lifeaftr | October Event: Crystal Clear

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October Event: Crystal Clear

OCTOBER EVENT: CRYSTAL CLEAR

Who: Everyone!
What: Your exploration takes a turn.
When: October 20th - 26th
Where: The caverns situated underneath Ensō
Warnings: Character death, body horror, descriptions of illness. Please mark any additional warnings as needed!

Part I: Attack, Attack!
Congratulations! You've successfully gone where no Storyteller has gone or can go, and woken up in the network of subterranean caves buried beneath the island's mass, along with your designated supplies: a miner's cap, a week's worth of food, and both your knapsacks and their collective contents. And the further along you go, the vaster and more sprawling these almost labyrinthian tunnels seem to get. There’s certainly evidence that civilization once thrived here - old buildings hewed from the rock of the cave walls may very well contain old tools, or even salvageable supplies. Careful examination of structures and cavern walls alike will reveal sigils resembling those carved on the doors, each of which will need to be destroyed entirely at the Storyteller's behest. Whatever was down here was advanced enough to dwell without sunlight. But that raises a rather pertinent question...

If there were once people here, where did they all go?

Fortunately, one will soon discover that there's plenty of natural light underground, exhibited by the crystalline growths on the walls. None of them appear to be dangerous, and those attracted to shiny things might even find them useful for picking up or chipping away in order to better light their way. The crystal has about the thickness and hardness of quartz, and bathes its surroundings in a luminous green glow.

The closer you come to the center of the mass, however, the denser the crystalline growths seem to become, until one has to be quite ingenious in navigating them. Eventually, they'll simply be too dense to be squeezed through, even by the smallest and most agile of your number.

That’s when they it will start to become apparent.

Something in the crystal is moving.

Huge chunks of crystal are starting to detach from the center and move slowly, inexorably, toward those unfortunate enough to have explored the caverns. Unmistakably humanoid silhouettes, distorted by awful crystalline growths, most of which have completely swallowed any recognizable features.

...most.

The good news is that the creatures can be shattered, and beaten back. The bad news? Well...

Part II: Retreat, Retreat!
Those who get close enough to the crystalized beasts to get a good look at them will soon make a horrifying discovery - the fact that, underneath those thick layers of luminescent quartz, there was once something that might have been recognizable as human. These quartz monsters aren't native to this region, or indeed, to any region of the island at all. They were formed.

Formed out of the very crystal that you explorers have been touching, picking up, sleeping on, and just generally remaining in prolonged contact with ever since you set foot down here.

Indeed, anyone who has been in contact with the crystal for extended periods of time - sleeping on it or getting dealt a swipe from one of the crystalized monsters, for example - will find that tiny, quartz-like growths have started to sprout on their skin as well. Once the virus has taken root, it will spread rapidly until it has swallowed you whole. Indeed, the unpleasant symptoms will reveal themselves within twenty-four hours of the initial exposure: in addition to clusters of crystalline growths pocking the affected areas, the inflicted will begin to experience intense stabbing pains all over as the crystal begins to grow - both inside and out.

The transformation is slow and arduous and painful, and vocalization tends to be one of the first things to go once the crystals sprout in the mouth and throat. Within the span of about three days since the initial exposure, the transformation will have sheathed most of the physical body in crystal entirely, sealing the victim in a humanoid cast of glasslike green.

It has not been confirmed if the inflicted are sentient and aware of their state of being once they are completely consumed. Whatever their intentions, those are easily overridden by the virus's innate desire to spread to as many organisms as possible.

As this is an event with a high risk of death, the Storyteller will impose death penalties for one week only. Additionally, deaths succumbed during the event count towards the character's total. There is no known cure to the virus, but that doesn't mean characters can't or shouldn't try!

Event Timeline

[ ♆ ] October 20th: Spelunking begins. Points of interest will be provided.
[ ♆ ] October 22nd: The Quartzalcoatl make their presence known.
[ ♆ ] October 24th: The final sigils are broken, and the Storyteller will return all uninfected to the Islets.
[ ♆ ] October 26th: All deceased will be returned at midday, suffering from a reduced death penalty.

Event Specifics

[ ♆ ] If your character perishes in this event, please let us know!
[ ♆ ] For those who opted out, please see the top-level below!
[ ♆ ] Item claims can be found on the OOC plotting post here!

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The hell you mean, alive? It's - if it doesn't have a soul, then how can it...

[The words die in his throat. He doesn't want to face what that might mean, the implications of something that isn't alive but is. The creature itself is empty. But the crystal?]

[What does that make it? A plant? A...something else?]

So what - what is it?

[The trepidation in his tone might be enough to tell that he's not certain he wants an answer.]

[Her eyes narrow, watching the creature with growing suspicion.]

I can't be sure, but I think... If an animal is less than a person, and a plant is less than an animal, then what's less complex than a plant but still alive?

[Half remembered biology lessons flit through her mind- classes that were only curiosities, because the smallest living things were no threat to monsters, to magical beings with no biology to infect.]

A disease.

Edited 2017-10-24 21:42 (UTC)

[Ha.]

[One hand curls up over his chest, an involuntary flex of fingertips bracing against the area just above his heart. Just above his lungs. A disease. Something that chews away at you. Something half-formed, not with its own consciousness, but with a related, secondary impact that leaves ash-streaked trails in its wake.]

[A disease.]

You think we - might be susceptible? [But from the way he's edging back, step by step, it's clear he already suspects as much.]

I don't know, but I think I'd prefer not to find out.

[She grimaces, looking at the crystals all around them with rapidly increasing mistrust.]

Monsters can't catch illnesses the way humans do, but this place has interfered with my magic before- my green magic isn't as strong as it should be, hasn't been since we arrived. So if this is some sort of infection, I'm not willing to gamble on being too magical for it.

[And even if she is, what about everyone else? There are other more magical beings in their group, but the majority is still all too human, lacking even the hope that they might be immune to anything coming their way.]

I think we need to warn the others about this soonest.

Yeah, but how? [There's word of mouth, but that's only gonna take them so far. It might be nothing - they can't know for sure unless one of them is morbid enough and stupid enough to fucking test it out, and he's not gonna willingly sign himself up for that. Not right now.]

[For a moment, he darts a look at the ceiling - stone and impenetrable and emotionless - and scowls.]

Unless the great big rabbit in the sky wants to do it for us.

We won't be able to catch everyone, but if we head back to the camp people were setting up at the start of the caverns, we should at least be able to let a decent chunk of the group know there's something they should be looking out for. Better than nothing, at least.

[She smiles slightly at Tim's frustration, the first time she's smiled since trying to look at the creature's lack of a soul.]

I don't think they can hear you from down here, given how many of those sigils are probably still around.

[She's right, he knows. There's a fair degree of reason there that he should be the guy to embrace and layer over it - that's him, that's what he does when he isn't fucking crazy. He's the guy with a slightly more reasonable plan than Jay, a guy who can pull that clean drape of clarity despite his very existence being anything but clarifying.]

There are kids down here. Fuck.

[He curses once more under his breath. He can't - not again. Not again. Not after the mountain. That was bad enough.]

[She can't blame him for being upset about this, her expression growing solemn again at the reminder.]

[She remembers that mountain, too.]

We can try to make sure no one gets caught out alone, at least.

[Her gaze shifts back to the captured creature, frowning in thought.]

The next most pressing question is what to do with this thing. In theory, I can just leave it tied up until we leave this cave entirely, but somehow I think leaving something like that just... lying around on the ceiling isn't a good idea.

Well, what're we supposed to do? It's - it looks like rock. It won't burn, and even if it breaks, that'll just mean it can still spread, or whatever it does.

[They could try driving it back, but it might end up menacing some other poor bastard down the line. There's not a winning situation here. Nothing he can think of other than just - getting the hell out, closing the passages behind them, and letting those things rot down there.]

[Assuming they ever do. Everything here looks old, but it's still intact.]

[Whatever lived down here might've been gone for years. Years. And just - swallowed up, like it was nothing.]

[She gestures at the crystals on the walls and floor of the cavern.]

None of those seem to be moving around at all, yes? Maybe in order to be mobile it needs to grow to a certain size or be attached to-

[Don't say 'someone'.]

-something. So if we broke it into smaller pieces, it at least wouldn't be able to actively attack people.

[She sighs wearily.]

Or that might just make more of it, thus making the problem that much worse. I honestly have no idea.

[That's not an answer. There is no good answer in any of this, and the thought alone draws his hands into fists. Did the crystal just...grow itself into this shape? Force itself into a form that could walk around and manipulate its surroundings? Or did it seed itself in someone else and start growing?]

[For the second time, his hand threads itself around the fabric of his shirt just over his chest, clenched over a fistful of worn, grime-streaked cloth until the knuckles blanch.]

So we break it up. And hope it doesn't make things worse.

That's the best answer I can think of, yes. Do you have any conveniently heavy, blunt objects we can use to hit it, or should I just try throwing magic at it until something cracks?

[Well, at least she's asking the practical questions.]

I've got something.

[The words are grim as he switches the spear out for the hatchet. The blade's a bit dulled, but it should do in a pinch. Not quite blunt or heavy, but the hardest hitting weapon of destruction he has.]

[He carries far, far too many weapons for someone who doesn't trust himself around any of them.]

You wanna do the honors, or should I?

[Her expression is grimly amused.]

I'll hold and you hit? I can have a go at it if your efforts don't work.

[Maybe these things aren't like monsters. Maybe intent doesn't matter. Maybe it doesn't make a difference, if he squares his stance and tenses his shoulders and grimaces and breathes in, long and sharp.]

[Makes him feel better. Slightly.]

Yeah. Okay. [He looks up at the thing plastered to the ceiling, and exhales.]

Ready.

[Intent might matter less to his opponent, but if it helps him at all then it's still worth something.]

[Muffet shifts the strings carefully, so that the still-bound creature is moved a little further down the wall and pinned firmly there, held in a good spot for striking.]

Ready.

[He can't look at it. Not directly. He knows he's seen worse, he knows he has, he's even been worse, but something about the way it looks just human enough to struggle against its bonds, just - nags at him. Scratches his throat raw like he's about to burst into another ill-timed coughing fit.]

[Shuts his eyes. Breathes.]

Careful. If bits of this start flying, you don't want it getting all over you.

[That's his final warning.]

[He swings the hatchet back and slams the blade into the gleaming expanse of crystal with the high-pitched shattering sound akin to breaking glass.]

[Muffet seems to be doing... almost the opposite, but for the same reasons: she has no idea if there was a person in there, once, but if there was she can't help but feel she owes it to them not to look away.]

[She nods grimly, standing at a sensible distance, and holds the creature firmly in place as Tim strikes. It continues its' mindless thrashing as though unaffected, but still can't break free.]

[He doesn't stop.]

[It's like the monkeys that screeched at him, that howled at Brian as they tried to pin him to the ground like a skewer through a butterfly, and he'd made that wild, uncoordinated swing and it connected and at least, at least he could be certain it was him and not anyone else's thoughts bleeding into the back of his mind, because he remembers the icy precision of a knife in his hand and the sharp flash of teeth peeking out between parted lips and it had been nothing like that just as it is nothing like this now. Nothing like this, but something, he thinks, like Alex. Alex, who gasped and panted and bled and choked on the redness pouring out and out of him, who could only gurgle parting words as he struggled beneath another man's crimsoned hands and fought as hard as he could because he must not have wanted to die, he must not have wanted to die even if he knew that he would because that was always his plan - it's like this, it's like this, and there is no blood and no screaming and no grunting and no red, just the swing and connect and the arrhythmic thud and smash and the way it gives beneath each blow, so utterly unlike flesh, so utterly unlike the fragile vein pumping in an exposed neck and the way it fountained out of him and it only occurs to him that he's begun to ]

[It's done.]

[It's pieces.]

[It's fragments.]

[And Tim, Tim is stumbling back with the hatchet sliding between nerveless fingers and his breath slippery in his chest.]

[His cheeks slippery with something else.]

[She watches carefully, one half keeping vigil for whatever might or might not have been in there once and one half waiting warily for anything to go wrong.]

[Eventually it's done. He's done, too, by the look of it.]

[Muffet closes her eyes for a moment and lets out a deep breath, a very small amount of the tension in her shoulders relaxing as the smashed remains fail to rear back up and attack them again. She lets the purple magic dissipate and looks over at Tim.]

How are you doing, dearie?

[Her tone makes it clear that she knows it's a bit of a stupid question, but sometimes even when the answer's obvious you still have to ask.]

[For several long moments there’s nothing but the ragged syncopation of his breathing and the tremor to his shoulders, the way he can hardly move to brush the worst of the moisture clinging to his cheeks away with the back of one hand.]

[He was always like this. It’s fine. He always had violent episodes, he was always dangerous, he was always a danger to himself and others and he knew that and it’s - it’s fine. He’s fine. He just took advantage of his own neurochemistry. High time he did that to himself, instead of another person’s soul living in his head.]

[How is he doing?]

...fine. I’m fine. [It’s automated and whispered, and he’s anything but.]

[Muffet gives him a flat look, clearly not convinced, but it would be unkind to call him out on the obvious lie.]

All right, then. There's a clear patch on the floor over there, if you want to sit down for a little bit.

[What the hell else is he supposed to say? No, I'm not really that fine, but just keep acting like everything's okay and maybe I'll get there in a minute? He's nowhere near that level of brainpower, to pull something like that out and just make it sound damn effortless in the process.]

[He tries to play it all close to the chest. Until it stops letting itself be held in.]

Just - just - it's gone. It's not moving? [Focus on something real. Something tangible.]

[Like the crystal maybe-illness that could possibly try to kill them all.]

[Honestly, faking it 'til you make it is probably not the least healthy coping mechanism he could have under the circumstances. Muffet certainly isn't going to judge.]

No, all the parts having stopped moving. It's just acting like the rest of the crystals on the floor and walls now.

...good.

[Good.]

[That's all the energy he has for, right now. He doesn't exactly take her suggestion, but one hand drifts out to cling to the walls, those mercifully bereft of crystalline growths, and he breathes.]

[Until, inevitably, he remembers he isn't alone.]

You should probably...go on ahead. I mean.

October Event: Crystal Clear

now ur gettin it

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cw flashbacking

Re: cw flashbacking

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Probably wrapping soon?

o7

Probably wrapped unless you want to add something.