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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[he's curious about where she comes from—all different sorts of places interest him, after all. he's a bit curious about kazfiel too, even if he hasn't questioned it at all. he probably should have, but stahn could tell he wasn't dealing with an enemy, despite appearances.
so he'll let her tell him these things at her own pace. they're friends... so naturally, he wants to know more about her and where she's from.]
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[ This sure is a happy story, isn't it? She's keeping her eyes on the ground as she walks, just to make sure dizziness doesn't strike again. ]
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[it makes sense, but he's still frowning. demons that want to destroy humanity. it's a familiar story, even if it's not quite the same as what he's dealing with.]
I didn't realize... how many other worlds could have such big threats to them. [it kind of puts things into perspective for him. other people and other worlds are struggling just as much as he and his friends have been. maybe even worse.]
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[ Otome's fine risking her life. But fifteen-year-olds? This wasn't something they should have had to face-- not to mention the even younger kids here. ]
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[the youngest of his comrades is fourteen, so he understands. but he'd also never undermine chelsea's ability to deny her a place in the party because of it.]
I guess no world really has it easy, huh? Even if it's not facing the end, I guess it can't always be peaceful or easy to deal with. [he wonders how many other people here come from worlds thatare in that kind of a situation, though.]
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[ She misses it, most days. ]
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[stahn refuses to believe otherwise. he just can't.] We have make sure we do what we can... so those people don't have to fight as hard if they don't know how. And so they can go back to those places.
[and so they can return to their own worlds and fight for the peace they deserve too. but stahn looks at the bigger picture more than just the narrow view of his own world.]
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[ Whatever that entails. ]
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I just wonder... what'll happen for the people who might not have homes to return to at all. [is there going to be a solution that will help them? or will the people who've ceased to exist go back to that nonexistence?
or could they just stay here? he's not sure.]
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Then again, if they didn't have a home at all... ]
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[could that be a thing? otome can't hear the way dymlos hums at that notion, but it's definitely something to consider.]
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So you're right, there might be a way to solve this.
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... Current situation aside, of course.
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[ Wait a second, isn't the timing a little too coincidental? People falling ill, with symptoms that fit a fever, but no fever, and how much worse she'd felt when the ghosts had broken through... could it be? ]
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[clearly, stahn is not following here.]
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[ Let's start with that. ]
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[it had been looming over him the whole time, honestly.]
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[ But if it was based on spiritual power, Alcor and Hiro should have felt ill too... ]
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[that... makes sense. otome is so smart, that didn't even occur to him. but that does open up other questions.]
Maybe that's it. But I wonder why some people seemed to get sick and others didn't? [it seems to be going around, but stahn doesn't really know what kind of pattern it could be connected to.]
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[ It's just a matter of figuring out what that something is. ]
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[something they can figure out, at least. he's not sure he can tell a weakness to spirits, but...]
I don't think I'm weak to spirits or anything like that, though. I never was before, but I definitely felt it today. [he's been under the weather too, but not as bad as some other people. could severity having something to do with it too?
ugh, this is hard.]
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[ The energy she'd felt had been purely negative, but when she tries to concentrate on what that could mean-- her head pounds in protest, and she misses a step. ]
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[he mostly just wanted to make sure they were on the same page, since that's what it sounded like. but the second otome is missing a step, stahn is reaching for her arm to steady her. the conversation can wait a second, if need be.]
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