EVENT #12: INVOCATION - COORDINATION POST (PART 2)

[abraxasmods]

Event #12 - COORDINATION ( 2 )

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This post is for coordination while the event is ongoing, to prevent the IC Event Log from being overrun by OOC mod and player communications. The comments section will contain applicable comments and forms for you to reply to as needed.

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Comments

meeting with Sten

[princessvegas]

Where & when: After the call for information on the ritual is put out
Purpose: Julie has some piping hot goss about it all, but she's still cagey af about authority figures.

THREAD START

[ It's several days before Julie convinces herself that there's time for her to leave the Horizon long enough to do this. But maybe that was just an excuse she was making, she realizes as she exits through the portal into the square. Ugh, still makes her a little queasy every time.

She waited until nightfall in Cadens before she came, even though it's always dark here. It should be near the time that anyone in the square is thinking about packing it in for a rest, she assumes -- she doesn't know exactly how business hours work when it's always the middle of the night. Her goal is simply to be seen by as few people as possible, and to that end, she's forgone color, covered her hair. The soft light of the pendant that gives her access to Nocwich illuminates the tooth she wears on a shorter chain.

Her footsteps are brisk on the cobblestones, but her voice is tentative when she lifts the tent flap a bit and asks, ] Is this where I can tell y'all about the ritual?

[abraxasnpcs2]

[She'll find Sten hovered over a map with a frown. While guards are around the square, he's disinterested in having any of his own and the Summoned can enter freely.

He looks up and greets her with a warm but tired smile.]

Of course! Please, come in. I'm Sten. And you are...?

[He sits back down behind the desk after the brisk introduction.]

Forgive the lack of formalities. I'm sure you understand. What is it you want to tell me?

[princessvegas]

[ She freezes up for a moment. Did Jaskier or Nadine ever bother to mention that this Sten they told her about looks so similar to Geralt? She can't remember. Would it have even mattered? It's not like she told them she was going to come do this.

Her hesitation is still there when she slips inside the tent. ] I'd rather not give my name. Sorry.

[ Taking a seat, she straightens her hood and crosses her legs at the knee. It feels like a hand is clenched around her stomach; this is a kind of fear she hasn't felt since the aftermath of Captain Trips, when it was impossible to know who to trust. ]

I don't know what exactly would help y'all. I -- I know a little about the ritual. I know what it some of the... effects are, I guess. Um, I think I know some about the god the others worked out. Nikodaemus or whatever.

[abraxasnpcs2]

[Minute surprise appears on his face. Then Sten moves smoothly past the question of names.]

I understand.

[He listens carefully to her explanation.]

Anything at all would help. I've heard about the condition your friends are in ... though the god invoked is new information. Were any able to describe what they saw during the ritual? Or felt?

[princessvegas]

My friend told me... They were tied up with vines, real thorny ones, and the vines grew down into the ground so's they couldn't move. Two of 'em, Summoned. Put in front of a -- I suppose you could call it an altar. It looked like a big tree... monster. With a wide-open mouth. Human skulls at the bottom, all around it. There was a bowl with some jelly blob things in it. Sorta like cat's eye marbles, blue and green and a little brown, but if they were made of Jello. They smelled sweet. But they exploded after a minute. There were like, little spores everywhere. They burned and made it hard to breathe. She said they made her feel sick. And like somethin' was crawlin' on her.

[ For just a moment, she pauses and takes a breath. The words have been spilling out in a way she doesn't mean for them to, like she needs to purge them from her own brain. She doesn't even know who she's talking about -- not only did she not recognize the woman she'd seen through, she hadn't recognized the other Summoned, either. Her eyes roll to the tent ceiling for a moment as she inhales. ]

The cult people said the Summoned need to "commune with the gods", but they did the whole thing to natives too. There was one there with my friend and the other Summoned. The native girl, she ate the jelly. Her skin started to split open. She was shakin' like she was 'bout to die of rabies. Then my friend passed out.

[ There's a brief, awkward silence, and she doesn't exactly meet Sten's eye when she adds, ] That's it. For the ritual.

[abraxasnpcs2]

[Sten leans forward attentively. She tells him quite a bit more than others have. The information matches what's been relayed to him thus far.]

Splitting skin, like the body wants to transform?

[He clarifies what he means:]

I've been troubled that they're misusing not only Solvunn's traditions, but ours too. We've got a few ceremonies that enhance our transformations or give us insight. Visions and the like, you know. Harmless to us, but no doubt poison to you. When we partake, we're careful no humans are nearby. We only do it at the Lunar Pond.

[princessvegas]

I guess? [ She tries to remember what it looked like -- while also attempting to not look like she's remembering her own vision. ] The Summoned who went through it, they have like these mushrooms and funguses and stuff comin' outta their wounds. And some of 'em have like... almost teeth in there? Like, lots of little sharp teeth. And vines. Somethin' is changin', but I don't know about a whole werewolf-style transformation. [ Her eyes light up as she abruptly remembers. ] Oh! And a different friend, he tried to fight back, flipped the bowl. The jelly got all over him, and when one of the people grabbed him, their skin sorta fused together. They had to be pulled apart, and both lost a chunk of their arms.

[ Her head cocks a little. The werewolves have visions? She hadn't really cared much about the whole ceremony at Lunar Pond, hadn't paid attention. ]

What kinda visions?

[abraxasnpcs2]

I see...and this is what they described to you? I appreciate the exacting details you've gathered.

[Sten scratches the back of his neck. He hadn't expected her to ask about their own visions.]

The practice is more common with our seers and oracles. Under the full moon, they might congregate at the Pond and burn some herbs or consume certain mushrooms. They say it lets them see signs of the past and future. I admit, my own experiences never brought a particular vision, but the forest takes on a wonderful glow. And our transformations become remarkably peaceful.

[princessvegas]

Yeah. We've been able to communicate with 'em a little. Whatever's blockin' magic where they are, it's not able to completely stop 'em from blippin' in and out of the Horizon. Some of their messages get through, too, even though they're real hard to read.

[ And Julie does have a sort of folksy, flowery way of speaking that can make things sound more detailed than they otherwise might. Easier to picture. Even without the knowledge she shouldn't have. ]

Oh. So y'all just get real fuckin' high. [ She blinks. ] I mean, that makes sense. In my world, people did that too, tripped balls on peyote and 'shrooms and whatever to have visions. It was like, a religious thing for some folks. We didn't turn into nothin' else, though. But maybe that was what they meant by "commune with the gods"? That they're meant to have a vision.

[ Her face screws up a little with concentration as she tries to think of a non-offensive way to word her thoughts. ] I know most of us, the Summoned, are human. But we're... not like the regular humans here, neither. We're kinda our own thing. And maybe that's why they wanted us. I mean... sorry, I don't know how to say this without soundin' like a dick, but. I believe that we're sort of in-between y'all -- Abraxans -- and the gods. Not that we are gods, and not that all Abraxans are the same, just...

[ She trails off with a sigh. She is aware that she sounds like an asshole, but it's true. This is what she believes. And so far, none of the contact they've managed with the kidnapped Summoned indicates that any of them have died. But there are a lot of bodies in that pit and around that altar. That means that the non-Summoned kidnapped must be dropping like flies. ]

I just think that maybe these cult psychos think along that line too, and that maybe they believe it makes us more like to survive their weird jelly ceremony and whatever else they're doin'.

[abraxasnpcs2]

[Sten nods his understanding. He avoids expressly confirming what Nocwich knows or believes about the Summoned, though he doesn't look surprised or thrown by her statement. His reply is carefully neutral, but honest.]

It's very probable they believe you're a conduit. None of us can argue that you aren't all quite different and new. That can often lead to abominable crimes.

[He gathers up a few papers on his desk.]

I'm sorry I don't have real answers for you right now, but I promise your information is valuable. I'll make sure it gets to the right people. Is there anything we can do for you? If you plan to stay in Nocwich, our doors are open.

[princessvegas]

[ Her brow knits. If the culties think that the Summoned are conduits or whatever, then why bother with all the regular Abraxans they kidnapped? What's the point?

She reaches up and fidgets with the tooth hanging from her necklace. ] Would it help y'all with the cure if you knew about the god they used to hide everythin'? Nikodaemus. There's an arcana tied to him. The Moon. I don't -- I just ain't seen anyone mention it, when we're talkin' to each other.

[ The rest, she can barely comprehend, let alone explain. The ocean of silvery liquid, the statues stabbed through with swords. The fish skeleton on the ground. She has no idea how that could be conveyed in a way that makes any sense.

Julie shakes her head a little, gives a small smile that looks more resigned than anything else. ] No, I'm gonna stay home until they're back. I'm not what they call helpful when it comes to stuff like this.