EVENT ★ SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL

[futurologists]

Following the sudden entrapment of a group of ALASTAIR diplomats, it's clear the true threat to Chantes is still afoot. The sun's disappearance may have been what was on the mission tin, but the man behind the plot is still alive and kicking. On the day the people inside the castle go incommunicado, King Christophe's head is unceremoniously tossed out from one of the towers. The word travels like wildfire from there: the Order of the Chimera's leader, Michel, has taken roost on the throne. But he doesn't seem keen on leaving much to rule — he's been busy littering the city with symbols from his grimoire. And with the king's death, they begin to stir. If ALASTAIR sent the recruits here to save Chantes, Michel and his rituals are why. THE DEMONS All around the city’s landmarks (and a few within the castle), runes have shimmered into existence. Remember those? Bothersome little things that nullify powers. But they’re not nullifying powers this time. These runes shimmer a low, sinister red, even by the bright light of midday. They wait, complacent, not really doing much of anything… that is, unless you try to destroy one of them. The moment a rune is tampered with in any way it flares brightly, and a thin red mist seeps out into the air. Each entity from the rune is a little bit different and fights in a different way, but all of them are unquestionably demonic. Some of them manifest physical forms and attack with claws and bolts of energy, but many of them are not so blunt. In fact, most of these demons are much more insidious, as recruits will quickly discover. POSSESSION Most of these creatures use possession as their main tactic, although their methods vary. Some demons keep themselves invisibly after that initial red leak of mist, choose a target, and begin to whisper in their ear. They’ll promise anything — power, riches, fame. Their words alter what might otherwise be sound judgment, making their target believe that not only are these demons perfectly capable of delivering, but they will impart their gifts just as soon as the recruit takes care of this one little task. Attacking your friend isn’t really so much to ask, right? Just think of the reward, just around the corner! Some demons spark a frenzy in their target. An unquellable rage rises within them, urging them to lash out at anyone around them. Maybe they see a nemesis from their past transposed over a friend, maybe they’re trapped in an unpleasant memory and trying desperately to fight free of it — whatever it takes, these demons relish provoking an uncontrollable need to fight. And finally, some of them will outright inhabit the body of their target and control all of their actions and words. The recruit will be fully aware of their actions, but unable to prevent any of it. They can only watch as the entity within them does whatever it takes to disable the friends around them — treachery, outright attack, whatever is needed. In each case the demons can be exorcised if you happen to be with someone with a knack for it, but otherwise impossible to drive out. The demon will remain in its host until someone else successfully destroys the rune it came from, which will finally kill it. The demons know this, of course, and will focus all effort on stopping any damage to their rune if it seems under threat. The destruction of runes inside the castle will open a thin breach in the barrier spell over it, allowing those inside to slip out (or those outside to slip in). They’d better move fast, though, as the breach will heal itself again in about 30 seconds. Miss your chance and you’ll have to hunt down and destroy another rune. (NOTE: Characters trapped within the castle may escape with enough time to take part in the possession aspect of the event with the rest of the game.) Anyone with a sense for magic can easily tell that the longer these runes go without being destroyed, the stronger their energy pulses. Eventually even ordinary folk will feel it. Townsfolk in the area become uneasy and restless, and proximity to intact runes will begin to fill you with a sense of dread and unnamed anxiety. Something is coming. Something that must be stopped before it can be let into the world. THE SUMMONS No matter how quickly the recruits move, there always seems to be one more rune to find, one more demon to defeat. And still that energy is building. When the town clock strikes 12 noon, the runes are at full strength, and they begin to launch into a coordinated ritual. A summoning spell, to be exact. The demons disappear, their energy sacrificed to bring forth something even worse. All over the city portals begin to open and beasts begin to claw out of them. These are chimeras, straight from myth, each one half the size of a building. They have vast wings and three heads a piece, a lion, a goat, and a dragon — plus a live snake for a tail. The tail’s what you should really look out for. A bite from the snake turns the bitten limb into solid stone, which will take either three days or a splash of blood from one of the chimeras to return to flesh and blood. It can be discovered that these monsters have an odd vulnerability to pure iron. If struck or stabbed by something made of iron their skin blisters and burns — enough of this could prove lethal to it. Or you can murder them the old fashioned way, if you’re good at killing giant monsters. Attacking them isn’t the only thing to be worried about, though. They’re smashing down buildings and attacking indiscriminately, so some characters might find their time well-spent evacuating citizens rather than partaking in the fight directly. The structural damage might be inevitable, but it’s at least possible to mitigate loss of life. THE AFTERWORD A few hours after the final chimera is killed, un-summoned, exploded, whatever its fate might be, recruits will find their ALASTAIR-given jewelry coming to life. It looks like they’re finally breaking their silence. Words scrawl across whatever surface you see them on, written in ornate purple script: On behalf of this land, thank you for your diligence and hard work. You have ten days to settle your affairs in this world before your return to Oska. Just that, then the jewelry dies out again. It’s a bit of an underwhelming show of gratitude, but it gets the point across. Say goodbye to any non-recruit friends you’ve made here, get the last word in on any arguments with the locals, settle your bar tabs — or rack them up, as per inclination. In ten days every ALASTAIR recruit will simply fade away into a white mist from the perspective of the locals. But until then the city is yours, and most importantly, safe. OOC INFO Welcome to the concluding log of Chantes! There's been quite a few pieces to it, so here's an overall list of the week's noteworthy plot posts: Peaceseeking player plot Loki and Ahad addressing Michel's disappearance A request from Arthur Event follow-up with the fate of Michel. Please note that regardless of Michel's end, we will be reading player suggestions and taking them into account for the overall fate of Chantes.

Comments

Hellboy / open

[hellshaped]

RUNES and DEMONS.

[Despite appearances, Hellboy does not have much in the way of magic in his arsenal, so he's having to destroy the runes with basic, blunt force. He's snagged a sword from somewhere -- it's not extremely sturdy and bends easily, but the important part is that it's made of iron. Upon finding a rune, he simply scratches an X over it with the sword's tip, and that seems to do the trick.

i. The demons that come when the runes are broken vary. Hellboy prefers the kind that leap out of the mist and tear at him, speaking in guttural, hissing tones that Hellboy himself seems to understand, given by how he responds.] Well, at least I'm not ugly! [He doesn't use the sword against these beasts, instead hammering at them with his giant, stonelike right hand. Destruction follows as the demons (and, naturally, Hellboy) are thrown against buildings, bricks coming loose, or thrashed against trees, snapping the trunks in half. Hellboy seems capable of taking just as much punishment as he is dealing out, but he could probably use some help anyway, right?

ii. The subtle, quiet kind of demons are not Hellboy's favorite, owing to the fact that he is not a subtle, quiet kind of person. It's difficult to fight something that whispers to you, though at least Hellboy seems to have some kind of immunity to this sort of thing. He can still hear them, but the most it seems to affect him is making him annoyed as he walks around at a clipped pace, searching for another rune and digging around in his pockets. But that doesn't mean it doesn't affect anyone.]

[ ooc: hellboy cannot be possessed but he has experience in exorcism. if you would like your possessed character to be freed, this is the prompt for you! ]

BLOOD and IRON.

[By this point, Hellboy's coat is in tatters and streaked with blood. He's bleeding from bites and scratches and more, bright red against the slightly darker tone of his skin. This doesn't seem to bother him too much, though, because he is very focused on hunting chimeras.

The iron sword he'd been using to dispell runes is now chipped and bent, but he's not trying to stab the chimeras with it -- he's burning them.

They're enormous, but Hellboy has experience fighting enormous things. Hooves clacking rapidly on the cobblestones as he rushes his quarry, yelling unintelligibly, he strikes at the legs, dodging its bites until it stumbles from the iron. It's then that he'll start to clamber up on top of it, and then the real work can begin.]

AFTER ALL.

[Things are quiet and safe, but that doesn't mean it's over. Despite his wounds, Hellboy makes it a point to check on as many natives of Chantes as he can -- goblin and human alike. They only have a few days here, and he'll help them recover from this disaster in whatever way he can, with whatever time he has left.]

after all!!

[viscontree]

[Everything has calmed down up to a certain point. Julius still has his guard up because he finds it difficult to rest so soon. As soon as he chats with some of the locals he takes a minute to speak with Hellboy.]

Got a second?

[Just making sure you aren't busy with anything.]

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy, in the process of hefting a large piece of rubble, is not really sure how to answer the question. He glances over his shoulder, then sort of shrugs and jerks his head forward, indicating he ought to be followed as he continues moving this stuff off the street.]

Sure. What do you need?

[viscontree]

I want to ask you a question. How do you feel about Chantes?

[Have things really changed for the better now that ALASTAIR got involved? Julius isn't sure if he has all the answers yet. So many questions in his mind, although he's sure that he'll discover something new by talking to the locals and Hellboy.]

The past few days have been somewhat chaotic. [An understatement if you will.]

I just assumed that it'd be a good opportunity for the both of us to share our opinions.

[hellshaped]

Wow. That's a loaded question if I ever heard one.

[Hellboy mulls it over as he carried the largeish piece of rubble, not answering until he's dumped it into a ditch where other pieces already are. It'll be covered with dirt later, the filled crater serving as the foundation for something new.

Dusting his hands off, he turns around to look at this kid.]

I don't know. You mean how do I feel about leaving it like this?

[viscontree]

[It's true, it's a loaded question. Julius never liked leaving his work unfinished. He personally feels as if the turmoil in Chantes will never truly leave. The goblins and humans have a lot to work out. ]

Yeah, I suppose so. To me it feels as if everything's happening too quickly.

[He hasn't had much time to process what the hell's going on in the first place. Hellboy may feel differently.]

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy shrugs, dipping his hand in his pocket in search of cigarettes.]

It's not uncommon for things to happen fast. That's life for you. Unpredictable.

[viscontree]

You're right. That's the one part I dislike about it however. There's no time to dawdle around and ponder on these things.

[He'd appreciate it if he got some thinking time. Life won't wait for anyone.]

[hellshaped]

[Finding a cigarette, Hellboy slips it into his mouth and strikes a match. That's a strange comment, though, so he eyes him a little as he lights up.]

Is that something you're used to doing? Having the time to think these sort of things over?

[viscontree]

I had plenty of time to review my own actions, yes.

How about you? Did you stop to think this over before?

[He's curious really. That's all it is.]

[hellshaped]

[One eye squinting, Hellboy gestures vaguely with his stone hand, indicating the whole of Chantes. The destruction, the monster ichor, all of it.]

There hasn't been much time to think about it. This isn't chess.

[viscontree]

I know. Reality isn't so clean cut.

Where does that leave us though? Are we supposed to accept things as they are now?

[Is Hellboy okay with their current state? Julius sure isn't although he seems to be expressing his discontent in a way that's far from mature.]

[hellshaped]

[He shrugs a little, looking to the side. ALASTAIR's entire M.O. makes him uncomfortable, honestly. What do they do? Swoop in to alter a sequence of events, then disappear and damn the consequences? It's strange. Like they're missing a piece of the puzzle.]

I don't think we have much of a choice. [He ashes the cigarette.] We can't stick around and play clean-up forever.

flops on delicately

[riastraid]

[ It's a little funny when someone with cloven hooves go full tilt. He hears it before he sees it, the urgent, heavy click-clack like a very large goat in a very large hurry. But when Lancer turns, it's a figure much more menacing than an agitated barnyard critter. A giant red man with bright eyes beating a chimera to death with a sword.

Rather than waste time being surprised or cowed, Lancer is over at the fight in a flash. While Hellboy's grabbing at tufts of fur and starting his climb, he zips straight in front of the beast. The core pair of heads roars and bleats, alarmed by the sudden newcomer. Which seems to be the point. Gotta lend a hand to a fellow monster hunter when he can, right?

But while he raises his spear, it doesn't mean Hellboy's completely in the all-clear. There's still a snake head rising from the chimera's tail, swaying and jerking irritably. It hisses, striking towards him with exposed, dripping fangs while the rest of the monster keeps its eyes on Lancer. ]

melts into a puddle

[hellshaped]

[While Hellboy is not exactly a stranger to working in a team, he hasn't done it for a number of years. He usually just beats things to death on his own nowadays, though admittedly he winds up bleeding and broken-boned more often than not. Or, on one occasion, literally dead. But let's not talk about that now.

He's distantly aware of Lancer's entrance, though he's so focused on losing himself to the adrenaline, the fight, that he doesn't waste the time thinking too hard about it right now. That tail is still a danger.]

I don't think so, [he barks at the snake part of the chimera, waiting for it to come close enough where he can just hop over its head, slapping it with the sword on his way over. The iron burns the snake at and it shrieks -- a sound cut short when Hellboy pulls his gun and blows its head apart at point-blank.]

How's it going down there? [He finally turns his attention to Lancer, continuing to climb up the length of the chimera's back, tucking his revolver back in the holster.]

follows suit

[riastraid]

[ Most people here have probably been literally dead at one point or another, himself included. Oops. ALASTAIR must recruit from a pool of tiny adorable children and adults who have fucked up Most Intensely.

But this doesn't have to end in tragedy. Hellboy plays jumprope with the snaketail—jumprope with guns—and Lancer seems more occupied with watching him than like, ripping open the goathead's jaw by the teeth. He whistles helpfully, sidestepping as the lion tries to bite out his neck. ]

I'm okay—go ahead.

[ He doesn't take this totally lightly though, whipping his lance around. With a quick stab, he harpoons straight through the beast's lower leg, skewering it to the ground. It jerks like a bear caught in a trap, thrashing wildly, but effectively immobile. As long as Hellboy can hang on to it, that is. Sorry, HB. ]

[hellshaped]

[It's been awhile since Hellboy has climbed up a giant monster. The last time was maybe a giant worm thing that he didn't so much climb as get thrown around as it bit at him. So it's taking him a little bit of effort to get his balance as he grabs onto chimera mane and tries to catch his footing with these dumb hooves.

This is not exactly easy work. Incidentally, it is less easy when the living, furry mountain he's scaling roars as its leg is impaled, then starts whipping around while it tries to get loose.]

Son of a -- are you kidding?!

[His right hand is good for punching, but not so much grabbing; his large, stone fingers lose their grip, and he's stuck hanging onto the chimera's mane with his normal hand, flopping around like a rag doll.]

[riastraid]

[ If goats can climb mountains, Hellboys can climb mountainous goats. Get your act together, ya schmuck.

Unfortunately, between the two of them there's probably about a thimble's worth of good luck to go around. So when the chimera suddenly whips the opposite direction, Hellboy gets swung straight into Lancer's chest with a dramatic thunk and grunt. His spear tears out of the ground lest it yank his arm from his shoulder, freeing the beast.

But from its wound, a bruise-like webbing shifts and ripples under its skin, odd and glowing faintly: a curse seeping through its leg like poison. It doesn't stop its rampaging, grown mad with pain. With Hellboy sitting like an unreachable itch on its back, and unwilling to take another stab from Lancer, the chimera goes the one direction it can. ...Which is straight up. Wings beating down in a tremendous gust, it takes off. ]

[hellshaped]

[Oh, this is good. This is great. It takes Hellboy a few seconds to realize just how great it is, stunned by getting slammed into Lancer, but then he realizes that his balance has shifted...

The scenery has shifted...

The chimera has shifted...

Suddenly he's in the air, scrambling to get a better grip on the chimera's mane as it shoots upward. He's holding on with both his hands now -- for now, more precisely -- and the banged-up iron sword drops out of his grip. It smacks the chimera's foot on the way down, but the burn from cold iron is apparently nothing compared to what Lancer's lance did to the thing, because it barely notices.]

Little help! [Hellboy barks over his shoulder, eyes wide, before the thing flies too far away. There's not much he can do except kick at its neck a little. Maybe he does that some, just out of general frustration.

It is not very effective.]

[riastraid]

[ Well. Bye, Hellboy. It was nice knowing you.

But no, Lancer squints up at the chimera and the baleful attempts to irritate the thing to death. The sword falls and embeds itself into the roof with a useless twang. So it's up to him, a melee warrior, to deal with this. His aim's decent, but still—possibly skewering Hellboy by accident would really be defeating the purpose here. ]

Hang on!

[ A very literal warning. He sets a foot back, raises his spear like a javelin, and goes for a compromise: shoot for an extremity. When he hurls it forward, the spear sails straight and true as an oversized arrow. But instead of the heart, it rips straight through one of the chimera's wings, tattering through membrane and busting up a bone.

The beast veers and roars and drops like a stone. ]

[hellshaped]

[That's... better? Maybe? Hellboy is not sure. Instead of going alarmingly upward, he is now going alarmingly downward, and the rushing wind in his eyes is making it difficult to see and think. He can't really do much of anything but hold on for dear life and hope the impact isn't that bad --

But, again, their collective bad luck almost necessitates that it will be just terrible. And it is.

The chimera and the ground collide with the cracking of cobblestones, the impact creating a shallow crater in the middle of the street. A few buildings on either side get winged by flailing chimera limbs, breaking windows and knocking shingles loose, but at least nothing collapses.

Except for Hellboy, he has collapsed. He's been thrown off the thing on impact, and is sprawled a few yards away. He's dazed and bruised, but largely uninjured, and he shakes his head hard as he staggers to his feet.] You're nuts.

[The chimera does not seem to be in a very good way, conversely; its bones have probably been broken by the fall, since it can't seem to do much but writhe and snap at the air, roaring furiously.]

[riastraid]

[ The chimera's descent is a little more turbulent than he'd been expecting. Which is dumb. He probably should've anticipated that when he thrashed one of its wings, but hindsight is 20/20. The point is he tried and he can't be blamed for the thundering crash of chimera and Hellboy meeting solid earth again.

Lancer waits until Hellboy's stumbled onto his hooves again, only sounding very mildly affronted. ]

I was helping.

[ As! Requested!! Anyway, if this disaster is good for anything—the sword Hellboy lost gets dislodged amidst the rumbling, sliding down the roof and clattering nearby. Lancer goes to gather it up, (gently) tossing it by the hilt back to its proper owner. ]

—I softened it up for you. [ You're welcome. ] Go ahead and finish it off.

[ Because his spear is lodged elsewhere, probably stabbed into a chimney or something. The chimera, minus the violent, frenetic thrashing, is now effectively disabled anyway. Nothing a (possibly concussed) guy couldn't handle. ]

[hellshaped]

[Fucking rude, tbh. Hellboy catches the busted-up sword easily, though he squints a little at Lancer's reply.]

Delicate stomach? [he chides flatly, hooves carrying him closer to the downed chimera with a clip clop that can barely be heard over the thing's anger. It'd almost be pathetic, if the thing weren't such a mindlessly raging beast.

It's only by the grace of God (or his human "parent," honestly) that Hellboy isn't in the same situation. Just some raging thing whose only purpose is destruction.

He pauses at the head of the chimera, mouth twitching, then pushes his thoughts away. He raises the sword high over his head and brings it down on the monster's neck. Blood and ichor spray out and it's disgusting, but he has to go back and whack at it a few times. It's a big neck and this is a comparatively small sword.]

I can't say I missed this line of work. [Says the man covered in monster blood and scratches, his coat pretty much just hanging off him in rags.]

[riastraid]

[ Yes, he's a delicate flower, don't judge him. But no, the truth: he's interested in using a sword that shitty. While Lancer wants for nothing, he's a little spoiled when it comes to tools of the murder trade. Hence— ]

Really? I kinda miss it.

[ Simpler days, then. Says one man to another whilst standing in a pool of monster blood. He doesn't so much as grimace at all the viscera, expression placid as he goes over to check out Hellboy's hackjob. Inelegant, but he's not one to judge. ]

You should come out of retirement—you're pretty good at this.

[hellshaped]

[At least the chimera is dead now. Or, well, he hopes. It would be pretty terrible if it were flying around, headless.

Hellboy pokes it with the tip of his hoof just in case. It is pretty well dead. Ignoring the blood coating his hands and everything else, he fishes out a cigarette and lights it.]

I did it for a long time. You get tired of it: the blood, the horrible stuff these things do. [He takes a moment to wipe the sword off on the chimera's mane. It's basically just a beat-up hunk of metal now, but you never know when you might need some iron.] The things you learn.