TRAVEL LOG #3: KIDNAPPED CHARACTERS ONLY

[synfluxmods]

THE CHOSEN

CONTENT WARNINGS: cult-like symbols and implications, abduction, cult-like brainwashing.

▶ 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.

▶ 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 ...

▶ 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.

▶ 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.

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.

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Comments

Ereshkigal || Fate/Grand Order || Redemption

[queenofkur]

I/ Meeting

[ When the outsiders gather (discreetly) to talk, share their findings and scheme, Ereshkigal brings with her what she's found: the broken pieces of a radio, by the looks of it. She's never seen a radio with her own eyes before so she's not sure what it is... If someone else picks it up, they may be able to use it together with other clues to make a makeshift emergency contact device, perhaps.

What she focuses on though is her experience with those skulls. Upon staring at them, she felt a sense of dread and wanted nothing more than to run away. Which means, of course: ]

I broke one of those skulls and it feels as though it lessened the oppressive aura around us. [A pause.] But it also made me feel sick and dizzy...

[ Alas, the Lord of the Forest hadn't counted on an anxiety-riddled goddess deciding to smash the skull the very moment it started making her feel weird!

Ereshkigal is calm as she speaks, though noticeably her hair is down - which makes this the first time anyone in this world has seen her without her twintails. Can you believe they even took her hair ribbons? That Lord of the Forest is truly horrible! ]

I think we need to get rid of them. But it'll weaken us in the process... [She sighs.] That's why I'm going to try and break as many as possible on my own. That way, I'll carry most of the side-effect and you'll remain alright.

[ Surely this cannot go wrong. ]

II/ Bashing the Skulls

[ And lo! Ereshkigal starts breaking as many skulls as she can on her lonesome. But it proves to quickly become much much more difficult than she'd expected. She has never looked so sickly, she's coughing and sneezing and she looks so tired, it's like she could collapse any second.

Even then? The skull she has in hand gets smashed to pieces on the ground. ]

Goodness...

[ She stumbles onto a nearby chair and puts her head in her hands. O-Okay, a five minute break. If she breaks another skull right now, her head might just explode. ]

III/ Can Love Bloom In A Haunted Castle?

[ What happens when you broke as many skulls as possible, making you really super sick and very susceptible to the psionic wave? Well you very stupidly try leaving the castle and get hit by a psionic wave, of course.

So when you pass by Ereshkigal, she's smiling absently and contentedly, staring into nothing. Until she notices your presence, that is. She slowly turns to look at you and her smile grows all the happier.

Unfortunately, she's not really seeing you, no. She's hallucinating you as her sweet and beloved Master, Ritsuka Fujimaru. How did she end up in the castle? She doesn't know, it doesn't matter. She feels so at peace and wonderful right now, it's the time to speak up. To say aloud her feelings, what she has always wanted to say from the bottom of the underworld but never could until now: ]

I-I love you...!

[ Her eyes widen... Are they spirally? She slowly starts walking towards you, extending an arm out. With her hair down, the white clothes and how pale she's gotten from the Rift poisoning, she kind of looks like a ghost. It doesn't help she speaks in broken sentences and slowly. ]

I did it... I confessed my feelings...

[ I-It was so easy! Maybe that Lord of the Forest isn't so bad! Noticeably for those who know Ereshkigal, even though she looks and sounds so happy, she is not sparkling. In fact, she looks more lifeless than ever with the way there is no light in her red eyes. ]

My sweet... My sweet little grape... Will you accept an old goddess like me..?

I

[likemybooks]

[Taryon's hair has gone somewhat uncombed the past few days due to his panic over his imprisonment, but he's happy that he still has his mind, even if on the outside he's looking like a mess. Not feeling like he must meet a certain appearance is one freedom he has here.

The radio gets a long look, even as Ereshkigal's suggestion of breaking skulls attempts to stir hope in him.] May I? [He reaches one hand towards the pile of radio parts, uncertain if he'll be allowed to touch them without Ereshkigal's permission.] I think I can figure out how to assemble it, and we can use it to send messages. That must be why it was destroyed.

[It probably would explain the blood, too.]

[queenofkur]

[ When he asks, she nods and push the pieces towards him without hesitating. She wouldn't know how to make use of them, and he seems to know what he's talking about. ]

Is this a communication device?

[ She's unfamiliar with the design. No such things existed back in her era, and the modern era she's been summoned to has grown to adopt more sophisticated device. Still, even without knowing what it is, it is evident pieces are missing and some are broken beyond repair - at least without their powers. ]

We may need to find the missing pieces or replacements for them.

[likemybooks]

Yes, although an old device compared to the norm in this world. [He starts with the wooden casing - the simplest material to work with.] I've studied a bit of electronics, and this was rather primitive. It should be easier to put together than a computer.

[If only he had his downloaded materials on hand...he could get a better idea of how this exactly works. The library - if one even exists here - wouldn't be of any help.]

But it's a mix of that and mechanics. If we can't get a clear message across, we can still send out a distress signal. I studied this - it's this thing called Morse code, where you send messages with a mix of short and long signals. Each combination refers to a letter in the alphabet, and if you memorize every letter, you can figure out the message. But - don't worry - there's a basic message you send out if you're in danger that anyone recognizes. At least, according to what I've read.

[He smiles - Ereshkigal shouldn't have to worry so much, and fearing that they can't send a message out shouldn't be included. Little do they know how seriously broken this radio is.]

III (They're gonna keep meeting in embarrassing ways, huh lmao)

[lunarchivist]

Lady Ereshkigal...you do not look well. I think you should lie down.

[Ghostly pale, possibly feverish, weak...she is smiling though. But it seems...wrong. She only smiles more when he gets closer to quickly check her temperature. Um.

......what-] Lady Ereshkigal?? U-Um, I don't. Think you're thinking clearly. [That's definitely a fever. And a love confession?? His ears go bright red with embarrassment, so much so it actually starts to reach his face. He retreats, but she follows, reaching for him. Dan Heng shakes his head.]

Lady Ereshkigal, I do not mean to be rude, but I don't think you're in your right mind. [While he does already care for the goddess's safety, they haven't known each other long at all. And so much of this feels wrong wrong wrong- like if he startles her out of this, she'll start screaming again, like when they met...

Still, she looks unsteady, so he reaches back to steady her, arms lightly, awkwardly resting around her shoulders for her to lean against.] I'm sorry. I-I cannot return your affections, as I do not believe I am the one meant to receive them.

[queenofkur]

[ I cannot return your affections.

Of everything he's just said, that is the only thing registering in her mind. Not that her mind can register much right now. That's what's gone through and she starts crying out loud. ]

I... I knew it...

[ No more joy, no more blissful happiness. Her happy trance has become a miserable trance. It's impressive how much water is contained within someone so small, because goodness does she cry a lot! So much so it's difficult to understand her. ]

Why would you choose someone as dark and gloomy as I...?

[ Sniff. Sob. ]

I'm sorry, I shouldn't have spoken...

[ She'll withdraw to the Underworld and bury herself there to never see anyone ever again. All of this had been a mistake. ]

[lunarchivist]

[Remember how in the gala encounter he thought if she started crying, he'd be completely lost??? Well here he is. And Ereshkigal is crying.

Help.

She's not seeing him. Not really. He knows that. The familiar ache of being mistaken for someone else, feeling for a moment the hopeless desire to be who she wants and needs in the moment. But he can't. He's just...himself. No one else.

Oooooh that's alot of tears. If he weren't literally powerless, he'd. What. Disperse them with cloudhymn?? Like that'd help. ]

Lady Ereshkigal. Please, come to your senses. I'm Dan Heng, remember? [He starts wiping at her face with his sleeves. ] You're...actually a bright, very kind person. Hardly gloomy. Anyone would be honored to have you as their... [.....mate? Partner? Betrothed? Chosen? Um. Help. Aroace panic.] love. [It's not you, it's me.]

ii

[undrowned]

... this task is hardly for you to resolve alone.

[ it's easy enough to follow her from the trail of skulls, and from the hurried footsteps of the maids around to replace some of the skulls. rover slips into the room eresh is in. her familiar ribbons have been taken from her and somehow, it's sad to see her without them. ]

You need your strength.

[ in front of her, rover slits her skirt enough to rip it short - she's worn things more revealing than this dress, it doesn't bother her how high it rides on her thighs now. the important thing is to distract her. the important thing is that she has strips of cloth in her hands, looking at her gently, though with worry - ]

Ereshkigal, won't you let me do your hair? They're not as pretty as the ones you wear, but it pains me to see you without your ribbons.

[queenofkur]

[ She knows for her to do it alone is impossible... But she must try. The more she manages to break on her own, the less others have to do. If she manages to take on herself most of the side-effect... She'll be useless in combat but at least the others will be safe.

Her eyes widen when Rover rips her skirt. ]

Heh...?

[ Ah. She's so kind. She smiles sheepishly and nods. It's true, she doesn't feel quite like herself without her hair done. Even before acquiring this vessel, she always had accessories in her hair. ]

Thank you. [But her dress is so short now...! Maybe there are spare ones somewhere?] I-I have grown quite accustomed to having them.

[undrowned]

You look much better with them.

[ rover says this firmly, smiling. her hands are gentle as she goes through her hair, long and pretty, sectioning it into smaller partitions for her makeshift ribbons. they're not going to be the most full twintails since the strips can only do so much, but the point is to distract her from doing so much work and taking on rift poisoning on her own anyway. ]

... You remind me of a very good friend of mine, [ rover says as she winds the ribbon multiple times around a length of hair to secure it. ] She was also very gentle, very kind, and one to love others fiercely, even if her life depended on it.

III because he needs to Perish

[coordination]

[ Even as he Braves His Endless, Horrible Suffering (fever), Yzak still makes it a point to continuously check in on the rest of the team whenever he can. He absolutely did at one point try to talk Eresh down from breaking so many skulls herself (no the fuck you will NOT do this all yourself don't you even think about it! etc!), but alas ... it seems that fate (heh) has led them to this moment.

Yzak spots her staring off into space, and for a couple of moments he silently just observes her, concluding that something definitely looks wrong here. ]

Hey. What are you doing?

[ And then she turns to him, and Yzak feels a chill run straight down his spine. ]





HUH???

[ The sudden confession(???????????) comes out of nowhere, completely flabbergasting him, so he gapes while his brain reboots and catches up with him. ]

W-w-what are you talking about!?

[ It's not hard to tell that she's clearly not herself. And Yzak was already hedging his bets on there being forms of brainwashing at play here.

So when Ereshkigal gets close enough, he manages to get his wits back about him in time for hands to thrust out first to catch her arms and hold her, keeping her at a length. ]

Snap out of it! You're hallucinating!

[ Unfortunately for Yzak ... his fever means his face is already red, so he looks like he's blushing through this entire exchange. ]

[queenofkur]

[ Ah... He's caught her arms and is holding her. T-They may as well be handholding! Are there are any better symbols of love? And his face is so red! Which in her less than stable mind, translates to her sweet Ritsuka blushing furiously! ]

Awww... You're so cute when you're blushing...

[ She slowly moves her hand to gently (affectionately?) pinch his cheek. So cute! So adorable! Unfortunately, the way Ereshkigal is staring at him with swirly, empty eyes probably makes this a lot less cute than it could be.

That and the creepy giggling. ]

Ehehe... Ehehehehehehehe...

[ She leans against him and closes her arms around him.

Somewhere, Dearka is yelling and screaming. ]

We'll be together forever now... Even in death I'll take care of your soul...!

[coordination]

[ She coos and pinches his cheek, and Yzak's face only glows redder. Yes, it's possible. He's already overheated and now he feels like his head might actually explode from the additional flustering this sudden onslaught of affection causes. He makes a strained noise in his throat, confused, alarmed, scandalized. Because this is way too familiar! He has no idea what to do having a woman embrace him like this! And oh god he can feel her chest pressed against his when she hugs him and he feels his soul trying to vacate his body to save him from perceiving that fact for another moment (big 'oh god not TITTIES' turbovirgin energy). ]

E-Ereshkigal!

[ Her name escapes his lips with a much higher tone than he usually has. He is so uncomfortably tense one might think he'll snap into two if she hugs him any harder, and she's not even holding him very tightly now. He's like that trend of throwing a piece of cheese on your pet's face and watching them freeze and short circuit.

Yzak shakes his head (a bad idea, it hurts because of the fever) to try and clear his racing mind of how indecent this feels (yzak she's hugging you calm down)

Snap OUT of it! Or else she never will!

And if she never does, this is only going to continue. That's all Yzak needs to try and gather himself so he can escape this as quickly as possible.

He grips her shoulders and half attempts to pull her off of him, half shakes her. ]

Listen to me! I'm not - whoever the hell you think I am!

Who do you think I am, anyway?

III

[harboredfeelings]

[ In her own pokings around the castle Kaga manages to find Ereshkigal at exactly the wrong time. Unfortunately for them both the kansen's better nature takes over and she approaches to check on the girl who is very clearly out of it.

When Ereshkigal turns to face her Kaga freezes. That is... very not right. She's not exactly the most disturbing thing Kaga's ever seen in her life but, well, this is top ten easily. ]

H-hey... wait a minute!

[ She takes a step back. If it weren't for her cloak she'd have fur on literal end right now, as it is she holds up both hands in front of her, palms open and straight ahead in a stalling motion. Vision of death Ereshkigal may be, she's still an ally who like Kaga has been captured by an enemy and exposed to some really weird crap. The girl needs help, Kaga's just not sure if she's a danger to herself and others yet. ]

Grape?! My hair's not even purple...! You've got the wrong person, get a hold of yourself!

[queenofkur]

[ Oh... She's confused, obviously. Her poor, precious, special little grape. Does she think she calls her that because of her hair color? That's so cute! An understandable misunderstanding, she'll have to explain to her why she calls her that sometimes.

Her smiles grows happier (and emptier too). ]

Nuh-uh... Your hair is beautiful, no matter the color...!

[ She takes steps forward and opens her arms wide, as if going to embrace the other girl!

Will the goddess be stopped? Avoided? Or hugged? ]

I've absolutely got the right person... There's nooooo two of you in the entire universe, ehehe!

[harboredfeelings]

[ That smile sure is um... wow. Sure is Akagi in here all of a sudden. Is this what the Commander's had to deal with the few times her sister's gone after them? Kaga does not envy them... as much as she used to.

Lack of envy aside she can't help feel a little bad for the girl who's mistaken her for someone else entirely. She's clearly not okay, the effect of those wolf skulls if Kaga had to guess, arguing with her in this state might not exactly be the best thing for the other Outsider's mental state. ]

Well, you're right about that at least.

[ Even if what LILITH says about their old selves still being in their home worlds Kaga isn't exactly. There. Anymore.

She lets out a sigh and steps forward, gently putting her arms around Ereshkigal and giving her a light hug. ]

Honestly. I'm going to keep looking after strays here, aren't I...?

[ More grousing to herself than anything. Between Yato, Nyuu, and now this girl. What is it with guileless, aimless people wandering into Kaga's path lately?! ]

II

[saudadist]

[ Nyuu is in the midst of her skull-bashing escapade as well. But, she's much calmer now! Enough so that seeing Ereshkigal look so ill has her halting mid-step and pivoting toward her.

Concern burns on her face, but she's a worrisome sight herself with her hair tousled, eyes wide, and a fire poker in hand. ]

Ereshkigal-san? Are you okay?

[queenofkur]

Nyuu?

[ Ereshkigal looks up when the other girl calls her. This could be Lucy, but... There is something different in the way she speaks, the way she holds herself. She forces herself to smile, though she looks saddened by the sorry state Nyuu is in. ]

I-I'm fine, I'm just recovering. [Deep breath. She wonders if there is some sense or reason as to why one or the other is in control...? She can easily tell Nyuu is the most fragile of the two, wouldn't Lucy be more apt to deal with this situation? Or maybe it's the other way around in spite appearance.] What about you? Have you been eating and resting enough?

[saudadist]

I haven't been able to sleep. Those...the skulls. [ She turns to look over her shoulder as if expecting one to be on the wall out of nowhere. Her grip on the poker tightens, but as she turns back to Ereshkigal, she forces an awkward smile onto her face. ]

I-I'll be okay! I think...tea. I could go for some tea. Would you like to join me?

III

[kubricks]

...grape?

[Yes, that's the part of the confession Makima's commenting on. Not the fact that it's happening at all or that Eresh has clearly confused her with someone else. Not that Makima isn't used to hearing that sort of thing from people, likening to a grape aside, but she doesn't expect it from her.]

Are you feeling all right?

[...she's pretty sure the answer to that is no for any of their number stuck here, but she asks anyways.]

[queenofkur]

Yes, the most special of all little grapes...

[ With slow and ethereal steps, Ereshkigal starts walking towards Makima. She extends her hands forward, like some sort of zombie? Though she looks a lot more like a ghost, really.

She keeps smiling absently, her smile widening all the more as she gets closer. ]

Do you... Do you accept my confession...?

[ She can tell this is about to be the most wonderful time of her life, surely! ]

[kubricks]

[What to do with this? It would be cruel to indulge this, not that Makima has issue with that. It's more that it might be counterproductive to dealing with their current situation. At the same time this trancelike state seems pretty deep, so she's not sure declining would snap her out of it.

This castle really is proving to be incredibly bothersome in that things keep happening in it that Makima doesn't have a good way to deal with. Or a good way to avoid.]

This is all so sudden...

[That empty smile drawing closer, it's not unnerving to her, at least not any more than things here already are. It's true she feels ill at ease, but that seems to be more their surroundings' doing and not all this.]

I don't know what to say.

[A non-answer for sure, but she thinks it the best option for the moment.]

ii

[peoplewatch]

[ Kabru got one taste of destroying the skulls and he decided that since there were so many people overzealous about doing it, he might ... leave them to that, and he can support them during the aftermath. Look, nausea and dizziness he doesn't mind too much, but he would prefer not to hallucinate the worst moments of his life and if other people are happy to go through that on his behalf, he shall let them.

He probably could have done more to share the load. Because Ereshkigal, one of the overzealous ones, is now lying on the ground in a faint state. ]

Goddess... [ Healing magic can do a little to soothe discomfort, but he doesn't have that here. What he does have is a blanket and a glass of water. Kabru goes to her side, putting it around her shoulders. ] I think you've done enough. You should rest now.

[queenofkur]

[ Ah... She's been caught red-handed, hasn't she? It's even worse after she did promise Malkuth she wouldn't do it. But she still thinks putting most of the "curse" on her is for the best. This way others got a fighting chance if needed. ]

I-I'm fine, I promise. [She's not. She's just one of those people who will always says she's fine even when she isn't... Unless she's really close to someone, that is. Then sometimes she opens up, but even then what if she's a bother?] But thank you.

[ She looks up and smiles at him. It's not a super convincing smile, but she's trying her best! ]

[peoplewatch]

[ Kabru reads people rather easily, and she's not particularly great at hiding how she's really feeling. None of the Outsiders have powers now, so even if she would have been more resistant with her god-like magic, she's just like anyone else right now. ]

You're not. I'm good at reading people. [ Kabru shows her his hand. If she takes it, he'll help steady her and start leading her to the bed. ] We're definitely going to find a way to escape. And I'd like you to be among us when we do, so I really think you should stop for now.