epidemiology | EVENT ★ SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ It's hard to watch Sieglinde move on her cruelly bound feet, harder still to seperate from her under such dangerous circumstances... But Aqua is resolved not to let fear disrupt her spirit or cloud her judgement.

And while she isn't afraid for own well-being, she understand Sieglinde's sentiments and takes them into consideration with a well-meaning smile. ]

I will. Thank you, Sieglinde.

[ Determined though she is, Aqua is keenly aware of her own weaknesses; she's a glass canon with neither magical fodder nor a single curative on her person. (But though she may not be a mage now, she is still very much a fighter, with surprising strength and dexterity in her unimpressively thin build.)

Gripping the ax in both hands, she steps out into the hallway, into view of yet-forming demon, and charges.

Her first swing cuts clean through the creature's body, and instead of stopping her momentum, she spins herself around for a second strike, as brutal as the first.

...But it heals quickly, wounds licking themselves closed right before her eyes, and she's forced to parry a retaliating blow from the demon, the force of it great enough to send her stumbling back several paces. Shifting her grip once more, Aqua grits her teeth and closes in on the demon, ducking under a swipe and slamming the flat of the ax into its torso with the intent to displace, not sever. She handsprings clear of a bolt of energy and repeats, bashing the creature against the wall and stunning it.

There isn't much time but Aqua refocuses as much of her energy as she can and dashes for the rune, leaping high and landing blade-first on the marking. Her effort is enough to chip the stone, marring the lines of magic and producing in a hair-splitting screech that has her quickly backing away. The demon peels itself from the wall and charges for her, body glowing red as a coal, still fueled by its fury despite having been rendered into fragments—undoubtedly the result of the fractured rune. It disintegrates into black ash before it can reach her...

...And the rune detonates, blasting a hole in the hallway and pushing Aqua back several feet. She lands not so far from where Sieglinde is, momentarily dazed (but ultimately uninjured save for a few scrapes). ]

[Sieglinde hated the feeling of helplessness that throbbed along with each beat of her heart as she stood by and watched Aqua square off against the demon. It wasn't a new feeling... but it was one that flared up at certain times. When she had to ask to be carried. When she had to rely so thoroughly on others.

From behind the corner she winces, tries to avoid the instinct to close her eyes, instead concentrating on following each swing, each wound, the dagger clutched tightly in her hands.

The pulse of fear when the demon rushed for the woman, the surge of hope when the rune cracked-

And the gasp of horror when it exploded, sending Aqua flying to skid across the floor. Heedless, she rushed out herself, swaying and having to go to her knees off balance and scoot over to her, reaching out and stopping herself at the last moment from touching her head in case of injury.]

Aqua- are you alright? Can you hear me?

[ Sieglinde's voice rings distant, then near as Aqua's senses recalibrate. Sitting herself up, she rubs gingerly at the back of her head and gives the other girl a brief nod. ]

I am. Please don't worry.

[ (She's taken much harder hits, but regardless she'll be more careful for such unpleasant surprises in the future...) Glancing back at the breach in the wall, ] ...Do you think that might be a way out?

[ Who knows how the actual barrier's holding up, but if anything it looks as if they've managed to create themselves a makeshift exit... For now there are no other signs of demonic activity in their immediate vicinity (though the place is still laced with black magic), and she breathes a little easier for it.

Sieglinde seems to be doing all right herself, managing remarkably well for anyone under her circumstances, and Aqua rocks forward into a crouch, ready to get the both of them going once more. ] Climb on when you're ready.

[Sieglinde has never been one to trust a patient saying they were fine, because people tended to lie about injuries in order to avoid doctors... but at this point, she had to just believe her. After all, her eyes looked focused, still bright, and she wasn't having any trouble moving...

Sieglinde pulled herself off her knees to clamber back onto Aqua's back, curling her fingers around her opposite wrist and hanging on tight as she eyed the potential hole in the barrier warily.]

It may... if the barrier in this area was tied to the rune...

[It seemed risky, but... risky might be all they had left.]

[ It's true, they don't have much to lose here and their options dwindle the longer they remain trapped behind these walls. ]

I suppose we'll just have to find out.

[ She hunches her shoulders up to better secure Sieglinde's weight—slight though it is, and marches forward, ignoring the discarded ax along the way. (If they've truly found an exit she'll have no need for it, and if they haven't... Well, she'll have plenty of time to retrieve the weapon.)

There's nothing to impede them, no sign of danger on either side of the hole. It's almost surreal to see the outside world, but she steps through quickly, breath bated.

—No sooner does the gap behind them shudder and seal to a sudden close, nearly giving Aqua a start. ]

I... believe we've just made our way out. [ There's a note of relief to her voice (if not mild disbelief). ]

—The others, shall we try contacting them?

[ A moment's worth of quick inventory with their jewelry should let them know who's still inside and who isn't. ]

(( ooc: feel free to gloss over that part ofc!! ))

[The idea of potentially leaving the other recruits behind as they themselves escaped did not sit well with Sieglinde, but what was there to do? What if the portal closed before they returned, or was unstable-

Still.

She resisted the urge to close her eyes in order to observe all she could about the portal when they passed through it, eyes widening even further when the breach in the magical barrier closed behind them.]

It's already closed- !

[Sieglinde frantically pulled up her network, eyes taking on the unfocused look of someone using the jewelry and gazing at a screen before her eyes, firing off messages to those they'd been trapped with...

And receiving only a few replies back.]

Most of them are still trapped inside... and there's something here about runes and Michel, and-

[They had a lot of work left to do yet.]

[ Aqua's own efforts with the network produces similar results, and she breaks off the connection with a mild frown. ] So it seems.

[ (An exit with some sort of timer attached to it... Not unheard of, but troublesome all the same. They can only hope the recruits still inside can muster the same luck the two of them have had.) In attempt to quell any alarm, ] ...I'm sure they'll be all right. They've proven themselves to be capable recruits.

[ All formidable fighters, in their own way. (If Aqua herself managed without her magic, she'll have faith in her comrades as well.) —Of course, she'll also do everything she can to help from the outside. The foul magic at play makes her stomach churn; there can't be anything good to come from all this. ]

We can look around outside. Perhaps there are similar runes surrounding the castle...

[ Break enough them and eventually the barrier should fall... Or buy enough time to communicate with those still trapped inside, somehow. (Half a minute is a very strict margin to deal with.)

They'll do what they can... ]

EVENT ★ SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL

I AM SO SORRY FOR THE TL;DR and inevitable slew of errors

do not be sorry!

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so... late...