is discarded for the sake of the people. My mission is bestowed upon me by the Yatagarasu Organization for the security of the homeland."

[These lines are rote, delivered with an air that suggests he's said them many, many times.]

My life wasn't my own anymore. I was the blade and the shield against evil for the people of the Capital. But before I got here, I failed in those duties. Punishment is coming to me in one form or another.

[And, as a noble, well-trained member of the Kuzunoha clan, clearly feels like he should go home to face that.

It's all hard for him to admit, but each of the few times he's managed to talk about it, it gets a little easier.]

Perhaps I am no longer a summoner, and this is not the Capital. But I want to uphold those ideals here too.

[The supportive hand on his shoulder seems to at least help a bit of the tension melt away.]

[frostfist]

[ He doesn't know what the Yatagarasu Organization is, or what types of evil Raidou might have faced back home as its blade. But he doesn't need to know to hear the echo of another tale in the explanation given to him, a memory of Yuji and his trial floating to the forefront of his mind.

Two children (because that's what they are, still kids), burdened with a task no one should have to carry alone, and subsequently punished when ultimately they aren't able to fulfill the task given to them. It's enough to make his heart hurt. ]

I think you should. [ More importantly: ] I think you can. Your duty as a summoner may be important to you but that's not all of who you are. It's okay to be yourself here while upholding those ideals. Take the time you need, however long you need, to decide on the path you think is best.