recolle | AUGUST EVENT LOG

Entry tags:

AUGUST EVENT LOG

END EVENT LOG

END EVENT LOG
The city of Recollé.

...yeah. Yeah, it's still sort of a mess...

But the fruits of your labors are ripe, Recollé. Be prepared for the final fight.

I.
You've all worked so hard in these past three weeks to bring back what was lost and patch reality, or to get home. As their final missions close out, the following occurs.

Members of Team Absinthe will find themselves in the Recollé Woods, no longer capable of finding their way to the Bunker but cheerfully updated by Nigel Cavendish on their devices that "Go time is now, it appears! The more you destroy, the more we can bring back. The weapons will last for about twenty-four hours, so use them wisely. Good luck!"

Members of Team Brandywine will find themselves in the RU campus, locked out of their basement. Mr. Baroque updates them that "You've got about a day to help fix this. Try not to die."

Members of Team Cognac will find themselves in the Tribunal Terrace, unable to go as deep into the subways as they could the past few weeks. The NPC updating them as to what's up is Ronnie, who is about as helpful as Mr. Baroque with: "The clock is ticking down. Do try to stay on your toes...you may wish to rendezvous with the others."

Members of Team Daiquiri will find themselves in Tisse, locked out of the Retrospec building. Their update comes from Joanne Wiseman, who says "Aunt Marge just pulled the plug! Those weapons will last twenty-four hours, and we were able to snag the others - but, you're going to have to give us enough leeway here to fix things! It's just like the twists you've done before - destroy the focal points and we can snap things back. Thank you so much for everything, good luck!"

Members of Team Ethanol will find themselves in the Tribunal Terrace, unable to enter the crypts. For them comes a message from Wendy Guo. "Time to hit it. Your weapons are going to last about a day; can't force the protocol longer than that. I'm going to meet up with the others now, try to get shit stable as you do your side. We're probably not gonna see one another again for a while, so...it's been real. Don't die or whatever. Thanks."

Members of Group 3 are intermixed at all locations as they choose, perfectly capable of joining in the battle if they wish. A harried Maurice Fitzwilliam will see fit to update them with "I know this is a little confusing, but if you'd like to help your friends, you may wish to join up with them now - otherwise, I suggest you find a safe house. I'll try to update your phone's gps with a map to the least-impacted areas...Good luck."

Members of Peter Pan crash onto the sandy beach in a large, ornate pirate ship surrounded by a flock of colorful tropical birds and armed with cutlasses and cannonballs. Mechanical sharks cut across the sand menacingly guarding the ship as well. Members of this team may call on the aid of the sharks and birds to help fight while also using the cannonballs to load up and fire.

Members of Snow White appear scattered around the Recollé Woods with a large frog creature in tow and the army of a hundred ghosts behind them, wispy in appearance but strong in determination. There are also two large, stone lions flanking the party. The ghosts can be captured and released from the thermoses the Snow White members brought them in and will come to their aid to help people around them.

Members of Tarzan announce their arrival with the loud, thunderous roar of a dragon that swoops down from the sky, landing directly in the middle of Tisse. Portals rip open around them as several knights in shining armor and equipped with lances flank the creature and the team, ready to spring into battle. Any weaponry the team has picked up along their journey will be available to them and they can direct the knights in battle. In addition, they may use the two raven feathers to call upon the well witch to bail them and others out of trouble with a bit of elemental magic!

And finally, members of Yzma descend upon the rooftop of the highest point at the RU campus in a large, colorful mecha shaped like a panther. By now, the team will know how to pilot the mecha and the weapons attached to it. They will be able to split up and regroup as they please. As it lands, the creature pauses with all eleven members inside and tilts its head back, a feminine, almost regal voice making an announcement for all to hear.

"Champions! Band together and stabilize your reality. Find the last twists and slay the rest of the monsters while there's time. We have twenty-four hours to weather the storm and unravel everything. You can bring back what was lost...but only if you hurry! Now go!"

Together, every member of the city must work together to patch the leaks in their reality; no team is locked to any one location, regardless of where they start out. While certain teams have domain over certain summons and items, they may be used to help anyone they come across. The monsters that appears last month reappear with a vengeance but this time they've brought some friends. Multiple slime creatures can be found in all districts and as citizens of the city defeat them and other monsters, they will notice little by little that the city starts to restore itself in a whirlwind of fixes. Buildings begin to uncrumble, shattered glass reforms into window panes, and with every defeat of the slimes, a new stand will pop up. Some of these stands will also pop up simply by exploring the lesser traffic'd areas of the city such as the underground subway, the woods, and the empty buildings scattered around the city. Smashing these buttons will turn the portalizers on, suck up the debris of the monsters and close another twist. As soon as all the twists in an area are closed, the district will snap back to "normal" and all characters will find themselves warped to the beach.

Down at the beach the mouth of the ocean rises up out of the sand, spitting acid and trying to absorb whatever it can. Much like the other monsters, the more it's destroyed the less effective it becomes, whittling itself further and further down as it begins to pull inward on itself. Do what you can to take it out and prevent it from taking the ocean ever again.

Everyone is now back in Recollé, and several groups have new weapons and companions to help them fight. Stick together, reunite with your loved ones and hold down the fort. Your Technical Team is on the job to fix everything.

Hi guys, welcome to the August plot wrap-up! This log is a free-for-all to let everyone get involved, reunite with their CR, and help stabilize the city for now! This will only run from 9pm EST 8/24 to 9pm EST 8/25. At which time, we will then post a Retrospec post ICly tying up the loose ends, and characters may do as they wish with the aftermath.

Also at this time, everyone has regained network access and your characters will receive their stockpile of texts sent to each other and they can connect with each other.

Tomorrow, we will also do our feedback post for this event and an open discussion with the playerbase.

Thank you guys so much for your participation! Characters who clocked 30 comments over the course of this event are eligible for a freebie memory! For members of team 3, we will allow these thirty comments to come from this log as well. We look forward to seeing you on the flipside, and congratulations on a job well done.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[When Freya pulled out her phone with a hand steadier than it had any right to be, she almost didn't dare hope for it to work. It hadn't worked during the attack on the convention; it hadn't worked while she was away. Why now? Why would something work right when so much was going to hell? But it did. Texts awaited her—and voicemails.]

[Voicemails from Pen.]

[It almost hurt to hear her voice, after so long away. The cracks and rough spots didn't escape her notice. Her stomach filled with a leaden dread at the mention of a demented lab—and "the tools to make it happen." Just like she saw in that painting.]

[The way it cuts off is trying, as is the swear at the end of the third one. Her heart's sick with dread, and only the fact that there's another message keeps her from running out those doors that instant.]

[It's fine. She's fine. Except for... space, and the way tone her girlfriend's voice takes at the end. What she says. It makes Freya's chest hurt with emotions she barely has the capacity for right now, ache with longing and worry and adoration. It's almost too much.]

[No more messages from her. The timestamps are useless, each of them displaying August 24th. Freya's punching "call" before she's even thought of anything to say in response, or wondering if Pen even had reception. Or if she'd... made it out of space, or wherever the hell she was.]

[She responds automatically the moment that dial ceases, without waiting for a greeting, or explanation, or anything.]

Where are you? [she almost croaks, her voice thick and hoarse.]

[It's strange. The whole time Penelope had been away, she'd thought of nothing but Freya and her friends, but now that she's back on solid ground...it seems a fleeting thing. Reality itself is under attack, and she's been given the tools to make a stand. Make a difference. She has to, because if she doesn't then there's going to be no home for Freya to come back to. The sphinx's words ring in her ears, You can bring back what was lost...but only if you hurry!

She had to fight, and seeing those images of Freya fighting monsters and other things is what drives her on. She would make it home, but it was her job to make sure there was a home to come back to.

When the call comes, though, the bottom drops out of her stomach. Penelope's hands freeze on the controls, locking up when the mech's communication array warns her of an incoming transmission. Shaking fingers scrabble across the console to her phone, and when she presses the accept call button, it's all she can do to let Freya speak.

That voice. That strong voice, even thick with emotion, twisted and rough with strain, hits her like a sledgehammer. Feelings bubble up in her chest, and her response is marred by an immediate, uncontrolled, choked out sob.]

...I'm...coming to you. Where are you?

[Even reedy and cracked with emotion as her voice is, there's an unmistakable relief in it. She is...so glad to hear that voice. Beyond glad. But there's no time for words really. Just action, and the metallic shwrrrr of the mech's inner workings cuts through the audio.]

Just tell me where...

[She's there. Pen really, truly is there, on the other side of this call. The grief and loss weighing Freya down only serves to heighten the relief, in a way. Pen didn't answer her question, not really, but Freya lacks the will to argue at this very instant.]

The hospital. [It occurs to her how bad that sounds, and quickly she adds,] I'm in one piece, don't you worry. [It isn't a lie, even if she feels torn to shreds. Freya tries again; she has to know.]

Where are you? Are you okay?

[She knows something's wrong, really wrong, before the words fully Freya's mouth. There's nothing quite as bone-chilling as being in a conflict and being told the person you've been looking for is in the hospital, and the even with the clarification that she's fine an icy knife stabs into her heart. Her fingers twitch, jerking the machine forward with a bound, not waiting.

Concentrating on driving is difficult, but given the end goal, she's more than willing to put in the extra effort.]

I landed downtown. [Another metallic crunch, the mecha clearing an upturned truck with a leap, paws churning the asphalt as she picks up speed.] I'm not far. I'm...I'm okay, baby. Alive, not hurt.

[Scared? Yeah. But who wouldn't be. This is terrifying, even if it is incredible.]

I'll be there soon, I'm...you can't miss me.

...Alright. [It doesn't feel right, after days of sitting and waiting to sit and wait some more, not with all the chaos in the city, not with the roiling storm of emotion behind her breastbone. She wants an outlet for the pain, and the monsters crawling about seemed perfect.]

[But Freya could wait, just a little longer, if that's what Pen needs.] You be safe. I've come too far to have something happen now.

I'll be fine. I am fine.

[She's silent for several moments, just about the ten longest minutes of her life, the mecha cat bounding along as fast as it can go. The few creatures that dare get in her way get squashed without any consideration, the cat's paws crushing them with no regard.

She has somewhere to be, and she will not be denied. Not any longer.

The hospital comes into view, and she sends a simple message.]

Come outside. I'm here.

[Since there isn't really a good place to park an enormous cat robot for long, and she doesn't want to actually block traffic, she'll be waiting in a greenspace within sight of the entrance. Just standing, leaned up against the crouched form of a golden panther the size of a tractor trailer truck and looking anxiously around.

Penelope is surprisingly clean, if a little sooty looking now. Her hair's hanging loose, the tight braids having come undone during her time away, and with no new bands to hold them up they had to stay that way. Her shoes are a wreck, her arms are pockmarked with scratches and shallow cuts from the jungle, and she's wearing a Space Jam jersey that she definitely didn't disappear in. Everything about her posture is furtive and wary, like a frightened animal approaching a trap but just desperate enough to risk it.
That's how she feels too, like this could all disappear at any moment and she'd be back in space...solving another puzzle, trapped in some fresh new hell. Three weeks wasn't that long in the grand scheme of things, but it certainly felt like a small eternity, and probably would continue to feel that way for weeks to come. One didn't simply go through those rapid shifts in space and time and reality and not feel like something was going to continue to go wrong. At least, not unless you've got a more positive outlook on life than Penelope.]

[It wasn't hard to pass those few minutes, between the other messages she'd received, and the wonderful, glorious water station in the hospital's lobby. Clean water was never something Freya would take for granted again.]

[Freya surprises herself by not running when that text pops up, though there is urgency in her walk. She doesn't spot the mech immediately with her attention turned to the immediate parking lot. But when she spots it, well... Pen did say that she couldn't be missed, and the tall woman hurries without delay. There's no caution in her advance; by now, Freya's too done to give a flying fuck about anything that might get in her way, determined to go through any complications.]

[Freya herself looks like utter hell; her arms are covered in healing wounds, the angry pink-and-scabbed flesh taking the shape at least a dozen small bites, some of the large ones stitched closed. The sleeves her shirt are shredded as a result of the wounds, significantly fewer bite holes peppering the clothing over her torso and her legs. The clothing's ill-suited to her size, hanging baggily, and the cloth stained with the faint ruddy brown of rinsed-out blood. She's pale, and on top of it all, sporting a black eye. But she's clean, amazingly, other than a little forest dirt.]

Pen!

[The instant Freya comes into view, Pen's eyes snap fully open, alert and aware. Her head darts from side to side, as if she's waiting for a lion or something just just appear out of nowhere and eat her. But no lion comes. Just Freya, moving quickly towards her, looking significantly less hellish than she expected. Yeah there's some injuries, but after seeing the yeti...and the swamp she'd half expected broken bones.

Still, she stays rooted to one spot, straightening up and shaking just a little as her partner closes the distance and enters the greenspace. Clenching and unclenching her hands, she manages one cautious step forward, half worried that the ground in front of her will open up. But nothing happens. So she takes another. Nothing. Another. And then another, and another, gradually picking up speed until she's practically running.

Illusion or not, reality crumbling or not, she barrels into the taller woman and grabs her into a ferocious hug. When they make contact, some of the fear evaporates, enough so that she can enjoy the touch that she's been waiting for. Not all, because it's entirely possible something will go wrong, but for now, fighting back tears...]

Freya! It's you! It's...it's really you!

[Freya grunts loudly when Pen damn-near tackles her, but she holds her footing and latches on just as fiercely; she's tense in the embrace as it reminds her sharply of the bruises dotting her torso. One of Freya arms wraps around Pen's waist, the other hand twining through that long golden hair and cradling the back of Pen's head.]

Yeah. I'm here. [She murmurs, holding the smaller woman tight. And she's content to hold her there, anchoring her partner as if Pen'd drift away without the embrace. Penelope was there, and that was enough; Freya closes her eyes and her mind goes quiet, simply basking in her girlfriend's presence and touch.]

[Her bruises seemed insignificant right now.]

Makin' me worry like that...

Edited 2017-08-25 20:10 (UTC)

[Emotions welled up in Penelope, the carefully held stopper she'd put over them these last three weeks coming apart in that hug. She'd only let herself cry a little, held firm and fast for her team, holding on so they wouldn't worry. There'd barely been time, but now everything seemed so far away. None of the illusions had felt quite this real, and none of the unreality had taken this form and face. It was enough to break through at least one layer. Her hands clutch whatever fabric they can reach and she buries her face against Freya, tears falling freely.]

Baby...I...I was so worried. I saw...

[She takes a shuddering breath, cutting herself off and drinking in the the aroma of her girlfriend, sweat and swamp and all. It takes a moment but she looks up, eyes shining wetly.]

But you're here...and I'm here, and Gods is it really over? We're back...in reality?

Hell if I know. [Freya seemed to be saying that a lot, in these last three weeks. It wasn't really her place to speculate about whatever happened to them without concrete information. It was real enough to hurt them—to kill them. That's all that mattered about it, to her.]

[The taller woman lets out a shuddering breath of her own, not daring to open her eyes yet or she'd start crying.] Still a lot to do, looks like.

[Despite her words, Freya's iron grip didn't ease any. She... distantly recalled that thunderous voice, the one calling out to 'champions'... but Freya'd been preoccupied at the time.]

...What happened to you? [A beat.] —you and Lucy?

[She can't help but let out a tired sob, her grip remaining as hard as ever, her face crushing against Freya's shoulder. Her hands slide up, holding fast to the fabric over her partner's shoulders as she considers how to answer that question. It'd all been hard to really focus on, especially the last few hours...]

We...woke up somewhere, with other people. An escape room I guess. And then we jumped from there to a crazy lab. And then to a space station. And...now we're back on Earth.

[One hand finally lets go, long enough to gesture over at the lion mecha.]

We landed with these guys. I...get to pilot one.

Does that mean I get to drive your car? [Despite the attempt at humor, Freya's heart really isn't in it, and it's apparent in her flat tone. Freya's hand slides through Pen's hair, quickly coming back to rest against her head again. Letting go seemed like an absurdity; Freya hadn't realize how used she'd grown to her partner's constant presence until she was gone. Pen never seemed to fit more perfectly against her than now.]

Really weren't kidding about the jersey. Those messages scared me, you know.

[Pen laughs, head shaking against Freya, a hollow and strained noise. Humor's not quite right, but the touch is. It feels like ages since she was able to just lean on someone, not have to be the strong one. Her team had been hard pressed for weeks, and while she'd come to rely on them there wasn't anything quite like this there. Nothing quite so perfect, and she didn't think she'd want to let go of it ever again.]

...I'm sorry. It just...sort of became a habit. I'm glad you got them, because I think I'd have gone crazy without them.

[Looking up again, her tone takes on a hopeful lilt.]

I'm here, after all, so I hope you weren't too scared?

Would've been, if not for that last message. Ending abruptly like that...

[Freya tilts her head skyward, breathing in long and deep. She finally opens her eyes after the exhale, staring at the dark sky, feeling the hospital looming behind her in a grim reminder. It still wasn't safe—wasn't over. Freya thought she could hold herself together a little longer.]

[The taller woman finally looks down, meeting her partner's eyes with an expression of unrestrained relief. This was fragile. So many things could go wrong, rip them to pieces. Today was a reminder of that.]

I'm glad you're safe. [Those words weren't adequate. Freya wasn't sure what would be—wasn't sure what would properly convey the way her head swam with relief when Pen answered her phone, or how something in her chest twisted when Freya saw her here, unharmed.]

Sorry, baby. I...didn't really have a lot of choice.

[She nuzzles just a little closer as their eyes meet, acutely aware that Freya was trying not to cry. Something in that expression, the rawness of it, made her shake a little. There was so much that could go wrong, had gone wrong, but they were here now.]

I'm...yeah. I'm glad you're safe too. [She pulls a hand back and wipes away tears, trying to firm herself a little more, steel herself for the next question. Unable to keep her voice from shaking, and not just because Freya looks like hell, she stops and starts several times before she manages to croak out the words.]

What happened? Why are you at the hospital?

[She knew that question was coming. Freya thought she was ready. Instead, her throat felt tight and she had to look away and close her eyes again, as her mind was drawn away from Pen and back to that twitching, deteriorating body on the bed—]

We lost one. [She somehow manages to say the words, and deceptively steadily.] Ryoji. Minako's—Minako's best friend.

[It's this next part that spills out unbidden, laced with the frustration and guilt and grief that was missing prior.] I couldn't do anything for him. [Freya's entire body seems to tense, fingers of one hand clenching in the fabric of Pen's jersey.]

[Penelope shook as the words came out. We lost one. That...called to mind memories she'd repressed for years. A phone call at 18, the catalyst that had destroyed her life. We lost them, she'd heard, just one word difference, but was it really that far from it? She didn't know Ryoji, she'd just heard of him from time to time...]

Oh...Freya...

[It's her turn to hold tight, fingers reaching up to the base of her head and pulling it down closer.] I'm...fuck...I'm so, so sorry. But I know you did everything you could. [Her fingers run through dark hair, catching and smoothing at it.]

[Freya's hands start shaking in turn. She bends her head under Pen's touch, resting her cheek against her partner's.]

I knew this was gonna happen one day, [She starts after a moment, quietly.] Can't save everyone. Even if you do everything right. Didn't think—didn't think it'd be so soon. Or someone I knew. Him

[She draws another shuddering breath.] I promised Mina, Pen. Knew he was havin' a hard time. Said I'd look out for him. [Now Freya's shoulders shake, but this time with a humorless laugh.] Lotta good that did.

[Pen holds the position, stroking Freya's hair over and over, gently pulling out tangles that caught her fingers. It seemed like...the only thing she could really do. Compared to this, her groups trials felt so small.]

Sometimes...it's just time. [She tilts her head, nuzzling against her girlfriend's cheek, breathing slowly and trying to project calm.] It's not fair or right, but you know that as well as I do. You did everything you could, and...

[A swallow, her voice growing thick with emotion as she realizes she sounds just like some of her grief counselors...]

...and that's all you can do. I won't say losing someone is easy...but it does happen, and all you can do now is honor his memory and his wishes.

[That little motion of Pen's fingers in her hair was more steadying than it had any right to be, considering the gravity of it all.]

I know, [she murmurs, defeatedly.] That's what they say. The veterans.

[Freya's never seen Minako like that, heard her like that. She'll never be able to forget fighting that ghost, turning around at a scream to see Ryoji wounded. How the ice melted, leaving that gaping hole she couldn't fix, filled with that black sludge where his organs and blood should've been. How she could only watch him twitch and fade away.] Knowin' doesn't make it easier.

[It was so utterly dissonant, carrying the knowledge they hammered into her during her training, and knowing it to be true and logical from every angle, yet feeling that every bit of this was on her head. She should've been more alert, more knowledgeable, more adept with her powers, more... something. Just more than she was.]

[Which, speaking off...] We've got our work cut out for us. [It comes out as a mumble. Too much has happened. Another day of it seemed unbearable, but... she'd bear it. She had to, or someone else would have to do it for her. Freya couldn't accept that.]

[The stroking slows, slackening off as she listens, but the hug remains tense, as intense as it could be. She's not letting go, not without Freya at least seeming like she was ready to push forward. The battle raging around them would only stay away for so long...and there was definitely work to do.

Once she speaks of it though, Pen slowly and reluctantly pulls back, her hand trailing away as she backs towards the mech.]

We do. Together this time. No more deaths if we can help it.

[Reaching to her belt, she pulls out the cylinder containing her spear and tosses it to Freya.]

I've got the mech. You take that. Be my eyes on the ground, Freya. We'll put a stop to this. We've got to win this.

[Freya wasn't expecting the toss, and almost fumbles the catch—almost. She breathes deeply and nods.] Right.

[And starts back towards the hospital. What remained of her stuff was in there, and it really couldn't hurt to have one more cup of water before running into the fray.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

AUGUST EVENT LOG

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject