PHASE I [ 9 00 ] The peace of the morning in the Residential District shatters just as the wall caves through. It’s a small segment of wall -- no more than five feet across at most. And yet the crash and groan of the metal being stretched is ominously accompanied by the distinct piercing screech of metal and another sound. A raucous noise, a combination of ungodly wailing and sharp, victorious laughter spills forth from the hole left in the wall as a myriad of ghosts and spirits erupt from the newly created exit. Characters with any type of spiritual sense will find themselves nearly overwhelmed by the amount of negative ghostly energy that suddenly floods Cerealia and characters with no sense of preservation will find any attempt to enter the hole blocked by the fiercest of ghosts, met with deadly force if they try to pass, as the ghosts won’t hesitate to do things such as reach straight into your body to try to stop your heart.
These ghosts are out for blood, and they don’t seem to stop no matter how you try to talk to them -- they just hiss out, over and over again, “Murderersmurderersmurderers.”
From there, the ghosts move on. Their true target, after all, is CERES… but to them, there’s no difference between the character players and CERES. They’ll go for whoever gets in their way, phasing through walls and becoming tangible long enough to reach for characters before fading away again. Characters with special abilities will find themselves in a similar state. Their abilities may increase and decrease in power sporadically, or be completely gone. They may attempt to cast a spell only to find that the wrong spell is cast instead, or an attempt at healing may end up a more dangerous spell. Be careful with your own magical skills!
Those with items or powers specifically intended to ward off spirits will still fulfill their intended purposes when used – unless malicious spiritual energy gets to them first.
PHASE II [ 1400 ] It seems the ghosts have more tricks up their sleeves. It seems that a not-so-friendly ghost has decided to play a game with you. It doesn't matter where you are, or what you're doing, because a moment later a voice calls out -- Hey. Can you see me? -- and once you turn your head, you’ll come face to face with a surprise.
Who is it in this world (or your world, or any world) that you have managed to disappoint the most? A family member? A friend? Yourself? They face you now, eyes full of sadness, and they say, “I need you to do something for me.” Without another word, they’ll turn away and begin to walk. Your vision grows foggy, focused solely on the need to do whatever this person wants – they need you, after all. Your legs move to follow them, unless you manage to somehow resist.
But you apparently don’t seem to notice that you’re the only one who can see this person – or that they’re leading you stray toward that monorail track with the sound of the train coming closer, or that busy intersection, or right off the sky bridge.
PHASE III [ 600 ] Other ghosts don’t feel like borrowing faces in order to inflict damage. No, they’ll inflict their damage on a far more personal level. They manifest suddenly and without warning – then all it takes is a simple touch. A ghostly hand reaches out to you and it feels like the cold wraps around your heart, and your vision skews, and then... they leave just as suddenly as they came.
Those who have been around for awhile may very well recognize the ghosts, at that.
But the damage has already been done. Depending on a character’s assigned sense, they will feel one of the following changes:
Sight: Hopefully you aren’t in the habit of bending the truth. Dead men tell no tales, they say. But what happens to a living person unable to tell lies? Any attempt at telling any lie or falsehood will cause the character to feel as though their throat has closed off, and they can do nothing more than choke.
Smell: The cold passes, but in some way that it never really leaves. And then everything seems perfectly normal. Nothing has changed, right? You're fine -- except that in a short period of time with how crazy things are, it becomes apparent that you're unable to feel pain. The damage to your body is the same as ever, but dangerously, you can't feel a thing.
Taste: It would appear as though the ghosts have a sense of humor. From those who rest in eternal slumber, try a few days of being unable to sleep. Everything seems fine at first... but slowly but surely, that lack of sleep will start to take its toll.
Hearing: Most others would feel relief once the ghosts left, finally a moment of peace. But you? You don’t feel anything – nothing kind, anyway. Rather, you have been left unable to feel joy. Everything seems either bleak or as though it simply has no emotional impact at all.
Touch: How many deaths have been caused in the name of heroics? Apparently in an attempt to keep future casualties down (or perhaps for their own laughter), the ghosts have left you unable to be brave. Suddenly, a situation you'd face fearlessly is one that has sent you running, panic sharp in your chest.
These effects will last throughout the event, if a character is caught by them.
PHASE IV [ 1000 ] While chaos erupts throughout the city, some of the more misguided ghosts (but still bloodthirsty, so very bloodthirsty) just happened to run into the wrong part of town and don’t know how to give a proper scaring. One ghost seems to think that it was a great idea to possess a masseusebot from the Spa. You’re grabbed suddenly! You fight for your life but can’t seem to get yourself out of its metal grip! With expert precision that only a robot can mange, it finds your pressure points – and releases all that tension from this Incredibly Bad Day. The ghost inside the robot is confused, distressed -- why is this human suddenly so relaxed? It only wants to murder. But the only illegal thing happening here is how good this massage makes you feel.
Maybe later you’ll walk down the street and get stopped by the ghost that possessed a balloon dispenser. Perhaps a ghost has possessed the friendly McCERES mascot, and is now handing out coupons with murderous intent. And of course, there are always the hug bots...
Look, they tried really hard, okay.
Of course... they might end up possessing technology a little closer to home as well, at which point it's not so funny.
BONUS [ xxxx ] Hopefully you have friends who have ghost-fighting skills. Or ghost-taming skills. Or ghost-bellydancing skills, who knows, we won't judge them if you don't. But what of those poor people who come from worlds where the supernatural is some weird television show?
Worry not, poor souls, for CERES is here to provide! Some time after the ruckus begins, characters will find what looks to be a hand-held vacuum cleaner situated innocuously in their rooms (only one per person, you greedy gus). The logo on the side will helpfully inform you that this is of CERES make, because the paper pamphlet beside your new device? Well, it's more like a picture book. Observe Stick-Man Sully as he uses his vacuum cleaner to capture ghosts! Learn from his stellar example! Do not stick the hose in your mouth or attempt to give the vacuum CPR, there's a big X over that picture. Also of the one where Stick-Man Sully sets his captive ghosts free once more, we don't want that, do we?
Your new ghost vacuum should prove effective against any ghastly ghoul that shoots your way, but beware! Should you capture a ghost and not turn in your vacuum to CERES for weekly ghost disposal, your ghost will serenade you in the wee hours of the morning with its song of choice. If you capture a whole horde of ghosts, well, congratulations. You have a boy band living in your vacuum.
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
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ii because she has to
[ Nonon is more than a little surprised to hear the voice of someone she recognizes but not see him anywhere. Just a weird looking boy with feathers? Or something.
She's not really helping people out herself though, since she has little interest in being a hero or anything like that. Instead she was just outside ot see what the hell was all this ghost stuff was about. She's also never really let anyone down that she cares about, and/or has been lucky enough to avoid any disapointed ghosts.
The bigger problem really here is why she can hear but not see the boy she has found so enjoyable to bully? ]
oh my gosh
Okay, he seems confused. ]
Sea Breeze?
i'm crying
It's not Sea Breeze! My name is Mikleo!
[He SIGHS and mutters:]
Why do I even bother?
[She's just going to ignore it and keep calling him that.]
need to find edna and double the trouble
But even as she hears Mikleo's voice all she sees is Sorey, and she doesn't know who this strange boy is, meaning there's shenanigans afoot and she intends to figure out what the hell is going on here. Whch means in reality, that Nonon has no issue getting all up on Sorey's face (or like two feet below it given her height), wielding a conductor's baton in her hand like someone else might wield a closed umbrella, pointing it accusingly at Sorey. ]
Hey you, Feathers! Why do I hear Sea Breeze's voice coming from you? Explain yourself.
this poor kid can't catch a break
He just smiles a little awkwardly. ]
"Feathers"? [ So he has a nickname too? ]
Uh, well ... [ Simplest explanation possible! ] That's because I'm fused with him.
[ Yep, totally normal. Just two guys, fused together, in the same body ... He's guessing this girl is a friend of Mikleo's since she seems to know him. (And maybe she should befriend Edna as well.) ]
crying, there are no breaks for a Meebo
His name is Sorey.
[Not that he thinks it'll matter, but. There Nonon has it.
Mikleo refrains from sighing at that explanation. Still, he'll be quiet about it and see what happens.]
all aboard, next stop: making meebo cry
Fused? What the hell is that supposed to mean? ...If you tell me he's inside of you I'm going to hit you like a bass drum.
[ Obviously, she's not in the best mood with all this ghost business, and she doesn't take jokes very well when she's annoyed. ]
So you're saying you're friends with Feathers here, Sea Breeze? [ She's not changing either of their nicknames, she's doubling down on them instead. ]
oh no meebo don't cry ...
But he is inside of me ... I'm not really sure how else to explain it. [ Please don't hit him like a bass drum, Nonon. ]
Is there something wrong with that?
why must you do this to him
How about you don't hit him at all.
[Hiss! ...Mikleo will answer her question, at least. That, at least, is a legitimate thing to ask.]
Yes. We've known each other since we were infants.
because someone has to
[ She isn't REALLY planning on hitting Sorey, but she already promised she would, and it would make her into a liar if she didn't. So clearly if she doesn't get an answer she likes soom then things might turn violent!!
Her attention on Sorey though, she grimaces, swishing her baton again. ]
I'm giving you one measure to explain yourselves! You better make it count, I don't accept half-assed explanations!
this is true
And what even is "one measure"? That is not really a unit of measurement he's familiar with ... So he doesn't know how much time he has to explain this for her. And explaining it might be a little complicated because there's a lot of things to explain, if she doesn't know anything about this stuff ... So, um ... ]
W-Well, I'm the Shepherd, so ... I can do things like this! [ Does that ... help ... probably not. ]
SIGHS
He can fuse with one of four seraphim, which combines our strengths into one body and allows him control over one of the four elements, depending on the seraph. Sorey is also our vessel, which means he protects us from corruption and...well, I guess you could say he can "store" us in his body.
[Welcome to the Seraph Warehouse?]
being meebo is suffering
That's a pretty big info dump there, with words Nonon knows nothing about, aside from a few things. Not that it makes any more sense. No it all sounds pretty damn stupid to her, as far as she's concerned. Which leaves her narrowing her eyes at Sorey (and Mikleo in turn.) ]
...So now you're telling me you're an angel and you possess this feathered boy somehow? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard in my entire life. [ Clearly she's talking to Mikleo, despite staring into Sorey's as if trying to see inside of him. ]
he can handle it he's a big boy
He's not so sure staring at him like that is going to help her see inside of him. He won't ... stop her ... but he'll look a little embarrassed at it. How is he even supposed to react to this? ]
Ahaha ...
[ He'll leave responding to that up to Mikleo. Good luck, buddy. ]
w o w. thanks for the vote of confidence, Sorey.
I'm not possessing him. He's still in complete control over his body. I just share that control, too. And I'm not an angel. That's an entirely different thing altogether.
[Though, it might be accurate to say that Mikleo's Sorey's guardian
angelseraph. Lords.He's very sorry for his new Edna-esque friend, Sorey.]
clearly a couple in perfect unison
Of course, she's maintaining a little better calm than that, but it looks like if her eyes narrowed in annoyance anymore she might have her face stuck like that. ]
I'm pretty sure I'm starting to get a migraine...
[ At which she's blaming them. Though she's never allowed anyone to get away with that kind of comment about her own voice. ]
So the two of you are some kind of weird ghost people. Good. I'll make sure to never ask about it again.
always in the best unison
But. ]
Well, uh — I'm still just a normal human. But I guess you could sort of compare him to a ghost ... [ Honestly, he thinks this is the best they're going to get in terms of her understanding what seraphim are. They may as well just go with it! ]
you could say they...resonate with each other.
SIGHS AGAIN.]
I'm not a ghost. Your angel comparison was closer. Also, Sorey, stop encouraging people to think I'm a ghost. [No, shut up, he's not going for the ghost comparison. You can't make him!]
you could say... all kinds of words to say how gay they are
So he's a ghost? Did he die and you're finishing his last business on Earth or something?
[ Yup, completely and utterly ignoring Mikleo and speaking directly to Sorey, as he appears to be the easier one to talk to. Plus... it obviously annoys Mikleo so it's more fun that way. ]
you could write a whole dictionary on the words used for that
Nah, he's more like the kind of ghost that just follows you around a lot. Nothing deep like that. He's really harmless, too.
[ Is he making this worse for Mikleo? Probably. But he's being pretty casual about it. He doesn't see anything wrong with it, honestly. ]
you could write an encyclopedia on the ways to bully Mikleo
Sorey!
[How could you betray him like this, best friend? Now she's going to think he's a stalker, too!]
at least a few hundred "how-to" guides on the internet
[ She likes that because it's alliterative. Has a musical sort of sense to it. Though she really was happy with Sea Breeze.
But she's onto something here. ]
...I take it you two are more than friends, huh? [ ANYONE would know what she means.... but just to be clear.. she means are they dating. ]
all of which edna and nonon have collab written
I'm not sure "Poltergeist Pooch" fits him ... [ Hahah ... Mostly just because "pooch" is in it and he knows how Mikleo is with dogs. ] Sea Breeze sounded better. [ And then suddenly he's making that worse, too.
But he's confused on her last comment, and it shows in his expression. ]
... More than friends?
all my sobbing
...At least, until Nonon says that last part. Have fun with them talking at the same time, girl.]
...More than friends?
can a meebo ever run out of tears?
[ That's only partly the truth. The lie there is that she's only saying this in order to horrify Mikleo, knowing that there's no way he's going to want Nonon and Sorey to be friends. She can feel it deep in her bones that's how he feels.
That question from the both of them makes her break out laughing though, because obviously, neither of them know what she means and that's the funniest thing she's heard all month. ]
You seriously don't know?! Oh my god, this is too rich...
nope just cries into eternity