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synflux2024-09-28 12:07 pm
synfluxmods) wrote in synflux2024-09-28 12:07 pm
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TRAVEL LOG #3: KIDNAPPED CHARACTERS ONLY
THE CHOSEN
▶ CASTLE BRAN
The last thing you remember might be speaking to a friend, making merry with a stranger, or enjoying a quiet night against the backlight of the bonfire. Your memories between then and now are a blur—one moment you were in the village, and the next you are here, arising from your slumber and finding yourself in a lavish room with gothic and archaic decor. The windows of the castle are bolted shut so no light goes in and no soul escapes, but candles have been so kindly lit for the captured to find their way. If you can manage to unbolt a window and peek outside, all you will see is a dark fog, obscuring all light and thrusting the castle into an eternal night. The room is old, dark, and eerie, but clean, looking very much lived in and cared for. Within every room, the skull of a wolf has been carefully placed, almost like it oversees the inhabitants.
Welcome to the Castle Bran.
Outsiders, whom attendants within the castle will so reverently refer to as the ‘Chosen’, will find themselves waking up spread across the many rooms of the castle. All their belongings were left behind at the village, and they’ll find that they’ve been cleaned up and dressed carefully in fresh, white linen. Another thing they might notice immediately is that they have been completely stripped of all their powers and weapons, rendering them as strong as any other human.
They are free to roam the many rooms and hallways of the castle but they cannot go any deeper than the ground floor. The attendants of the castle, who appear to be villagers from the town, will follow them and try their best to tend to their every need, be it food, water or a fresh bath. Attempting to question the attendants is a fruitless endeavor: they sing praises of the Lord of the Forest but provide no other useful answers, always diverting the topic back to how wonderful their protector is and how blessed the Outsiders must be to have been chosen by him.
Welcome to the Castle Bran.
Outsiders, whom attendants within the castle will so reverently refer to as the ‘Chosen’, will find themselves waking up spread across the many rooms of the castle. All their belongings were left behind at the village, and they’ll find that they’ve been cleaned up and dressed carefully in fresh, white linen. Another thing they might notice immediately is that they have been completely stripped of all their powers and weapons, rendering them as strong as any other human.
They are free to roam the many rooms and hallways of the castle but they cannot go any deeper than the ground floor. The attendants of the castle, who appear to be villagers from the town, will follow them and try their best to tend to their every need, be it food, water or a fresh bath. Attempting to question the attendants is a fruitless endeavor: they sing praises of the Lord of the Forest but provide no other useful answers, always diverting the topic back to how wonderful their protector is and how blessed the Outsiders must be to have been chosen by him.
▶ HOSPITALITY TREATMENT
Chosen who try to break their way out of the castle will be hit with a psionic wave, forcing them into a state of calmness, placidity and contentment. They might even be treated to pleasant hallucinations or relive happy memories. There’s no reason to be afraid, after all. The Lord of the Forest will take care of you. Any attempt to hurt or kill the attendants will be met with no resistance from them, almost like they are content to accept their fate. They will then be replaced with another attendant right away, rendering the effort meaningless. The bodies of any dead attendants will be left there to rot until someone complains about it enough, at which point the corpse will be carted off to the dungeons.
At this point, escape seems futile. The dark fog surrounding the castle renders it virtually invisible to the outside world and communications between the Chosen and the Outsiders in the town have been cut off. It may feel like there's nothing you can do but sit pretty and await your fate ...
At this point, escape seems futile. The dark fog surrounding the castle renders it virtually invisible to the outside world and communications between the Chosen and the Outsiders in the town have been cut off. It may feel like there's nothing you can do but sit pretty and await your fate ...
▶ WE SAVE OURSELVES
After days of strange dreams and curious findings, it seems that help will take some time to arrive. The Chosen will have to save themselves even without their powers. Based on some observations, they may infer that something is cloaking the castle and making it difficult for others to locate it. They have to find a way to disrupt whatever is keeping them hidden.
With each day, they may notice something about the wolf skulls that hang in each room. Every time they look at one, it will trigger their flight response as if they are prey facing off with a predator. Some may feel frightened, anxious, hopeless, or submissive until the skull is out of their sight.
If they can push through those feelings and draw out their fight instinct, they can take the skulls and destroy them. After destroying a skull, a wave of energy will come from it. The energy will give them brief headaches, vertigo, and a short bout of irritability and impulsiveness. Some characters may recognize the feeling as Rift poisoning.
Each time they destroy a skull, the character will receive a microdose of Rift poisoning. Without their LILITH suits to protect them, they can experience extreme poisoning which results in flu like symptoms, mental and physical fatigue, and hallucinations which will make them more vulnerable to the psionic waves. However, with each skull destroyed, the fog around the castle begins to lift ever so slightly. After the air has cleared, the rooms feel safer and less oppressive, making them the perfect place to rest and recover. Unfortunately, if the servants notice, they may replace the destroyed skull with a new one.
With each day, they may notice something about the wolf skulls that hang in each room. Every time they look at one, it will trigger their flight response as if they are prey facing off with a predator. Some may feel frightened, anxious, hopeless, or submissive until the skull is out of their sight.
If they can push through those feelings and draw out their fight instinct, they can take the skulls and destroy them. After destroying a skull, a wave of energy will come from it. The energy will give them brief headaches, vertigo, and a short bout of irritability and impulsiveness. Some characters may recognize the feeling as Rift poisoning.
Each time they destroy a skull, the character will receive a microdose of Rift poisoning. Without their LILITH suits to protect them, they can experience extreme poisoning which results in flu like symptoms, mental and physical fatigue, and hallucinations which will make them more vulnerable to the psionic waves. However, with each skull destroyed, the fog around the castle begins to lift ever so slightly. After the air has cleared, the rooms feel safer and less oppressive, making them the perfect place to rest and recover. Unfortunately, if the servants notice, they may replace the destroyed skull with a new one.
▶ AFTERWORD.
Chosen characters may use this log to interact with each other and investigate the situation. It is HIGHLY encouraged to collaborate with other characters and share the clues you have been given.
Everyone who is kidnapped will have their ocular implants turned off, thus rendering communications between Chosen characters and characters who were not captured impossible, and any sort of location tracking will not function. However, certain characters will be given the opportunity to send a short message to the rest of the Outsiders. Players may use this post to have IC discussions about what information they want to provide to the rest of the team. If sending out a message, please submit your message by 11:59 PM GMT on the 10th of October so that mods may post it on the network.
Furthermore, characters can destroy skulls to slowly lift the fog around the castle. The number of skulls they will need to destroy is not specified, but it will lift during the next log.
The purpose of this log is for investigation and collaboration. We understand that players are excited to have terrible things happen to their characters. You can expect that information to be given on the 15th. Timeline-wise, characters will be kidnapped late at night on the 7th and then be freed around the 15th.
Everyone who is kidnapped will have their ocular implants turned off, thus rendering communications between Chosen characters and characters who were not captured impossible, and any sort of location tracking will not function. However, certain characters will be given the opportunity to send a short message to the rest of the Outsiders. Players may use this post to have IC discussions about what information they want to provide to the rest of the team. If sending out a message, please submit your message by 11:59 PM GMT on the 10th of October so that mods may post it on the network.
Furthermore, characters can destroy skulls to slowly lift the fog around the castle. The number of skulls they will need to destroy is not specified, but it will lift during the next log.
The purpose of this log is for investigation and collaboration. We understand that players are excited to have terrible things happen to their characters. You can expect that information to be given on the 15th. Timeline-wise, characters will be kidnapped late at night on the 7th and then be freed around the 15th.
EVENT BREAKDOWN/RECAP (CLICK TO EXPAND)
1. CASTLE BRAN: Some Outsiders will awaken to find themselves in a mysterious castle and referred to as 'Chosen' by the castle servants. They are stripped of their belongings and powers, and have been freshly bathed and dressed. They are allowed to wander the castle but cannot leave or go further than the ground floor.
2. HOSPITALITY TREATMENT: Outsiders who try to leave will be hit by a psionic wave that leaves them feeling placid and happy, and may even cause them to hallucinate pleasant events or relive happy memories. Since there is a heavy fog around the castle and communications are cut off, there appears to be no method of escape.
3. WE SAVE OURSELVES: After several days, Outsiders may begin to infer that there is something cloaking the castle and preventing it from being discovered. The source is a multitude of wolf skulls hung up around the castle. Though the skulls induce fear and hopelessness in anyone who looks at it, destroying the skull will cause the fog around the castle to slowly lift. Outsiders who destroy skulls will suffer the effects of Rift poisoning.
no subject
choso blinks, cutting such thoughts short, then swallows thickly. pay attention. listen: dan heng is asking something. ]
No. I woke up and broke things.
[ the evidence lies in the glass glimmering in his knuckles, wood splinters in the palm of one hand. choso, he does his best not to move, tries to examine dan heng's cooler hands as a distraction. ]
Are you hurt?
no subject
He hums quietly, feeling...a sudden emptiness when he feels no response from his own songs, his own magic...] I see. Because you were looking for something and were upset, right? [The glass and splinters definitely need to be cleaned out before the wound is wrapped. Dan Heng normally has easier ways to do this; water, claws, cloudhymn-]
What? Oh, uhm. No, I am not hurt. [He was. Not expecting the bleeding man to turn that question back on him. He gives what he hopes is a reassuring squeeze higher up on Choso's arm, the uninjured part of course. Then he calls out to the attendants he can hear hovering just outside the door, his voice kinder than before but still brokering no room for argument. He needs a basin of water, some form of tweezers, cloth, a needle perhaps...they bow and scatter. Dan Heng sighs.]
Our powers seem to have been blocked here, somehow, and I am...frustrated my usual methods for treatment do not work. We will have to go old fashioned. [His own hand flexes, like a cat trying to unsheathe its claws. Of course nothing happens, so he just. Rips off his own sleeve to try and stymie the dripping blood in the meantime.] What were you looking for, if I may ask?
no subject
this close, he imagines he can feel the connection through raidou, a little spark at the tips of his fingers that could just as well be pain. ]
Anything. A clue. A sign. My brother is gone. I thought they had taken him, too.
[ and maybe they did, for all he knows. maybe yuji is off in another castle. maybe maybe maybe. but conjecture only had so many uses and now wasn’t one of them.
the sudden ripping of dam heng’s sleeve startles choso enough that his expression brightens with the surprise, eyes widening only to blink. ]
I did not know you were a healer, too.
[ like marcille, like raidou. ]
Sorry these keep getting so lengthy?? He's fussy....
Dan Heng notes the surprise, and he goes to apologize, but Choso asks something first. A healer...? He gives a quiet huff, the slightest bit of self deprecation...] Not really. My...little sister. [He'd been calling Bailu that lately, to avoid the...overly complicated explanation. In essence, it is true...] She inherited the healing part of Cloudhymn magic, and I, its more destructive capabilities. Not that I have access to that here anyway... [Dan Heng folds the cloth in a way to soak up more blood, trying not to irritate the wound.]
I will be signing up for that healing touch ability after this, I think... But for now, I just know basic first aid. How to clean and treat wounds. She taught me things I could do, natural remedies when I visited. I do not like seeing needless suffering, especially when I can do something about it- ah, thank you.
[The attendants had brought the supplies he asked for, and he gestures for them to set them on the bedside table. They then skitter to hover right outside the door again without being asked. Well. That is an improvement, maybe. He looks back to Choso. ] Can I have you sit on the edge of the bed? It'll make cleaning this easier.
this took forever, forgive meeee
once seated, he sticks his hand out again, nonplussed by the things going on around it; first aid seems a new thing here, for someone so accustomed to healing his own injuries. ]
You, too, are an older brother? Do you get along with your sister?
YOU ARE FORGIVEN ESP SINCE I ALSO TOOK FOREVER heckin. Life comes at you fast fr
Well, Dan Heng is just happy to have someone, something he can focus on and help. There are so many unknowns, it's almost comforting to just work on meticulously picking glass and splinters out of Choso's hand with tweezers. He hums distractedly in response.]
Mm. Yes. No. Yes. [He takes a breath, looking the hand over. It's...so complicated...] I didn't get to meet Lady Bailu until recently. We were...raised apart. [Him in the prisons, her as the Preceptors' future puppet.....] So I can hardly claim the title of big brother...but...in the occasional times I get to see her, she is...kind. I think she's...glad when I visit. Very lively and full of questions. So I think we...do get along...? [Dan Heng smiles faintly, thinking of her. Bailu would be much fussier in a situation like this, he thinks. Much more vocal about someone going about with an untreated injury like it's nothing.
Satisfied the debris is removed, Dan Heng gets the bowl and cloth to wash the injury the best he can. ] You said "too". You have younger siblings, Choso?