lifeaftr | February Event: The Sound Resounds

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February Event: The Sound Resounds

FEBRUARY: THE SOUND RESOUNDS

Who: Anyone who wants to deal with some crystalized monstrosities!
What: Something buried becomes unburied
When: February 16th and onward
Where: How could something so terrible reflect so much light?
Warnings: Potential warnings for character illness and body horror; be sure to mark your headers if things get more intense!

I Wish the Tide Would Take Me Over
The Water did a lot of work with the heavens to get that cloud cover to be nudged aside so that you all could access those floating islands. And hopefully you'll be able to get quite a bit out of those fragments of reality while you can still traverse them, because what awaits you on solid ground isn't going to be anywhere near as pleasant.

It seems as though the effort of unveiling those islands has put a lot of strain on the balance of water surrounding Ensō. So much so that those flooded caverns underneath the island have started to overflow. Not very many of you might be left to remember, but those caves already weren't most ideal to go trekking through, even without the discovery of the horrible, humanoid creatures that frequented those areas. The consequences of adventurers' first (and last) excursions into those caverns can be read up on right here, for the curious.

The important part is that, after an awful lot of adventurers perished down there, the Storyteller was able to get everyone to safety (only after being the one to send them down there unprompted in the first place, it should be noted), and immediately prevented the problem from escalating by sealing the underground shut. And for years, that solution has more or less worked out just fine!

Until now. On the morning of February 16th, travelers who live near the monkey compound or the mountain temple will hear a loud rumbling, like the sound of rushing water...right before those big stone doors break violently open and water comes pouring out.

It's highly recommended that those who live in either of those regions, or those who keep any important belongings in those regions, do their best to evacuate immediately. It might be possible to rebuild or repair any damages that might be done to those surroundings, but the immediate danger will be very much present at the event's start.

We are happy to leave the choice of damage to individual homes and resources up to you, but at the very least, you can expect that much of the area surrounding both the monkey compound and the mountain temple will be flooded for a few days at the very least - and suffering a great deal of water or structural damage at the most.

Burn Down Our Home
The more pressing issue will be, in all likelihood, the hulking green, humanoid shapes that look to be composed almost entirely of a greenish crystal. Almost immediately after that initial flood of water sweeps over the area, the creatures known as the quartzalcoatl are going to start spilling out as well. While they move slowly, you definitely don't want these things to so much as touch you, for they're capable of spreading a crystalizing "virus" that will steadily consume living tissue and cause crystalline growths to start spreading throughout the body.

This virus is just as awful as it sounds. The crystalline disease spread by the quartzalcoatl cannot be repelled by regenerative abilities, and characters with chances of immunity at 50% or higher will have to RNG the results. Even worse? The local fauna on Ensō is going to be just as susceptible to the spreading virus as any of you. It's in your best interest to dispose of these creatures before they start consuming everything on Ensō.

Now, you could just...shatter them and hope that'll be enough. These things can be destroyed with the application of enough force, though you'll probably get overwhelmed if you don't have some kind of strategy on hand. As we mentioned, you really don't want this infection to spread to too many other parts of the island. The last time this infection swept through the ranks of the adventurers, there was no known cure...but fortunately, such is not the case this time! There is a way to cure those afflicted, as long as the affliction is recent - which is to say, that it occurs during the course of this event.

An important thing to keep in mind this event is that much of these quartzalcoatl have been down there for a long time. Those who either succeed in killing or curing any of the quartzalcoatl who originated in the caves (that is, any that were not formed because someone got infected during the course of this event) will find that when they break apart, it will be to something...familiar. For ease, we have unscreened any comments from that event from our Deaths page, and will also be linking the item claim thread for an idea of what other items you might uncover from the dead.

If you want to find something extra special in some quartzalcoatl, however...we've got a special thread for that, in case you go busting open any of these things that were stuck down in those caves before this nightmare began. Just let us know, and we'll be happy to give you a personalized treasure to uncover, if you so desire!

Things Have Gotten Closer to the Sun
So, for those of you who don't want to resort to pure brute force, you have two options, listed below Characters should be advised that if they undertake one solution, they will not be able to go to the other god for the other - the Storyteller will not help someone who has accepted the Water's aid, and vice versa. There will be advantages and disadvantages to aligning yourself with one or the other, just as there will be advantages and disadvantages to aligning yourself with neither!

If you go to the Water for help, they will bestow upon you their blessing and a powerful symbol that might appear to be familiar, to some. Once you accept this gift, the Water will inform you that need only engrave or draw that sigil somewhere on the crystal casing of the infected and recite the following phrase:

"We live and die free of the draperies of our fiction."
Once this incantation is uttered, the crystal will harden and drain of color and then start to crack and flake away, leaving its victim disoriented and frail and probably quite confused, but alive. The central drawback to this is that as long as the sigil remains on them, they will be unable to contact the Storyteller for any reason - including Item Requests and Death Penalty Removals! The Storyteller will be, in fact, incapable of even perceiving them. The sigil must be removed if your character wants to contact or interact with the Storyteller again. The sigil will be present on the character's body even after the crystal has all flaked off, whether cut into their clothing or dug into their skin. It'll have to be...removed in whatever way you see fit if you want to make use of the Storyteller's services again.

On the plus side, you now have the Water's blessing, and with it the sigil magic that will not fade even once the threat of the quartzalcoatl has passed. Those who take this route may now use it to repel or keep the Storyteller out of any area they wish. This magic will work virtually anywhere, with the exception of the Storyteller's temple. Those who align themselves with the Storyteller may find themselves extremely uncomfortable with remaining in any area engraved with the sigil.

If you go to the Storyteller for help, they will bestow upon you their blessing, along with one of their little paper birds. Once you accept this gift, this bird will silently follow you about. You need only direct it and instruct it by drawing a line across the ground and issuing the following phrase:

"Take your leave, never to return."
Once this incantation is uttered, the quartzalcoatl will not pass the line you draw, even if the physical line is obscured or destroyed. The area of effect is somewhat limited - the incantation will only work on an area of five feet across at a time - but it will ensure your protection from the creatures for a long, long while. Just the same as the case with the Water's sigil, this ability will endure even after the event's end, and your paper bird will continue to follow you, though you can bid it to stay behind or take its leave if you wish. Anyone who aligns themselves with the Water may find themselves extremely uncomfortable with crossing any such line as well.

By February 29th, the primary threat of the quartzalcoatl and the flooding of parts of Ensō will have...receded to manageable levels, one way or another. The Storyteller will reseal the doors to the caverns, this time for good. So it's recommended that you shepherd any of these quartz abominations into those caves before this happens, in the case that you never want to see them again. Though you could always just...kill them. That works too.

This doesn't mean that the threat of the quartzalcoatl will be gone completely - whether or not the quartzalcoatl are completely exterminated or not depends on how thorough you all are in dispatching them.

I Could Bring Paradise
Of course, there's a lot going on in the background as well. Characters are not required to face this threat, as it is only present on Ensō; you're free to explore any other minor events listed on our Monthly Rundown post. You are always free to create your own individual logs and posts as needed!

Also remember that if you died this month or this event, to fill out the corresponding form over on our Deaths page! Due to the possibility of a cure, death penalties will NOT be reduced for the duration of this event.

If you have any questions about this event or any others, please feel free to ask them over on our Monthly Rundown post!

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( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Can't say I do.

[ There's not that many people in these islands, but Aziraphale...well, he's been preoccupied with other things and hasn't exactly sought out to meet everyone.

That doesn't really change his willingness to try and help. Part of it is also to be aware enough of what's going on to be prepared, as he's forcibly learned that not doing so can have very deadly, and very quick, consequences. ]

Hopefully they're alright.

[Honestly, it's pretty much a toss-up between the two of them. They're just fatalistic enough to up and accept whatever happens to them, even if usually - usually - he's pretty sure they'll fight back.]

[Usually.]

No idea. Either way, we're gonna need to make sure that nothing...y'know, gets out of the caves down there.

[ At least there are others willing to help them, if they won't help themselves. ]

Is there a way to seal the caves back up?

Not that I know of. They were...had this special symbol them that meant the Storyteller couldn't get in or out of 'em, but I dunno how it worked.

[Presumably it wasn't as simple as just drawing the damn symbol on.]

A symbol?...perhaps a sigil?

[ But the second part hits him immediately. ]

Wait- you mean to say it kept a supposed god away?

["Supposed," huh?]

[Well, Tim's not gonna touch that one.]

Yeah, a sigil or something. It wasn't as simple as just drawing it. Some kinda special magic or whatever.

[ Yeah, there's a lot there. He has Opinions. ]

Sounds like one, then. And a rather powerful one to boot. Who put it there, do you know?

No idea. Probably another god's, my guess. They're the ones bitching at each other.

[With everybody else getting stuck in the crossfire. Which is just, you know, fantastic.]

[ Aziraphale hums apprehensively, pursing his lips for a moment.

He knows a lot about "higher powers" settling vendettas against each other with little care for anyone else who might be affected. ]

Well, it doesn't sound like it was quite as effective at keeping anything in.

If these creatures are such as you say-

[ And that's when he stumbles and gets his foot right in a massive puddle of mud, making a fussy noise followed by a deep, barely contained breath.

It's fine. This is fine. He's fine. He shakes some of the mud off. ]

-Then-- we better make sure everyone's prepared for their arrival. Oh, that'll never come off....

[For half a second, Tim startles like he's afraid that Aziraphale's been jumped by something...you know, important. Like a quartzalcoatl. But no, the guy's just stepped in some mud. Tim regards him a little warily, since Tim himself has this vaguely lumberjack-y "hasn't shaved in a couple weeks" look to him and has been more or less since he arrived on the archipelago in the first place.]

Are you...sure you can, uh... ["handle that," he doesn't say.] ...deal with that?

Edited 2020-03-22 22:43 (UTC)

[ Tim is not wrong in his assessment. This is the air Aziraphale gives off. And it’s almost entirely accurate.

He scoffs at the mud and gives up, looking definitely annoyed, but with enough decency to remember there’s more important things going on.]

I don’t believe I have a choice. [ He seems to have entirely missed Tim’s tone.]

Where should we start?

[Well, all right then. He's not gonna argue there. If the guy says he can handle it...then sure, hopefully he can.]

Right now, I'd say trying to get people out, maybe? And see if...uh, if there's anything that looks kinda like it's made of crystal wandering around. Gonna wanna stay away from that.

Right.

[ Aziraphale pauses, thinking.

Then:]

We're in an island. Or islands, rather. Are we sure we can outrun them?

They move pretty slow. It's more that you just don't want them to touch you. And...uh, we dunno how many of them there are.

[Or if they can spread to other, smaller animals on the islands? Great. That's just fantastic, if it turns out to be true.]

[ He's not even thinking that far yet. The concept of personal mortality, infections and the like are all still rather novel to him, though he's learning fast. ]

That is...disconcerting.

Trust me, it was worse when you were being sent down there to check out these things without any way back out.

[Not that he's bitter or anything. Why would anyone be bitter about that.]

[ The absolute look he gives Tim, full of confusion and some alarm. ]

Sent there? By whom?

The Storyteller. Who d'you think?

[Yeah, no, he's definitely still bitter.]

[ Aziraphale flattens his lips, responding only with a dry: ]

Of course.

Should they have known what was down there?

Edited 2020-03-29 16:34 (UTC)

Maybe. I dunno. I don't think they did, and they felt bad about it after, but that doesn't change that people died down there 'cause they weren't gonna ask us if we felt like exploring some caves.

[People died down there. Kids - fuck, he remembers. The world's leakiest memory and of fucking course he's going to remember the parts that he wants more than anything to forget.]

[ That's how it usually works. ]

I'd think a creature that calls themselves the god of this island would know what its hiding. [ He says, a little bit more honest than usual. ]

They didn't ask- what do you mean?

They didn't ask us if we'd be fine with it. With being sent down there. They just decided to send all of us, kids and all, 'cause they felt like it.

[If it were him, just him, he wouldn't have had a problem with it. But it wasn't just him, so he did, and does.]

[ Oh, he knows this story. Still, leaving a terrible taste in his mouth. ]

That's...well, I'm terribly sorry to hear that. [ But nothing says this sort of thing won't happen again. ]

Yeah. It wasn't great.

[Bitter? Nobody's bitter. Tim certainly isn't still bitter. Why would anyone be bitter about that.]

Didn't happen again, but...some of us haven't forgotten it, is all.

[ Nobody would ever be bitter, of course. And there's totally no reason why Aziraphale isn't that shocked about this new information. Everything's fine over here. ]

I certainly don't blame you. It doesn't sound like the sort of thing one could forget.

[ He pauses, briefly. ]

Were there...other times like that?

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