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Entry tags:
- !event,
- baroque: koriel xii (dextera),
- bastard!!: dark schneider,
- black butler: sebastian michaelis,
- ennead: set,
- expanse (the): amos burton,
- fire emblem: byleth eisner,
- fire emblem: claude von riegan,
- fire emblem: dimitri a. blaiddyd,
- genshin impact: tartaglia (childe),
- genshin impact: zhongli,
- granblue fantasy: eustace,
- jinba: hayame,
- legend of zelda (the): link,
- made in abyss: bondrewd,
- magnus archives (the): the archivist,
- marvel: gamora,
- oc: liem talbott,
- star wars: cassian andor,
- star wars: jyn erso,
- trigun maximum: vash the stampede
The Seeds of Unrest: the Iconoclast Oracle
RUNNING OUT THE CLOCK
The situation is bleak.
The Blight - and the massive labyrinth of roots tearing both cities asunder, spreading deadly flowers wherever they penetrate - have progressed to a point beyond catastrophe. People are dying in rapid numbers. Bearers are having difficulty keeping up with the spread of infection - even among one another. The collapse of Kenos seems inevitable; a cure will not come in time. You can do nothing but watch as each new day brings further disaster, ticking down the seconds until it all falls apart.
And then, you feel something seize your Shard. As if physical fingers have wrapped around it, as if it is being clutched through you by invisible hands, you feel invaded. You feel wronged. But before you can panic, a voice enters your mind through Communion.
“Excuse the dramatics, but there isn’t much time for pleasantries. The Trees are about to hit the point of no return. But there's still work to be done. The Tree of Life will take you where you can find it: the Oracle and the creature causing all this mess. Fix this when you find them. However you'd like.”
Have you heard Aetos’ voice before? Perhaps it is the first time; perhaps it is familiar to you. Either way, the last thing you will remember is a confusing jumble: a spell of immense and incredible power, one utilizing the Tree’s strength to shelter you. The sensation of every cell in your body coming alive, yet seeming to break apart and render you into billions and billions of tiny pieces, all hovering in different times and places across all the different iterations, timelines, and realities in which you have ever existed. A voice that speaks not through words asking your forgiveness, unspeakably sad.
And then, there is nothing.
The Blight - and the massive labyrinth of roots tearing both cities asunder, spreading deadly flowers wherever they penetrate - have progressed to a point beyond catastrophe. People are dying in rapid numbers. Bearers are having difficulty keeping up with the spread of infection - even among one another. The collapse of Kenos seems inevitable; a cure will not come in time. You can do nothing but watch as each new day brings further disaster, ticking down the seconds until it all falls apart.
And then, you feel something seize your Shard. As if physical fingers have wrapped around it, as if it is being clutched through you by invisible hands, you feel invaded. You feel wronged. But before you can panic, a voice enters your mind through Communion.
“Excuse the dramatics, but there isn’t much time for pleasantries. The Trees are about to hit the point of no return. But there's still work to be done. The Tree of Life will take you where you can find it: the Oracle and the creature causing all this mess. Fix this when you find them. However you'd like.”
Have you heard Aetos’ voice before? Perhaps it is the first time; perhaps it is familiar to you. Either way, the last thing you will remember is a confusing jumble: a spell of immense and incredible power, one utilizing the Tree’s strength to shelter you. The sensation of every cell in your body coming alive, yet seeming to break apart and render you into billions and billions of tiny pieces, all hovering in different times and places across all the different iterations, timelines, and realities in which you have ever existed. A voice that speaks not through words asking your forgiveness, unspeakably sad.
And then, there is nothing.
AWAKENING
Your eyes open, gritty with the feeling of a long, deep slumber.
Perhaps it takes a moment to shake off the heavy veil of exhaustion, to recollect what you were doing before you fell into this state of hibernation - but as soon as you do, you feel an immediate sense of foreboding around you. It is thick in the air, oppressive and pervasive, and you aren’t left long to wonder at its source. You lay beneath the branches of the Tree of Life, but as your bleary eyes focus… you see it. The Tree is all but bereft of life. Its bark has withered down to gnarled wood, the soft lichen dried up, and the grass that should be alive beneath you is long dead and gone. There is not so much as a single leaf on its decaying branches.
It has been this way for a long, long time... you realize this with a feeling of intense dread as you see it - the beautiful expanse of stars, of the cosmos, of universes scattered like starlight above the tree's boughs, gone. In its place hangs a sickly, ominously low-hanging, and dying sun ready to sing the end of everything.
You can't help but wonder how long Kenos has been in this state, but a sense of gratitude fills you as you realize that the Tree expended the last of its energies to protect you, the Bearers, during your state of rest. Had Aetos worked with the tree to see you sent here?
The next question comes quickly: how much time do you have left…? And can you find the Oracle before that time expires?
Perhaps it takes a moment to shake off the heavy veil of exhaustion, to recollect what you were doing before you fell into this state of hibernation - but as soon as you do, you feel an immediate sense of foreboding around you. It is thick in the air, oppressive and pervasive, and you aren’t left long to wonder at its source. You lay beneath the branches of the Tree of Life, but as your bleary eyes focus… you see it. The Tree is all but bereft of life. Its bark has withered down to gnarled wood, the soft lichen dried up, and the grass that should be alive beneath you is long dead and gone. There is not so much as a single leaf on its decaying branches.
It has been this way for a long, long time... you realize this with a feeling of intense dread as you see it - the beautiful expanse of stars, of the cosmos, of universes scattered like starlight above the tree's boughs, gone. In its place hangs a sickly, ominously low-hanging, and dying sun ready to sing the end of everything.
You can't help but wonder how long Kenos has been in this state, but a sense of gratitude fills you as you realize that the Tree expended the last of its energies to protect you, the Bearers, during your state of rest. Had Aetos worked with the tree to see you sent here?
The next question comes quickly: how much time do you have left…? And can you find the Oracle before that time expires?
ABANDON HOPE (DAYS 1 & 2)
The cornerstones are still active and will take you to whichever city you wish to see.
Highstorm and Springstar sit like empty monuments to the cities that were once filled with life - yet the first thing you will notice is they are strangely absent the signs of the Tree’s overgrown roots, the Blight, the catastrophic damage that you can recall all too easily. Instead, each city sits as those they were summarily abandoned overnight, leaving nothing but their shells behind. There is a stillness in the air that is unnatural and unsettling. Despite the lack of any sign of the citizens of either city, you cannot help but feel… watched.
Something terrible happened here. Best you find the Oracle before something terrible finds you, instead.
The burning of a dying sun beats down on you wherever you go, unbearable heat sending waves off the aged cobblestone streets. Perhaps it is your instinct to seek refuge in the shade - but linger too long about the shadows and that feeling of eyes on your back, of being unable to breathe, of your world closing in around you will grow untenable and drive you back into the light. If you hope to explore the ghostly shell of your city in search of the Oracle - or to sate your curiosity, some problem-solving might be in order.
And while you acclimate yourself to your circumstances, you cannot help but note you feel wrong inside, somehow…
Highstorm and Springstar sit like empty monuments to the cities that were once filled with life - yet the first thing you will notice is they are strangely absent the signs of the Tree’s overgrown roots, the Blight, the catastrophic damage that you can recall all too easily. Instead, each city sits as those they were summarily abandoned overnight, leaving nothing but their shells behind. There is a stillness in the air that is unnatural and unsettling. Despite the lack of any sign of the citizens of either city, you cannot help but feel… watched.
Something terrible happened here. Best you find the Oracle before something terrible finds you, instead.
The burning of a dying sun beats down on you wherever you go, unbearable heat sending waves off the aged cobblestone streets. Perhaps it is your instinct to seek refuge in the shade - but linger too long about the shadows and that feeling of eyes on your back, of being unable to breathe, of your world closing in around you will grow untenable and drive you back into the light. If you hope to explore the ghostly shell of your city in search of the Oracle - or to sate your curiosity, some problem-solving might be in order.
And while you acclimate yourself to your circumstances, you cannot help but note you feel wrong inside, somehow…
EXPLORATION
- If your characters choose to explore previously unreachable areas, please use THIS TOPLEVEL to report when they get there in the thread! We will get back to you with what is discoverable in that location.
- The following areas are off limits for exploration: below Yima’s Manor; below the Church of Heliopolis; Alenroux; Kowloon.
- The Great Trees of both Highstorm and Springstar are in a similar state to the Tree of Life and will not respond to Communion.
- Generally speaking, items will be of poor quality. Most will look as though they’ve aged thousands of years. Others will be in half-decent shape, but sparingly so. Oddly enough, it doesn’t seem like the whole city has aged at the same rate, so especially diligent rummagers can find worthwhile supplies. Please consider this should be rare and don’t go overboard!
NOTES
Here are some prompt reminders - see the full thing at the OOC Summary!- Characters will have a diluted connection to the Zenith or Meridian.
- There will be periods powers are weakened or non-functional during days 1-2 (up to player discretion).
- The sunlight results in scorching; the shadows cause claustrophobia and fear while outdoors.
THE RITUAL (DAYS 2+)
The place you started your journey to Kenos is also where it seems it will end. As soon as the first Bearer makes contact with the Iconoclast effigy, you are collectively drawn to the roots beneath the Tree - like a pang sent through your Shard. Your objective has been found. The Oracle awaits.
Trusting Aetos seems like a fool's errand, but you must put your hope in the Tree. What choice do you have left? It's time to find what lies at the end of this.
Bearers descend, your steps echoing in the dark, cavernous space. Once brimming with life and vitality, the roots are now dried and brittle like the bones of some ancient leviathan that died long ago. As you make their way deeper into the earth, the deadened roots twist, leading you to a vast chamber deep within it; the air here is thick with the smell of decay, and the faint glow of luminescent fungi and mosses barely illuminates the space.
To your left, the Bearers will notice what has drawn them here - and the object of their search.
An effigy sits on the ground between two darkened tunnels. The effigy is made of gnarled, dead branches woven together in a humanoid shape; its hollow, empty eyes are sightless, yet you cannot help but feel it is watching your every move. Branded on its forehead is the Iconoclast symbol carved into the rough wood.
Once all Bearers are present, the Ritual will begin. Your means of exit have been sealed off, and you are trapped, slowly deteriorating together…
Trusting Aetos seems like a fool's errand, but you must put your hope in the Tree. What choice do you have left? It's time to find what lies at the end of this.
Bearers descend, your steps echoing in the dark, cavernous space. Once brimming with life and vitality, the roots are now dried and brittle like the bones of some ancient leviathan that died long ago. As you make their way deeper into the earth, the deadened roots twist, leading you to a vast chamber deep within it; the air here is thick with the smell of decay, and the faint glow of luminescent fungi and mosses barely illuminates the space.
To your left, the Bearers will notice what has drawn them here - and the object of their search.
An effigy sits on the ground between two darkened tunnels. The effigy is made of gnarled, dead branches woven together in a humanoid shape; its hollow, empty eyes are sightless, yet you cannot help but feel it is watching your every move. Branded on its forehead is the Iconoclast symbol carved into the rough wood.
Once all Bearers are present, the Ritual will begin. Your means of exit have been sealed off, and you are trapped, slowly deteriorating together…
NOTES
- Bearers will have access to the Ritual Chamber which is a very wide, open space with the effigy situated against the far wall from the entrance. Several smaller tunnels off-shoot from the Ritual Chamber. They all run to dead ends; some are very small or narrow. This may afford you meager privacy away from the group.
- Once a Bearer steps into the Chamber, they can no longer head back out the way they came. They’ll find themselves automatically walking back into the Chamber as if of their own volition.
- For brevity’s sake we won’t list them out again here, but the complete description of effects Bearers will experience days 2+ is available in the OOC Summary.
- The effigy is impervious to damage.
- It Is Watching You.
- In a dead-end root tunnel attached to the Iconoclast’s Chamber is the Blighted statue of an Otter that may be familiar to some… Please see THIS TOPLEVEL for more information!
THE PURGE (DAYS 5+)
The sap has festered in your veins for what feels like days. It’s impossible to tell how much time has passed; this place has no sunlight. The effigy watches as you remain trapped, huddled together around it, unable to leave as you find yourself sick with the affliction of the Meridian, Zenith - or both.
And then… something finally gives.
Though it does not move and speaks no words, you feel the effigy offering you guidance. Knowledge. Much like the Tree speaks to you in impressions and feelings, you are conveyed wisdom you did not have before: a way to take what you want and rid yourself of what you do not. A way to make your convictions known to all who would hear them. A way to be known. To write your path in blood, be it yours… or theirs.
When all is said and done, only one force - Zenith or Meridian - will gain its favor.
Show it who you are. Show it what resolve looks like to you - and what you are willing to do to attain it.
And then… something finally gives.
Though it does not move and speaks no words, you feel the effigy offering you guidance. Knowledge. Much like the Tree speaks to you in impressions and feelings, you are conveyed wisdom you did not have before: a way to take what you want and rid yourself of what you do not. A way to make your convictions known to all who would hear them. A way to be known. To write your path in blood, be it yours… or theirs.
When all is said and done, only one force - Zenith or Meridian - will gain its favor.
Show it who you are. Show it what resolve looks like to you - and what you are willing to do to attain it.
NOTES
Here are some prompt reminders - see the full thing at the OOC Summary!- You can Purge your alignment through various methods: Trading, Corrupting, or using the Effigy itself.
- All characters will understand the end goal is for everyone to Harmonize; the alignment with the higher rate of Harmonized Bearers alive when time’s up wins the Oracle’s favor.
NOTES
- A reminder that the Harmonization tally will take place on Friday, the 19th and be open through Monday, the 29th. The results will be released on Wednesday, the 31st OOCly.
- Don’t forget to submit any deaths to the Death Tracker, with a gentle reminder characters will remain dead until the event conclusion!
- Reminder to fill out the SETTING POLL ASAP if you haven't already!
- Have some MUSIC if you'd like. LYRICS here!
- HAVE FUN!!
the purge
he turns down the passage hayame's lurking in, moving slowly because he lacks the advantage of his usual senses. which is why he fails to notice something horse-sized, he supposes. ]
Huh. You are amazingly stealthy; never would've guessed, you know, with the clip-clop and all.
[ he should know better than to pour fuel on this particular fire, but he is, as always, incredibly petty. ]
I wasn't looking for you anyway.
[ as potential converts go, he knows a lost cause when he sees one. ]
no subject
But she has no masters any longer. She is a weapon only for herself, and for her duty to return to her world.
And right now... Zenith was standing in the way of one of the only things that promised a potential way out. More damningly... those weak-willed Meridians who let themselves be corrupted to Zenith's side were skewing the numbers.]
Who were you looking for, Fool of the Burning Gardens?
[She steps closer, clip clop muffled by the soft dirt of the tunnel floor, her expression steely and cold.]
Someone to whisper to in the dark?
no subject
Well, it's not my favourite as titles go, but we'll add it to the list.
[ he doesn't back up, even if he knows he can't win right now. he's been God for too long and has forgotten what it feels like to be afraid that you can be hurt or killed. ]
You make it sound so sordid. We're all just pulling together in this trying time. [ he waves a hand dismissively. ] Who died and made you hall monitor?
no subject
And she had already formed quite an image of this one all on her own.]
“Pulling together in this trying time”… ?
[Her tone is mocking, her long ebony tail whipping out behind her in emphasis.]
Pulling together with who, Fool? Not your fellow Meridians.
[She seems to invite him to deny her insinuations, hands that could crush a man’s skull spreading wide.
- After all, she may not be familiar with that exact phrase, but. She’d appointed herself.]
no subject
"My fellow Meridians"? That's cute, though I've never been timid about the fact that I'm not doing this for the team. I don't care if you or anyone else ever goes back. [ he laughs a little like it's silly anyone would ever think otherwise. ] I only want one thing, and you couldn't imagine what I would be willing to do to make it happen.
[ john was willing to deny the truth to people he cared about far more, even when confronted, so he does it again now without much thought. ]
So, whose company I keep is really none of your business, is it?
no subject
She had never learned how to do it properly. There was nothing to laugh at when you were born in a breeding stable, nothing to laugh for when your entire existence was to serve and to be sold. She cannot hear that sound as anything but mocking- but this time, she is sure she is right. Her lips twitch into a half-sneer, and a finger points at the man's face, direct and accusatory.]
Meridian will only win this Oracle if we have more in number by the end, so I have made it my business.
[Why would she bother with this nonsense otherwise? She doesn't give a damn who he interacts with, she would leave most of them to die if she needed to, but in this circumstance...]
Did you think no one would see you conspiring with Zenith's demon?
no subject
[ john also could've been more forthcoming from the start, but it's like him to assign blame where it's convenient. ]
For what it's worth, there is no conspiracy, but I'm sure you've already made your mind up, haven't you? Was the eye your idea?
[ he'd wondered at the time when sebastian had shown up with an eyepatch but hadn't asked. he clasps his hands behind his back, tilting his head a little in a questioning way. she was right about his laughter earlier, judging by his tone, which he doesn't bother to make any less condescending. ]
Clearly, you're still more than capable compared to the rest of us, so why haven't you gone around picking them all off one by one? All bark and no bite?
no subject
That demon owed me an eye, so I took it. It suits him.
[Now he matched her, wearing an eye patch over his left eye... though hers disguised an empty hole where the demon's fingers had plucked the orb clean out, and his hid a scrapped-up mess of where she had stabbed a rusty spear tip. The Meridian war god may have made a deal with that demon and the one-eyed gaki, but she had known from the beginning that it wouldn't prevent the Zeniths from slinking amongst them like wolves in sheep's clothing. He says there is no conspiracy...
But she doesn't believe it for a minute. All bark and no bite? Her lips curl back into a sneer large enough to reveal the canines in her mouth that are far too sharp to look like they matched with a woman who seemed half human and half equine.]
I have decided to begin my hunt with our traitors first.
[She towers above him at over seven feet tall, nearly half a ton of pure muscle, glowering as she reaches up just enough to tug demonstratively on a thin gold chain around her neck that disappears into her tightly bound breasts.]
So produce your iliachtida and prove to me you remain on the right side... or run.
no subject
[ he reaches into his breast pocket and pulls out the little bead, pinching it between his thumb and index finger as he holds it up to one white-ringed eye to inspect it. john already knows what's going to happen if he tries to channel energy into it. with a shrug, he flicks the iliachtida away, the bead bouncing off somewhere in the tangle of roots making up the floor. ]
The King Undying doesn't run from the likes of you. Go on.
[ he looks up at her, standing fully in his presence as the man who became God and the God who became man for the first time since he's been in kenos. he has no power here and is a fraction of her size and weight, but his 'presence' within the fluid nature of Communion in this place shifts even though physically he remains the same. it is the connection of souls, after all, and john's is something twisted and inhuman. there is a wrongness about him to suit his eyes. ]
Better make it count. Better make it hurt. Better kill me in one shot.
no subject
Those enemies ought to thank me for assuring their moments of weakness do not count toward a Zenith victory.
[But she said “ought to” and not “will” because she knows that no one will thank her. Even once they come back to Meridian, (and surely they will come back, once this mess is ended), she doubts anyone will be grateful, despite how necessary it was. How many traitors does she need to kill to make sure Zenith doesn’t corrupt enough to win the Oracle? How many Zenith does she have to kill to regain the numbers lost? Someone has to do it… and that someone has to start somewhere.
Like by suddenly lashing out and grabbing the human-looking man by the head, fingers digging in to grip, hard, as the sound of the sunbeam bead bouncing off roots sounds faintly further down the tunnel.]
You might want to reconsider that title, King Undying.
[His eyes do not scare her, as freakish as they should be. She has seen a similar set in a much more honorable man… one she’d caught this one whispering to. He feels wrong and worth shuddering for in communion… but she refuses to let that affect her grip or the snarl of disgust on her face. The demon had been in her head enough. Let him be inhuman by nature.
It didn’t change that he was only human now.
And for a jinba, who might look human in some parts but who were made up a vastly different musculature beneath… it was no effort at all to lift the so-called King from the ground with one hand, her grip beginning to tighten… tighten…]
Traitors don’t get to dictate how they perish.
[Tighten, until she reaches the force where bone begins to scream and creak.]
no subject
perhaps not the method, but he knew he probably wasn't walking away the moment he saw hayame. God is dying — at the end of everything, with a dead Tree and no power — and he isn't afraid. he'll return, like always; john is sure of that. the price he'd paid to become what he is was too steep to allow anyone else to dictate the manner of his permanent demise. that, and the Zenith in him reminds him that he must in order to build a new and perfect world, after all.
it's excruciating, but he'll never give her the satisfaction of screaming even if his bones do. he does fight, though, clawing at her arm and hand with the sort of ferocity that is born of sheer animal desperation. it's not going to do any good, but it's not rational. something cracks horribly, and his form goes limp before it dissolves as if all his individual atoms blew apart all at once. john gaius dies and his Shard falls to the ground at her feet. ]
no subject
She still condemns him (herself) for his unsightly attempt at living.
If he is going to endanger Meridian's victory and by extent her own chances of returning to her home... ? Then, perish, she thinks, as his skull begins to crack beneath the strength of a centaur's grip. Know that no one will read a sutra for you. Her lips curl back in a snarl of effort as she feels the bone give way, and as soon as it begins-
It ends.
She doesn't have to bear his dead weight long. His body is gone, and in it's place... a disgusting hunk of shard. Single eye still wild with hatred for those weak-willed enough to fall to Zenith and the desperation to prevent their victory, she bends down to snatch his shard from the ground and place it in her waist pouch.
She will plant it in the soil if the Tree revives. Then, if he truly cared to return to hi own world... he could thank her for euthanizing him.]