PHASE I [ ❓❓❓ ] And then the Flamines are there.
They just appear, suddenly, as if from nowhere. They’re a race of mercenary aliens, and fighting is all they know -- they’re definitely not going to be easy to kill by any means. They seem to have a natural resistance to magic: aside from very specific types of magic (in particular, light magic and anything highly spiritual), they absorb it. Light magic and spiritual magic can harm them, but it will take a lot to take one down.
They can be stabbed, if you can get that close.
But good luck.
Of course, they look like nondescript black shapes with masks until you knock the mask off...and then you can see the true shape of the Flamines.
They’re here to kill you all. :)
PHASE II [ ❓❓❓ ] As if that isn’t enough… it seems the Flamines’ arrival was the last straw for Cerealia and the Nexus Code. There’s a tear in the sky, and from it… the Nexus Code, where all of the lost friends from before, can be seen. It can be entered, even, though remaining there too long can be detrimental to your health.
But people are there.
Old friends, strung up and lifeless, can be seen there, unmoving.
And…
Then some of them move. They open their eyes. They remember how to breathe. And they’re able to return, able to stagger their way back into Cerealia and take their first breath of air in a long, long time.
Welcome back to the chaos of Cerealia, friends.
Unfortunately, you’ve got nothing but the clothes on your back while murderous aliens are rampaging, so hopefully you’re able to think fast. It’d be unfortunate to die so soon after coming back.
As for spiritual and magical characters who were not in the Nexus Code...well, when they return, they’ll find that they’re covered in old, dried blood, and their clothing might have tears in it, as if from a knife.
There are no scars, though, and they’re otherwise fine. Strange.
PHASE III [ ❓❓❓ ] As if this chaos isn’t enough… there are also the masks. Regardless of whether or not characters were around to receive them the first time, regardless what they did with them before, the masks will suddenly reappear in your characters’ hands. They can be tossed aside, but they’ll reappear again eventually, unable to be truly shaken.
Characters who received them before will receive the same mask they had before.
Characters who didn’t receive them before will receive a mask according to the trait that’s more prominent for them.
Either way...it’ll have a profound effect on the Flamines.
They will go after any character with a broken mask in a bloodthirsty rage, intent on murdering them. Characters with a barcode mask or bloody mask will be the next likely to be chased down intently by the Flamines.
Characters with a :( mask will be killed if they get in the Flamines’ way, though they will not go out of their way to chase them down.
Characters with a vine mask or feather mask will be treated with wariness, though they may still be attacked if they get in a Flamines’ way.
Characters with a grey mask will not be killed unless they are first the aggressor, as will characters with a bloody fingerprint mask.
Naturally there will be exceptions to every rule, but the masks will change how the Flamines’ generally act towards characters!
PHASE IV [ ❓❓❓ ] But something’s not quite right.
Regardless of the battles against the Flamines, it seems Cerealia’s just been under too much pressure lately. Something had to give --
And it’s the code building up the characters that really suffers.
Their code has been hanging on by a thread without CERES to maintain it, and now… it’s finally giving out. The glitches that afflicted characters before will be even more prominent now; they might glitch from place to place, or have their powers go totally awry in odd ways. There may be a lack of powers suddenly, or a sudden difficulty staying on the ground as gravity stops working on the character.
They might suddenly be unable to breathe, or go cold, or very nearly die --
But it can be controlled, too, with effort. Characters can learn to control the glitches, gaining an ability to almost teleport, or ways to tweak their powers in exciting new ways.
With a lot of effort, they could even possibly reverse a death -- but only their own, and only once.
BONUS [ ❓❓❓ ] There are also… birds?
Flamingos, to be exact. Who knows where they came from, but either way, there are plastic flamingos chilling all over the place. They’re just normal plastic; they don’t move, they can very easily be destroyed --
But if you touch one with your bare hands… it’ll have an interesting effect.
Characters will suddenly find that they have the abilities or the last person they touched -- but without any of the practice or ability to control it, of course.
Still, it might help with that pesky Flamines problem, right?
[ 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. ] |
Welcome to the beginning of Cerealia's endgame event! Please visit the OOC information here, and should you have any questions, feel free to ask them here! You can also check the FAQ for more general inquiries. This event will begin 11/03, or IC 11/18. Should this event log hit Captcha, there is an all-purpose overflow here. Thank you! |
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no subject
Mm. I've been up here for a while now. [ Luckily for both of them. She would have felt awful if she hadn't been in a position to help. ] No problem. What happened?
[ Since that it was a glitch is relatively obvious, but a little context wouldn't hurt. ]
no subject
"A while" doesn't sound all that great. The whole colony's falling apart which isn't really anything new, but the glitches are getting worse. I've never phased through Baymax like that before. The closer we got to their ship though the worse the glitches are getting. I don't know if that's because of them or because of us, but I don't like it.
[A pause.] Do…you want some help getting down? This doesn't look that comfortable.
no subject
It hasn't been. [ Honestly, she's almost lost track of how long that 'while' is at this point, but what's worse, ] Every time I look down it makes me feel sick.
[ That's the only interjection she offers as she listens, eyes automatically drifting in the general direction of the ship for just a moment before shifting back at his offer. She blinks, straightening slightly. ]
Do you think you could help? I've been trying to get down for ages. [ Speculating about the methods of doing so reminds her-- ] -- Actually... Baymax must be awfully worried after what happened. [ Given the whole phasing through him thing. ] Where do you think he ended up?
no subject
[Off in the distance they can see the red-armored robot soaring through the air toward them.] You haven't had any other glitches yet have you?
no subject
... It might not be that simple?
[ To add to his thought, that is, but not a moment later her attention is caught by that splash of red in the sky. It's some small measure of relief, at least, though what of the sentiment shows in her expression ebbs away almost immediately at Hiro's question. Her eyes flick back to him, and in her momentary surprise the answer is clear on her face; yes, and they were definitely not the good kind. (Definitely, definitely.) But her voice is casual enough when she says, ]
A few. [ There's a beat. She lifts a hand to wave at Baymax whether he's close enough to see it or not, a noticeably purposeful but not wholly insincere smile on her mouth just for a moment before she lets the corners of it fall along with her hand. It comes to curl around her other hand almost as if for comfort, and she hesitates, but adds, in a noticeably more solemn voice, ] Some of them were worse than others.
[ Maybe it's telling that she's quick thereafter to give Hiro another, more thorough onceover, as if looking for anything amiss. ] Have you?
no subject
It's her expression that makes Hiro worry and he shakes his head to answer her question first.]
This is the only one, but I've experienced some pretty bad ones in the colony before. Can I...I mean can you tell me what else has happened? Just so we know what kind of stuff to expect.
no subject
Not all of them could happen to you. At least - I doubt that they would.
[ Unconsciously, her arms come to fold across her midsection, almost uncharacteristically self-protective. ]
Earlier, I-- started to fade away. [ Which she can only hope wouldn't mean the same thing to him as it does to her; for her, it is only a nicer set of words in place of, 'I nearly died.' ] Nothing happened to cause it, I just... began to disappear. The only thing it could have been was a glitch.
[ Except she knows better than to let herself linger on it, and drawing in a quiet breath she continues, trying to urge the tension out of her brow. ]
But I've been different since then. Some things seem easier, and a few others are harder. It's-- all very strange. I almost don't feel like myself anymore.
no subject
...Tadashi and I turned into ghosts once. It wasn't the same as disappearing, but it was pretty scary at the time. [So no, he doesn't get what it means for someone like her...although...]
...don't take this the wrong way, Naminé, but...are you worried because of the Nobody thing? [Or he could just blurt out his guesses, that's fine. He's had a few talks with Roxas and Xion and Roxas mentioned Naminé was like him.]
no subject
I'm sure it must have been. Being a ghost doesn't seem like it would be much fun.
[ Much less abruptly becoming one. She knows a thing or two about how unpleasant it is to find oneself suddenly intangible, and it's not an experience she has any desire to repeat. But there's little time for her to fully allow her thoughts to go off on that track - because his question promptly draws her mind to a screeching halt. Eyes round, she stares at him with her expression frozen in place. ]
... What? [ She breathes it out when at last she does speak. (It felt like an eternity but couldn't have been more than a second or two.) ] You--
[ Her brow begins to knit anew, a series of quick blinks signaling the beginning of numerous speedy considerations. Why does he know that word? Where would he have heard it? Surely he doesn't mean to trick her into admitting-- no, that's preposterous. This is Hiro, after all, and she has never had cause to think him malicious. Calming, she presses her lips together a moment before asking, her voice tentative, ]
How do you know about that?
no subject
I'm sorry, is that...not really a thing you guys talk about? Roxas told me a while ago and I just thought...[He trails off, not sure where to go from there.]
no subject
It's not that. You didn't say anything wrong, it's just-- it's been a long time since I've heard that word. I didn't realize you knew.
[ And actually that makes her wonder about more than a few things. She never had any idea, and that's both a pleasant thought and a disconcerting one. Does it really make that little difference to him that he never let on? Hesitating, she shifts in place, eyes drifting away and back again, though her frown lingers. ]
... I... haven't told anyone in the city who didn't already know about Nobodies. [ Who wasn't already supposed to know. ] It never came up, and I didn't--.... [ Well, some of the moral impetus was relieved by what she heard from Roxas and Riku, but perhaps more importantly, ] ... There are a lot of things I figured were better left unsaid.
[ It was safer that way. For everyone. ]
And I had no idea you and Roxas were such good friends. I'm sorry, I... shouldn't have reacted that way.
no subject
[So yeah. He gets that it sucks and he can see why Naminé would never bring it up. He gives another passing glance to the area to make sure they're alone before he continues though.]
Roxas was one of the first people I met here. We showed up at the same time. I never really got why he was the way he was until he told me about his heart. But that's what I never got. You guys seem perfectly normal to me. Maybe it doesn't really matter, but I wish this place didn't use glitches against us like that.
no subject
[ If only for lack of an adequate scientific explanation for them. (Her very existence, for instance.) She says it sympathetically enough, however, almost apologetically. It's a lot to take in for anybody whether it actually effects them or not. There's a small frown that lingers on her mouth as she listens, although her expression is not unkind. It's the subject matter that's done it, surely, and she nods in understanding at his explanation of his relationship with Roxas. Truthfully, regardless of the context in which she's hearing of it, she's-- glad. They're both good people as far as she's concerned, and if they get along that's all the better. ]
It's... complicated. [ She says it after a moment, the pause brief but distinct. ] I always heard that we appeared to be the same as humans because we remembered what it was like to feel, not because we could actually do it. But-- [ Her lips purse, she gives a little shake of her head. ] You may not be wrong. I've heard some things recently, and... it turns out there's a lot that we were told about ourselves that may not have been true.
[ It occurs to her, though, to wonder-- and it runs parallel in a fashion to her current train of thought, ]
What was it that first made you think he was unusual?
[ 'Was the way he was,' as it were. ]
no subject
I still don't think I get what the difference is between feeling and remembering what it's like to feel. If you remember, that's still something you feel. Memories provoke emotions don't they? [He shakes his head though.] When I first met him, it was almost like he didn't really know what he was doing in this life. He didn't understand a lot of what I was talking about and he was unsure of stuff…but he asked a lot of questions. That's what I liked about him. Roxas is always looking to understand stuff. Are you all like that, too?
no subject
It's like-- the difference between looking at a picture of something and actually holding it in your hands. You know what the thing looks like, maybe even what it's supposed to feel like, but you can't really feel it for yourself. Everything is in your head, not your heart. Or-- hands, I suppose. [ The difference between perception and reality, and all that, which is a difference she is more familiar with than she'd like. She says it almost immediately, though only once he's finished speaking. ] Or at least, that's how I've always thought of it. It's true that memories provoke emotions, but if you have no emotions to provoke....
[ Then that's not the same. There's a certain hesitation, however, in the way she says it. Not a lack of confidence, or understanding, but of conviction. Knowing what she knows now, although the logic may still be sound, if feels almost wrong to repeat it. Exhaling, she takes a brief moment to collect her mind before continuing. ]
I'm not surprised that you thought of him that way. He and I-- neither of us have been alive for very long. Not by human standards, that is. [ Her expression doesn't darken so much as grow intentionally more neutral in lieu of that as she considers how to answer that other question. ] And no. Most of the other Nobodies--....
[ She falters. To say, 'aren't much more than monsters,' of the lesser Nobodies would be awful and, 'they didn't care to,' of those who retained human form might be overly generous. ]
They aren't like us. Most of them were able to retain memories of their original lives, so they never needed to ask those sorts of things. They already knew what they needed to know.
no subject
Still, he nods to show he understands anyway.]
As much as it sucks that you and Roxas didn't really get to retain your memories of who you were...in a way, don't you think that's a little better? It kind of means you can grow to be your own people here. [Um. Let's backtrack.] What I mean is like it's not fair to think you don't have emotions or hearts or anything like that but you can choose to be whatever you think you want to be instead of feeling like you have to be a certain way because of what emotions tell you. I don't know if I'm making sense...
[By this point they're off the building and he's really putting thought into this.] And if you haven't been here for very long, it's all the more reason you should explore what you want to do. Don't you think?
no subject
[ Brows lifting slightly, she listens in silence, her head tilted by some small number of degrees. On the building or off the building, it hardly seems to matter to her, as he appears to have her full attention. Her first response after he's through speaking is to shake her head, but what she actually means is-- ]
No-- you're making plenty of sense. I know just what you mean.
[ Although it takes her a moment to shape her own thoughts on the matter into words, and with her hands folding together she casts a brief look skyward as if for assistance, then lets her glance slide across the buildings almost contemplatively. Finally, she says, ]
I never really wanted to be her. The-- person I was a part of before, that is. She and I... we can never truly be the same again. [ Naminé can - will, she still imagines - go back to being a part, but that isn't quite the same thing as being Kairi, is it? ]
But I was never sure whether I had any right to try to be someone else, either. To be-- me. To have my own life. No matter how much I wanted to. [ Despite herself, she feels a flicker of a wry upturn at the corners of her mouth. Tipping her head back down, she turns it toward the ground. ] It's funny - Roxas never seemed to think about that. Or at least, it never looked like it stopped him.
[ Giving her head a shake to clear it, she exhales. ]
Coming here... it made that decision for me. This place has given me so much more time and so many more opportunities than I could ever have imagined. And even though I'm still not sure I deserve it, I'm... grateful. So-- yes. I think, for someone like me, it's better this way. Because of that, I've had the chance to truly be free.