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

[elfsufficient]

[ That does seem to be the way, especially amongst the adults Fern has spent time with even before arriving here. As much as Sein's womanizing attitude and tendency towards many vices bothered her... He was someone they could count on, and very well saved their lives at one point. Fern is reminded very much of that, here.

At his prompting, she studies the map and its new overlay, glancing around to orient herself. ]

Very well. I will make my way there.

[ In a similar vein, despite her attitude at times... Fern knows to play her part in a team. Especially when so many lives are at stake...

As she starts flying over to the marked area: ]

...Will you stay on the line, Mister Elysium?

[transmit]

[ Praying that she gets to meet a capable and responsible adult that doesn't have some kind of unhealthy coping mechanism one day… it's what she deserves. But, there's a noise of acknowledgement at her assent before he considers dropping the line to leave her to concentrate on her task at hand—that is, until he notes what sounds similar to uncertainty and he's quick to pivot. ]

I can.

[ An immediate answer, though he does contemplate it a bit further before continuing. Did she want him to make conversation, then? ]

I'm coordinating with some others to determine which other areas we should monitor more closely, so I can keep you in the loop while I'm at it. You're a real help, you know? I'm not surprised that everyone's really come together for the effort, but seeing it happen real-time is something else. [ A quiet laugh. ] Feel free to shut me up anytime if I'm talking too much, by the way.

[ He did wonder, at one point, where her maturity must've come from given she'd seemed fairly young, and that it wasn't something that arose out of nowhere… but when you come from a world where fourteen-year-olds and/or upended civilians are regularly on the frontlines for battle, well. You learn to be less fazed by their presence and more concerned about what you can do to help them through it. ]

[elfsufficient]

[ To his credit, this conversation is far more pleasant than the one they'd had when they first met, and though the present situation is certainly more harrowing than waiting in line while dressed like maids... She's seeing a more serious side to him, which she appreciates in this moment.

It's... different, here, without Mistress Frieren's experience and wisdom to rely on when Fern isn't sure what to do. She's surely faced many situations like this in her long life, and without her, Fern has felt just a little bit lost. She knows what she's capable of, what she can do, but it's been difficult to understand where she slots in amidst all of this chaos.

All to say - she really does appreciate Elysium and the role he's taken on right now. ]

...You, too. It's... difficult to know what to do, when it feels like there are so many things one can do. So I appreciate your... guidance.

[ ...She's not normally a talkative type, of course, but so long as they're on the line, she'll do her best not to be so awkward. ]

Focusing on listening to someone talk is easier than listening to everything that's going on. It's almost overwhelming...

[ The sirens, the destruction, all of the fighting... it's a lot. ]

[transmit]

[ Elysium can't say he has much experience by way of dealing with monsters to the scale they're currently faced with, but he at least has been at the forefront of plenty of evacuations before. Ignoring the giant worm wreaking havoc in the middle of the city is easier said than done, he gets it; every so often his gaze trails back to it briefly, yet he reminds himself every time that there are more important things for him to do than concentrate on something he isn't as equipped to handle. ]

We take it one step at a time, Miss Fern. One step at a time.

[ In their backdrop, the Alitta Virens seemingly howls from where its emerged. On his end, his mouth presses into a thin line. Maintaining an unruffled tone: ]

And we trust that our allies have our backs just as we have theirs. They can't very well fend off our foe while also worrying about getting civilians to safety. So let's do our best here, shall we? Once we've handled this, we can focus on regrouping.

[elfsufficient]

[ Try as she might, Fern cannot quite manage to remain unruffled for her own part. She's faced many monsters by herself, but the Alitta Virens is far more frightening and daunting than anything she's ever faced, even with Mistress Frieren. Possibly even more frightening than Mistress Frieren herself. ]

Y—Yes. Everyone has their own part to play. That's.. that's how we'll defeat it together. Thank you for the reminder, Mister Elysium...

[ ... ]

I'm approaching the area you asked me to check...