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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[Mars lays a hand on his shoulder, giving it a little squeeze and stooping to eye level. She has to calm him down, she has to get him to think straight, and to do that she knows she needs to give him some reassurances and something to think about. So, magic.]
Do not be worried, not while I'm here. [Her head jerks towards the glowing ring of scrolls.] Do you see those? Do you know what those are?
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...ofuda scrolls? [The answer's tentative like he's not at all confident in what he's saying.]
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[Her attention lingers on them, eyes narrowing as a spirit tries to test her defenses invisibly. She can feel it, but thankfully it's not visible.]
And what do they do?
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They're supposed to bring luck but they're also used in exorcisms and to protect people. To ward off evil and stuff. [And stuff.] T-Tadashi and I were going to find you to ask if you knew where we could find a few scrolls. [It just happened that Mars found him, first, and he asked her too late.]
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[Her eyes flicker down to him, ignoring the specter that's pressing against her shields. No sense in dwelling on that. It's a bit like a shark trying to press against an aquarium glass, and it's just...weird.]
Were you? Ah. I didn't know. You boys should have sent me a message. I have plenty in my apartment, if you want to follow me there. It's safer there, I have wards, shide and the like set up over the whole floor.
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[Just offering that hand...]
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Just don't tell anybody, okay?
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Don't worry, I won't. There's no shame in this, anyway.
[And unless he squirms too much, she'll scoop him up and get ready to jump.]
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Not so bad, was it? We made it.
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Yeah. We made it. [But he's already looking around again.] We should keep moving and get inside fast.
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Shimenawa. This floor is safe.
[The old ward ropes. Rei hadn't just blocked off her entire floor, other people lived here. But she is leading the way towards her home.]
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How long did it take you to ward everything?
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[Opening the door, she slips out of her shoes and heads into the kitchen.]
This place is as tightly fortified as I can make it. I've invested it with as much personal power as I could, and Archer is nearby. [She's not sure if that's comforting or not. It is...Archer.]
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...I'm guessing that Archer being close should actually mean something to me? [He's never met and never heard of Archer, so he's kinda drawing a blank on that.]
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[Rei holds up her left hand, showing off a series of ornate rings that've appeared there now.]
A servant who's contract I currently hold. He'll warn me of any danger, and protect the house if need be. Nothing to worry about, but I thought you'd met him. He was also the cook at my party.
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Maybe I did and just never got his name. [Nope. He's never spoken to Archer but he might have seen him around.] How'd you come into possession of his contract?
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Ostensibly? He cooks and defends me and my home, and I essentially feed him energy. Nothing complex, just something like a wizard and a familiar.
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So that means he knows about both Rei and Mars...does the change in energy effect him? [He's mostly trying to understand how spirits work, excuse him.]
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I don't think it does though. He's still drawing energy from my Sailor Crystal, so my own state doesn't matter. [She's just glad he's got something different to think about.]
Do you want a drink? Food?