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.

code

Comments

maki zen'in | jjk | brimstone

[grade4]

hospitality (cw: murder attempt)

[ maki isn't a bloodthirsty person. she isn't, she really isn't, but they've taken away her body. they took away her strength, the sacrifice mai made for her. these fuckers are going to pay.

but... why won't they run? she grabs one, throws them down, threatens to beat them if they don't give her information, and they don't do anything to save themselves. her hands are hot with pain, fingers bruising and blood seeping into the bottom of her nails.

she breathes harshly over an attendant, seated over them as they struggle to get air from a broken windpipe. maki doesn't understand. ]

You don't care if you die? How can you not value your own life? If you don't tell me how we can escape... I'll kill you. I don't care how many of you die.

save ourselves (pvp potential, also just actual attendant murder now)

[ when they began to notice destroying one or two skulls would disrupt the fog, maki decided there would be no truce with the bastards that took them. whatever it takes to get out, she would do it. no matter how much her head hurt, her eyes glazed, her body shuddered, each skull broken felt like a victory. they've taken away her body - her heavenly restriction - and she wanted it back. mai gave up everything for her to have it, so maki will give up everything to regain it.

but how many skulls are there? it feels endless. she doesn't know how many she's broken now. her mind is no longer able to keep track of a count, or even distinguish friend from foe. she sees the halls of the zenin compound, a historic estate built up in the heian era, and not the castle they're trapped in.

she sees the attendants and only sees the people that abused her. she sees them and without warning she begins bashing their head into the wall over and over and over, until a red spot colors the wall and they slump over dead. sorry if you find corpses around.

she can no longer distinguish friend from foe. all she cares for now is destroying any skull she can see, sometimes breaking things that she doesn't realize aren't skulls until after they crash into dozens of pieces. her hands are bruised and bloodied, her eyes empty and filled with hate. ]

[ ooc: as said in the header, if you want some pvp maki isn't in her right mind and may lash out at anyone who tries to stop her. no killing obviously. ]

save ourselves (thank you for the tag annnd you got me with pvp hi lol)

[lunarchivist]

[A trail of blood and corpses. The stench of death in the air.

Dan Heng had never...followed it before. Only run from it, from the one creating it to reach him. But now he needs to follow it, because these attendants...who knows how complicit they are in all this? Taking it out on them won't do anything, and if one of the Outsiders is...he needs to stop them. He has to stop this meaningless bloodshed. And make sure, for his paranoid mind, that it's not the shell of an old friend somehow prowling these halls...

He itches for the weight of Cloud Piercer, but reminds himself that his weapon is beyond his reach, here.

Eventually, he finds someone stumbling along- ah. Miss Maki. She'd...checked on him upon first being here. He doesn't know her well, but...even he can feel something is Off.]

Miss Maki? Are you alri-

[SLAM. BAM. BAM. His breath hitches when she grabs a nearby attendant and smashes their head into the wall over and over and over-

They don't even resist. They've died right before his eyes. He feels sick. Dan Heng lurches forward, grabbing at her arm, the one holding the attendant's limp-dead- form.] Miss Maki, please. Stop. This helps nothing. [The smell of blood fills his nose, and he grits his teeth, pushing back unwelcome memories. Miss Maki's dazed, almost maddened expression--so familiar--does not help this.

He musters his nerve, steadying his voice.] Let them go. Stop this, now.

[grade4]

[ There's no fight when her arm is snatched and dragged back, not even a reaction at first. Her eyes are locked onto the attendant Nobuaki, who accepted her into the Kukuru Unit but made sure her life was a grueling hell every day for it. She was one of the best and he still treated her like shit on his heel.

So why does she feel nothing in killing him?

Her hand slips from the collar and the body hits the ground with a soft thump, heavy and empty. Then, slowly, her head turns past her shoulder.

What Dan Heng will see are hollow eyes, pupils dilated, the common sense and reason that once lit them gone. What Maki sees is Ranta. Always smiling, confident, sweet. Even so, every time she was slapped for disobedience, kicked for not knowing her place, had her head stomped on by Naoya, he looked away as if he saw something inconvenient to him. Then he tried to kill her.

He's just like the rest of them. ]

Let go.

hospitality

[lovebombing]

Um.

[Um. The little squeak from the man in the corner does very little to interrupt this, but at least its followed by his (rather annoying) voice.]

I understand the need for anger management, but....I really just think that's gonna lead nowhere, lady.

[grade4]

[ her head swings up toward the corner, blinking, the intensity of the moment broken up by his sheepish voice. her fingers tighten around the attendant's collar, unwilling to let go. ]

Anger management? This isn't a joke! These bastards know something and they aren't giving it up.

[lovebombing]

Yeah, that's why they keep dying! That's a real good way to give up info. Just give up the ghost.

[He says, casually, like dying is something people do every day. Actually, they do! So there it is.]

I think they're just like...puppets.

[grade4]

Puppets. [ She repeats the suggestion quietly, then looks back at the attendant. They practically behave as such. Maki scowls, then in a more controlled voice: ] Then what do you suggest we do? Because I'm sick of doing nothing.

[lovebombing]

We look for clues, of course!

[As if that's as simple as anything!]

Noooo clues to be found from these guys. Treat them like...red herrings, yeah? Let's play detective.

[grade4]

...You might be treating this too lightly.

[ it's a weak protest and, to his credit, he does convince her to give up the fight. so she'll get off the attendant -- just not before giving them a swift kick to the face. it knocks the attendant out cold, though nothing more than that. ]

But fine. You're going to help me look for clues. Thanks for volunteering.

[lovebombing]

Might as well. Do you WANT to be drowning in your own negative feelings? Which includes anger, by the way.

[That's that, it seems - Sampo only offers the attendant a little huff, before turning to her.]

Ah...well! That's what Sampo Koski is here for. Any place you haven't checked?

[grade4]

It isn't drowning if I know how to swim in them.

[ grim words, but spoken with a sardonic grin and maybe a hint of self-hatred. maki is more used to anger driving her than anything else in life. ]

Sampo Koski. I'm Maki Zen'in. And I couldn't say. This castle feels like a maze. Only place we probably haven't gone yet is any place above or below.

[lovebombing]

Ah. Well. You need some joy too, right...

[RIGHT....?]

[Ah, and an introduction. He puts a hand on his chest and gives a bow.]

Very nice to meet you, Miss Maki. So...let's go below! I think its fair. Most places keep secrets in their underbelly, don't they?

[grade4]

That’s where they hide the bodies and curses. The true nature of things.

[ then, realizing she may be coming across too dramatic, she shrugs trying to brush off her own sheepishness. ]

My family kept all their curses there - spirits. Tortured people too, punishment or otherwise.

[ it only occurs to her now that this castle reminds her all too much of the zenin compound. beautiful to the unknowing eye, and haunted to all within. ]

[lovebombing]

Spirits? Like...what, ghosts? AND tortured people?

[Now he's especially looking concerned.]

Say, like. Is your family, like, okay?

[grade4]

[ that just gets a wide grin out of her. he’s a really frank guy huh. she likes that. ]

Nope. They’re horrible people, only concerned with growing their power. Don’t worry about it too much though. Not like they’re here.

[lovebombing]

Uh-huh....

[THIS SOUNDS PRETTY AWFUL, LADY]

And you got outta that situation, right? Please tell me you got out.

[grade4]

I got out. [ her grin turns into something between a scowl and a pout. ] Does it really sound that bad? You must have had an easier life.

[lovebombing]

Oh, good for you? Me? Haha. I've had an absolutely horrible one!






[SAYS THIS SO CASUALLY YOU COULD PROBABLY THINK IT'S A JOKE. maybe? maybe it is?]

hospitality

[peoplewatch]

[ Kabru is an observer before anything. If he sees two people fighting, he tends to step back and assess the situation before jumping in. There's no guarantee the apparent 'victim' in the situation is truly a victim after all. Sometimes they are the perpetrator and the aggressor was acting in self-defense. In this situation, it's easy to guess why that scarred young lady would be attacking the attendant. Kabru has tried to sweet talk and persuade answers out of the cultists as well but to no avail. Their behaviour and psychology was certainly unnatural. It could be the magic, but the complete devotion they had to their god seemed genuine also.

He stands there watching this scene, trying to understand that cultist's unnatural response. Kabru doesn't try to stop her at all. He's not very sympathetic to the plight of others if he decides he doesn't need to be. ]

We learn nothing if you kill him right away. I've tried gentle persuasion, but so far there's been nothing I can say to get any answers.

[ But maybe, pain could be an option. ]

[grade4]

[ She knows he's watching and doesn't pay any mind to it. If he isn't interfering, then he isn't a nuisance and that's all that matters. These bastards won't tell them anything no matter how much they try to coax them into it, so she's decided violence is the next logical step. They don't have any fear of them and she's prepared to instill that in them.

When Kabru speaks up, Maki looks to him with a frustrated grimace. Of course he's right, and she doesn't want to kill them -- it's all bluster and threats -- but she has no idea what else to do. More than anything, she doesn't want to be useless. ]

They aren't even reacting. Not even a word of protest... I can't tell if it's mockery or something that's been done to them.

[peoplewatch]

[ If they don't even value their own lives, the Outsiders have no leverage over them really. It's frustrating. All he can do now with his skillset is try to understand what might persuade them to cooperate, even if it's going to be violence. ]

Magic is a possibility, but it's usually pretty obvious when someone's under the control of someone else. [ They act a bit like zombies with no free will. ]

Look at him ... he's obviously afraid and in pain, but he still won't cooperate with you. It's either that the punishment would be far worse than death, or he doesn't see betraying his god as something that's even an option. [ When it's all he's known his whole life, that's possible too. ]

[grade4]

[ A punishment worse than death... Maki knows such things can exist. She also knows how easily people can feel threatened to lower themselves, even if she's never considered it an option herself. Too much pride, and an inability to know when to call it quits. It's gotten her plenty of beatings in life, mainly from her family. ]

I think you're right. They're choosing to stay silent. [ She can't even tell what the attendant is thinking through all of this. Their face betrays nothing. ] They were well trained to resist torture. But if they've chosen this, then that means they've chosen to side with those who've captured us.

[peoplewatch]

You aren't wrong about that. They can make decisions about what to wear and eat, so it's not like they don't know how to make choices.

[ Kabru walks over and squats down over the struggling man. He still doesn't look like he intends to help him. He will try one last ditch attempt at reasoning with them. ]

Are you really content dying right here? They won't even bother to clean up your body. Is it really fine that that is all your life amounted to? You're still young, sir.

[ It's sad even to him. Serving a god who won't even give them a dignified burial. Living amoung other servants who don't seem to have any connection to each other. Though Kabru is mostly saying these things to get the outcome he wants, he does feel some sympathy for these people. ]

But if you cooperate with us, we can save you too. We have healers, and strong people who can protect you from whatever punishment you might face for it.

[grade4]

That's right. They can even give you a new life somewhere else. [ Can they? She has no idea, but she's not worried about the logistics at the moment. ] Anything has to be better than servitude to a master who thinks nothing of your life.

[ Maki knows. She had to fight to earn the right to be acknowledged as a person. She saw her sister accept a lesser life because the threat of violence was too much for her. It's why she's so frustrated with these people who move around like shadows, devoid of any desire for freedom.

But the attendant, flicking their eyes between the two of them, simply takes in a breath and lets it out slow. Silence still, but their face changes. The fear is replaced with a sense of content. Of acceptance. ]

[peoplewatch]

[ The might be making promises there's no guarantee LILITH will keep for now, but Kabru is fairly confident it's the right thing to do. It makes sense for LILITH to want to save the Outsiders they worked so hard to obtain. If it means housing more refugees, it should be a reasonable trade off.

It doesn't look like an option this attendant is willing to take. If persuasion doesn't work, the next step would be to inflict pain, even if he prefers not to as far as possible. Kabru does consider it for a second. ]

...It doesn't look like our words are getting through to him. What do you want to do?