![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
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!!
no subject
maybe it makes him selfish or a coward. he's been called both those things and worse; he doesn't much mind whatever moniker he'd get this time for how nice it is to have someone sit next to him in offering of something he needs, and to take away something he doesn't. it hurts, too - of course it does. Vash knows what he'd be giving up and giving to Zhongli means that they're 'enemies' in the eyes of others around them, and that the day might come when serving their factions doesn't result in so gentle an exchange.
but more importantly, he knows it means Zhongli has given up on 'home,' and that hurts far more than seeing a friend on the other side of things.
everyone has their reasons. he knows that better than most, and he'd be the last person to judge anyone for making a choice that doesn't align with his. it isn't like he's got this figured out. he'd be the first to admit he isn't even close and probably never will be; he's just A Guy. people aren't meant to Know the fate of the universe, or whether everything can be saved, whether it's too far gone on such an existential, enormous scale. but-- ]
Hm.
[ rubbing his chin further as if in deep, solid consideration of this prospect of partnership, soup-making and wares-perusing aside, Vash tilts his head one way, then the other... making a good show as if hemming and hawwing over this choice. ]
Alright; you got me. You've got some pretty useful skills and I might be willing to deal, but we gotta lay out some ground rules, first. I already know you're a man who likes a fair trade so I figure this won't be too tough to negotiate, yeah?
[ he doesn't need to have the answers. he just needs to believe there's a chance it hasn't all been for nothing. that it isn't too late.
and he needs to know why Zhongli - practical and kind Zhongli - has decided that chance isn't there. ]
no subject
Even better than focusing on the present, focusing on work and duty and a contract was something that Zhongli could absorb himself in wholeheartedly to drown out the soft and inviting whispers of his homeland. Yes, this was his comfort zone. His safe space. An image comes to mind of another young god, bright and full of life as she smiled brightly and tended to the others gathered at the assembly. The warm and welcoming god had such a love for humans and humanity, planting a seed deep within Zhongli that would grow and grow and grow to his own bountiful harvest.
In fact, he saw much of that smile in Vash's own---
Oh.
Oh dear, his thoughts were wandering again, weren't they? To the could haves, would haves, should haves that history's doors has sealed shut. She was gone. His world was gone. And Zhongli's attention should be thoroughly focused on saving this world now. There was no time for other distractions.
Zhongli clears his throat and crosses his arms as if he is steeling himself to this negotiation, but the small smile (strained as it is) gives him way. ]
Very well. I find your terms agreeable.
Though I shall warn you that I am a quite stern negotiator.
[ The last bit is spoken with equal parts truth and levity. For certainly Zhongli was very skilled at hammering out the finer details of a contract with people less amicable to fair trade, but also perhaps naively he does not believe that Vash would not ask for something that he would not be willing to give. (Nothing that might not already slip unbidden across the heightened communion.) ]
no subject
...it doesn't matter. Vash doesn't like it. no matter how much of that pain and grief is coming from this man, it's too much. more than he deserves, Vash is willing to wager.
his own smile is soft, and though there is a real tendril of fondness that unfurls between them, that softness doesn't touch his eyes. there is a look of... apology, instead. ]
You love your home and the people in it.
[ it's not a question. it's a statement, one that's good as fact - one Vash doesn't need to be affirmed. he knows it's true. ]
You don't really believe it's all gone, do you?
[ the trade is a simple one, even if the terms aren't necessarily spoken aloud as much as inferred: Vash will give Zhongli what he's looking for. (he probably would, even without being given the answer to the question he's asking.)
but... he really wants to know. he wants to know why someone like Zhongli is giving up the Meridian in favor of the Zenith. it's important. ]
no subject
Zhongli loves (not loved) his home more than anything. More than a heart of stone should be capable of loving. ]
It can never be truly gone as long as its memories are treasured in the hearts and memories of the living. It's not all gone because I am here as well as four others from my home world. It refuses to fade away silently, surfacing again and again as a trinket here or an item there finding its way into the cluttered merchant stalls of the baubles market. By the creatures found in the depths of Aetos laboratory.
[ Zhongli could stop there, question answered on a technicality. But for someone as earnest as Vash - for someone as kindhearted and strong as he is, he does not deserve the vague answers and omissions that Zhongli normally weaves through his words. Perhaps Vash will be able to understand why others (and to some degree Zhongli himself) could not. For while Zhongli's heart is with Meridian, his soul stands with Zenith.
When the door opens--- ]
But that is not the question you were asking, is it?
I do not know if the world I love is gone nor do I have any way to verify the truth of such a statement. It is true that I could spend my efforts trying to answer that question. But I also know that right now this world is wondrously alive and also suffering terribly. Does this world deserve my love any less only because I stumbled upon it second?
no subject
it means a lot to him that Zhongli is doing so, now.
blue-green eyes travel to his lap; he seems to fix his gaze on one gloved hand, even if he isn't paying much attention to what he's seeing. he's thinking about what Zhongli's said. after Zhongli had gone and taken the care to be truthful, it would be incredibly cruel not to pay it the mind it deserves. ]
What do you think will happen to the people in Kenos if the Meridian obtained the Oracles?
[ there are questions Vash doesn't have the answers to -- both about his own faction, and the ideals of the Zenith. and if Zhongli has some of the answers, then... well, Vash's trust has been well rewarded thus far, hasn't it? ]
no subject
Zhongli lifts his head to offer a small smile despite the weight of their current circumstances, even if Vash may not see it lost in his thoughts for a moment as he is. ]
Ah, I did not mean to imply any ill intent from your faction. I do not believe the Meridian to be unkind, far from it, they love their worlds and their people so much that they wish to save them from an truly awful fate. It is something so outside of my capabilities— to tear down the stars and struggle against the very laws of the world to fight an injustice such as this. It is what I respect most about them. About you who have joined them.
But after they obtain the Oracles, I believe that they will go home and continue the lives that they were living before. And while I do not fault them for making such a choice, what does Kenos become but a land harvested for its power and then set aside when it is no longer needed? At best, it becomes a second priority and at worst...
[ Well, surely there would be a rather uncomfortable adjustment period if half or more of the Shard Bearers just up and left Kenos. Not with how entangled in the politics and decisions of the world that they were fast becoming. ]