{ Player Event } What's true of all the evils in the world is true of the plague as well

[quizpersona]

Who: You. (Open to all)
Where: All over Aldrip.
What: This is the log for what we’ve been affectionately dubbing The Organ Player Plot. Various places around Aldrip are facing dangerous supernatural occurrences. It’s a scavenger hunt in some way.
Warnings: MANY SNAKES, Body Horror, Organ Trafficking, Horror Themes, Violence, and we will be updating this as we go along.



A waking scream in the darkness is the first unheard omen.

Snakes, hundreds if not thousands, slither forth from the depths of Lorentia Cave and swiftly invade Aldrip. They are the heralds of the terrible things to come, and there are no corners safe from their encroachment. The serpents come in all shape and sizes, venomous or not, and are quick to become agitated if approached. Their readiness to strike and unwillingness to back off once provoked indicates the lack of survival instinct to flee. They are on the search for what's missing, and they will put up a fight.

An invisible haze sets upon the city , filled with anguish and fury, afflicting residents as it washes through the air and buildings. Children, the elderly, and the sickly are the first to complain of ailment. Within the next few days, patients begin to flood the doors of any hospital or clinic with more serious conditions-- fevers burning from them inside out and excruciating phantom pains that make them writhe in bed.

The longer what's stolen is not returned, the worse things get. Who knows how many bodies will pile high from these plagues if nothing gets done...





ooc//
[ Dara is currently locked behind a barrier in Lorentia Cave to stave off the further spread of deadly miasma. Please retrieve a protection talisman from Seimei and retrieve what she’s lost (and hopefully return it…) !

How This Works–
To begin the search for the supernatural sources a participant can select a number that corresponds to one of the squares on the map (seen below). To go on a route head on down to the numbered top levels in the comments and reply to it. This is your character kicking off their investigation. Some routes will lead to nowhere, some to something, and others to ;)? You’ll find out.

During exploration you will receive responses from either quizpersona or cursegod. This is not an interaction with that particular character unless indicated otherwise.

This event will handwave wrap up by the 20th if no conclusion is reached before then because Dara needs her poor organs back. ]

The Map


Happy Belated Easter lol

Comments

[drugsnotclubs]

[This had gotta be the place. It doesn't take long to find Seimei-- after all, he's exactly where he'd said he would be. But even then there's the surrounding incense and the old-timey seals or charms he's laying out, and a distinct lack of serpents hissing and snapping in the area. On top of thatz the air feels... lighter maybe.]

...Hey. You're the guy helping Dara, right?

[He approaches anyway, sitting down across from the man's workstation and holding up his hand-- where a small snake lays wrapped around his fingers, colours and patterns identical to those on their resident god. Unlike its brethren, the snake doesn't appear hostile-- only tightens its hold protectively.]

This came to me a little bit ago. I... thought it was her somehow. 'Til all the rest of this shit started happening.

[foxphorus]

[ Seimei's attention is grabbed long before he's spoken to. Something, someone, carrying around an awful lot of Dara-specific energy is approaching after all, and at first he's alarmed by it--has something gone seriously wrong? Does he need to get actively involved now?

No, it's just a guy. Maybe? The snake this guy has curled around his hand is the spitting image of Dara's little messenger the other night, so if anything he's not Just A Guy to her. Dara wanted his attention, or his safety, so he could be very important for how events are going to be playing out in the coming days.

In any case, ] Yes, I am. And you are...?

[ He'll offer his own hand towards the snake, if not for it to crawl on over then at least to investigate so it might know he means no harm. Gonna have to have a look at it once it's more comfortable regardless. ]

[cursegod]

[If it were anyone else reaching out to it, the snake would be hissing and spitting in an instant. But because it's Seimei, the tiny serpent extends its head towards the closest digit with a flickering tongue. That brief second of contact transmits an exorbitant amount of information-- a last moment of her thought: dread, fondness, anguish, and a desperate need to protect.

The little guardian pulls away and returns to clinging onto Shinjiro's hand.]

[drugsnotclubs]

Shinjiro Aragaki. I'm... close to Dara.

[He's awkward with the words, never having been one to be overt about... well. Anything. But it's true and it gives context. While he doesn't know who this priest-type is, he can acknowledge that they're allies in this, at least.

He watches his little snake guardian flicker it's tongue, and waits for it to return to its relaxed position before he continues.]

I wanna help her.

[And-- see her, despite Seimei's warnings. Even knowing it would be horrific and useless. It's not a truth he intends to avoid or run from, after all. While whoever Dara was as a human and whoever the curse god was beforehand were originally seperated, they're now inexoriably linked. Something new, composed of it all. All his words to her before would be bullshit if he shied away now.]

You mentioned that this kinda... unbalanced her. So it's mostly that curse-god, yeah?

[foxphorus]

[ More context than Shinji realizes, after that deceptively brief exposition from his snake friend. While 'close' doesn't say nearly as much as the peek into Dara's state of mind on the surface, combined with everything else it says enough for Seimei to land on a word: consort.

It makes sense, with the feelings of attachment, the mystery magic coating this man like an aggressive marking of one's territory.

Good for her. He'll have to keep it in mind in future interactions. ]

Correct. There isn't enough of her left to keep Yamatagi Madara contained, which is why they needed to be bound during these...preparations, shall we say.

[drugsnotclubs]

[Thankfully oblivious to Seimei's (correct) assumption, he nods, following along with the grim news. It makes a grotesque sort of sense-- after all, she was part human, the deceased priestess, and the rest was the god. And if most of her human portion was peeled away...

He sighs, lip curling up in clear distaste.]

....Any idea on how many pieces we could be looking for? Or-- I guess no way of knowing what some psycho did after...

[Either way, they know what they have to do. And quickly.]

Where is she sealed?

[foxphorus]

[ He doesn't even try to hide his very first thought at that question. 'I told you it was dangerous, you know it's dangerous, why are you still asking?'

But a voice in the back of his mind that definitely isn't his reminds him of that attachment he'd just felt. How earnest this man is about helping a woman who's left her mark all over him, is dutifully carrying a piece of her around and keeping it safe. Of course he'd want to see her, of course they'd want to see each other.

If absolutely nothing else, it may provide some peace of mind during an otherwise dark time.

Chewing on the thought a little longer, still not looking too pleased with it, eventually he sighs. ]

Lorentia cave. The barrier itself should be obvious enough--do not approach it.

[drugsnotclubs]

[The guy's clearly unimpressed, but thankfully Shinjiro doesn't care about impressing him. He knows it's stupid and useless. A waste of time, really. Only dangerous to himself, which meant potentially hurtful to Dara herself. But... it feels necessary. If only to keep himself true to his word.

He reaches out for one of the drying talismans to examine it, just to keep himself occupied.]

Let's say I'm bad at following advice. What would I expect there?

[foxphorus]

[ Without missing a beat, ] Don't smudge the ink.

[ Alright, back to normal train of thought. Let's see... ]

Even with the barrier in place, it will be the highest concentration of miasma in the area. I wouldn't recommend anyone stay there any longer than necessary.

At that, if you hear any voices speaking to you, do not respond to them. Especially if the voice sounds like Dara-sama herself. Yamatagi Madara is fond of tricks, and if he senses your connection to her he may try using it as a point of weakness.

[drugsnotclubs]

[Again, he nods. It's.... about what he'd expect. She'd kept it sealed and been the 'face' of the conjoined being they'd become, and so the thing is probably drunk on freedom and willing to do anything to keep it.

Again his expression flinches into something like a cringe.]

...So don't believe a word of it. Got it.

[A pause and--]

She... told me before. She'd isolate herself, leave, forget anything before she was a danger. So... I know she'd appreciate you doing this.

[It's paraphrased, sure-- and she'd really only been talking about losing control and hurting him. But he'll take this to mean that she'd understand and be thankful for Seimei's sealing and guarding.]

I won't fuck that up.

[foxphorus]

[ Ah. That does sound like her, from how admittedly little they've interacted. It takes a certain kind of person to endure making themselves a seal and keep it going for any amount of time, much less as long as she's probably been doing it. Doesn't take too many leaps of logic to say she's self-sacrificing enough to give up everything she's built here for the safety of all these people.

He doesn't do this to be appreciated. But...the sentiment is nice. Maybe he can let that be a little pick-me-up if his discipline is ever wearing thin during all this. Maybe.

His hands slow as he considers, and eventually both his brush and newest talisman are set down to show Shinjiro he's getting all of Seimei's attention for a moment. A gesture of sincerity. ]

You will see her again. That's why we're doing all this. Why I'm doing all this.

Understood?