[semi-open] harbinger of suffering and grief

[appraiser]

WHO: Ryoji and whoever doesn't sleep at night, I guess
WHERE: Apprassage to various places around the city, Recollé Woods
WHEN: midnight 5/17 and onward towards the end of the month
WHAT: Ryoji regains his Thanatos form; unable to control his powers, he flees, leaving destruction in his wake. He's generally very upset about it all. Please help.
WARNINGS: fighting, violence, mentions of death and suicide

[ —a screech pierces the stillness of night over the quiet streets of Apprassage, the bite of burnt rubber and asphalt filling in the space where a car now lies turned around and stalling traffic, shattered windshields spilling glass onto the street and the crumpled hood sending smoke into the air. The blaring of the car alarm falls on deaf ears of the boy standing before it, eyes wide and unseeing as he clutches his head and screams, the shimmering barrier around him dissolving back into darkness and then— ]

A. midnight, 5/17, various (CLOSED to those I talked to on May's plotting post here)
[ A brilliant flash lights up the sky outside, brief, overwhelming, then everything is plunged back into darkness. Whether the noise had woken you up, or you were awake in the dead of night to begin with, eyes lifted towards the sky might spot a shadow take off past the rooftops, deep rumble felt through the earth behind it.

Those who venture closer— the curious, the brave, the foolish— would find deep gashes on the roads, dragged long as if a sword pulled across the ground, scattered potholes still burning with the last wisps of an eerie glow. The sky flashes again, the shadow in the middle a dark hole that swallows up all light, monstrous figure apparent with the stark contrast that makes it easy to follow; even blind, one can do so by listening for the unearthly wail that cuts through the air and may dizzy the mind even from so far.

Close, it's hard to see, harder to believe: a sharp white mask reflecting the moonlight; serrated sword out of its scabbard and caked with dirt and rubble; coffins draped across its shoulder, rattling and coming for you. Every encounter brings it further and further out away from the innermost parts of the city, and each time, Thanatos stops and turns, breath visible as it chills the very air around it, waiting.

>> Hollingberry Field
>> Recollé Woods
>> Peach Beach
>> The ocean
>> ???

Select your arena, and let's go. ]

B. nights, 5/18 onward, Recollé woods (CLOSED to those above, and anybody who has interacted with Ryoji at least once before)
[ The pain disappears faster than it should have, but Ryoji would have preferred it to the emptiness in his chest, the way his hands won't stop shaking. He fumbles with his phone, startling when a twig snaps underfoot and he throws it from himself as if it burnt his hands.

He leaves the phone there for the time being, nestled on top of damp, rotting leaves as he picks his way a little deeper into the woods, a mutter under his breath: "Keep yourself together." Because whatever... whatever happened yesterday, he can't let it happen again, losing control and hurting others— killing, for all he knows, because he'd fled to the woods and hasn't gone back since the night before, hasn't talked to anybody in person except for some texts on the phone.

He's got to figure it out. Somehow.

It's here in the woods he'll stay until he can, out of the way and hoping nobody would come near after the unnerving draw of the woods earlier in the month, practicing under the veil of night. He'll manage it eventually, the flicker of shadow and a rumble, a light show, the splintering crack of felled trees. He's not as careful as he could be, frustrated, exhausted, distracted enough not to notice whoever approaches to see the arched back of a boy, head bowed and clutching his knees as he struggles back to his feet... or the back of a monster, sword in hand gleaming with the moon. ]

C. days, 5/22 onward, various (OTA)
[ Days pass, and it feels like he understands less and less of who and what he is... and why... The first time it happened, only a handful of days ago, it was a car accident. He'd frozen there in the middle of the street, staring down the pair of headlights as they approached. He had not died. He should have...

...Ryoji shakes the thought out of his head. Something had protected him, a power that welled up from within and then- gone. He couldn't do it again, hold out his hands and block the fluttering of petals onto his head in the park, or the cat that meets him on the road, rubbing its head against his ankles twice and then runs.

Maybe it had to be something similar, either to the situation or the feeling; there's no way he can know but to try, reckless and stupid as he stands by the busy streets of Tisse contemplating stepping out into traffic; holds a switchblade in his hand on the rooftop of an apartment building in Apprassage, flicking the blade in, out, in, out; up high on the bridges of the Towers, leaning dangerously over the edge as he stares down at the ground far, far below; at the zoo in front of the lion's cage trying to get it to wake up so he can climb the fence and stick his head inside its mouth; he doesn't know, nothing's working and he needs to know. ]

D. 5/26 onward, various (OTA)
[ the one lighter prompt, save me ]

Hey. Hold out your hand for a moment? I want your opinion on something.

[ If you comply, Ryoji tugs out from beneath his collar a thin silver chain, on the end of which a gold ring dangles momentarily before he presses it into the palm of your hand, closing your fingers back over it. Despite having been tucked under his shirt, the ring is cold against your skin, a faint glow emitting from in between your fingers while no sun reaches it inside your hand. ]

...How does this make you feel?

[ Stupid, probably, as if holding a ring would evoke some sort of emotion, but that's what it does for Ryoji, looking equal parts expectant and hopeful as he looks from you, to the ring delivered to his door courtesy of Retrospec, and then back. ]

--
( ooc: Aside from being able to shift into the form of Thanatos, Ryoji's powers include: ghastly wail (fearful opponents fall unconscious), tempest slash (sword attack), megidola (almighty magic attack), moonless gown (barrier that reflects all attacks, max three activation per day))

Comments

[true_noir]

[It wasn't complete as buildings go, but it was definitely a building. The implications would be more obvious to someone who knew blueprints, but it had the look of being the sort of document that was used to display a building's layout.]

I'm guessing that it is, yes. It does seem to be for a building, but whoever it was that took this from the place I found it, they were so hasty to get rid of it they left part back.

A game might be an option... do you know anyone in that case?

[appraiser]

Hmm... I can't imagine a scenario in which somebody were to tear only part of a blueprint out unless they were running. Stealing? [ He frowns, unsure, shaking his head. ]

I don't know any serious gamers, but maybe people at the arcade would. Do you know the one over in Tisse? The Hubbub Hub? Aki who works there is a Retrospec user.

[true_noir]

The rest of it, yes. At least that is what I assume. I only found this wedged in, like it was what was left behind after all.

[She nodded at the mention of the arcade and considered for a moment. It brought to her mind Tim. At the very least, maybe he'd have some idea of where to find illegal help?]

I could ask Aki, or possibly Tim. They're someone who maybe could help a little.

[appraiser]

Tim? Noah's Tim?

[ That little golden orb is what comes to mind, Timcanpy with the long wings and many sharp teeth. But that can't be right, and Ryoji laughs, a little sheepish as he brings a hand to the back of his head. ]

Or, probably, somebody I'm not familiar with.

[true_noir]

Tim Drake. [She coughed.] If you mean the strange ball with the horrifying mouth of razor sharp teeth, I was unaware that it could speak, much less have higher thought. Tim knows computer programming, so perhaps he could know someone through the arcades.

So, you may have met him, or not. I think he keeps to himself somewhat.

[appraiser]

I'm not positive Toothy Ball Tim can converse on his own accord, but he can repeat messages, so it could be possible. Like how a parrot echoes and learns to communicate.

[ Tim Drake, though. Computer Programming Tim... The name sounds familiar, in the way reading a name in passing sounds familiar several years after first hearing it. He might have talked to Tim before, among many dozen others all at the same time; he'll have to go back through his messages to check. ]

Tim Drake sounds like a useful person to have, though. A computer programmer, when there might be something to learn from the application program.

[true_noir]

No matter if he can help with this specifically, he would be a good person to be able to contact. We have few enough options after all. We might as well keep in touch with the ones that we manage to find, yes?

[appraiser]

Yes. [ Ryoji agrees easily, but the point really has no contest. ] I feel like most people I know are student, who have a variety of skills but not to the technical level of a profession...

[ Whenever he needs help, he goes to all of three people: his doctor, his best friend, or his mother. Knowing more people would be good for him, if only he weren't being racked with dangerous form-changing powers. ]

How are you getting to know people? Through Retrospec? In person? Through your job?

[true_noir]

I think that applies to a lot of us. Only a few can truly say that we are professional regardless of what it is that we are talking about. Still, an amateur may be be much better than nothing.

[A shrug] Overall, it's a mixture of the app and occasionally running into them out here. It isn't entirely predictable, mostly because our lives have been less than predictable lately. What about you?

[appraiser]

Friends of friends, mostly.

[ Hence school-aged people, with school-wide events being a great place to meet people where a community venue might be too large and diffuse. ]

I work at Dr. Trevelyan's clinic and know of him from there, but those who come in I might recognize from seeing on the app, I don't talk about it to them much. They're here for other reasons.

[true_noir]

He is one of Dr Grell's associates, is he not? I think I might have seen him around on the app before too, yes. I guess that there's an advantage in knowing the friends of friends over and above the random people this app might show you. At the very least, your friends can speak for them, right?

Though, the problem now is that we're floundering, hunting for ways to fill in the blanks of our own knowledge.

[appraiser]

Yes. He and Dr. Grell have taken to seeing anybody who has changed, and needs somebody to talk to. I've gone to them, but...

[ Ryoji shakes his head. He doesn't look different, outwardly, so that anybody looking at him on the streets would see no difference compared to months prior, before Retrospec. Even those who know him, they've noticed a dim in his natural cheer, but the rest he can hide away. ]

I like getting to know people as they come naturally, but you're right. We don't know enough... Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to heed Jim's goading in trying a secret meeting again? Off the network, to see who knows what, who of us has influence, or could provide other services or knowledge.

[true_noir]

I would not call it Jim's warning, but I think perhaps we need to look into this sort of meeting. Gather off of the network, see what can be learned from us in a large body. The real problem is knowing who and getting it started. It is like the ball rolling down the hill. Once it is properly started, it should build its own momentum I would think.

[She did not know him well, but she had noticed the slight decrease in enthusiasm. That said, with all they had faced already, she really couldn't fault it. It felt almost... natural to her to lose some enthusiasm right now.]

Do not worry, though. We are not beaten yet.

[appraiser]

You've heard of the six degrees of separation? Through friends of friends, everybody in the world is connected, and the information will trickle down. Knowing who will take care of itself, but getting started... that's the problem. It'd be nice if there were a natural leader among us who would take charge.

[true_noir]

... I've actually never heard of that. I mean, I like the idea that we're all connected somehow, but I've never heard of this six degrees of separation idea.

And, it would, but ... [She frowned then.] If there's a chance that we might forget at any time, there shouldn't be simply one of us. We can't rely upon any one person. That's part of the problem, part that I don't think anyone's thought of or talked about yet.

[appraiser]

It's the idea that any two given people in the world, no matter how far apart or unrelated, are connected through six people or less. I forget whether it's been proved or disproved yet.

[ Sometimes it feels like Recollé is such a small world, they'd only need two or three degrees, especially given the Retrospec app connecting so many of them at once. He used to think it was a good thing. ]

...I didn't think of it either, but you're right. Multiple leaders would be harder to hide from Retrospec... In prominence, they'll be cut off from the app. There doesn't seem like a way to win.

[true_noir]

You know, it does not matter if it is proven. It is a nice thought all the same, the idea that we are all connected on some level, is it not?

[And certainly, in Recolle, you would think the degrees were less, especially for anyone on the app. It was becoming a smaller and smaller world for them, the longer that they went through it.]

There are ways, but it becomes a battle of very careful steps, of finding the right number of leaders, the right level of stealth, to get what we need without their interference.

[appraiser]

Do you know the ways?

[ Ryoji doesn't. It feels like they're talking in circles without direction, and it's frustrating the way he cannot help. ]

...It feels like we've made less and less progress as the months go by. I remember from the start, people were hoping the government would jump in and address the app's invasion of privacy. They'd have to, if it were a nationwide problem.

[true_noir]

No. But I refuse to believe that they aren't. I'm stubborn that way, Ryoji. We will find a way to beat this, somehow. And in doing that we will learn the truth.

As frustrating as it feels, I think part of it is because we haven't found 'much,' but I also know that they have weak spots. I've seen signs that they might have been hasty once to cover their tracks. They're not omnipotent. But we are on our own. Nobody not using the app seems to know it exists.

[appraiser]

Subjecting us to other people's memories, changing people physically, surprise gifts left unexpectedly. They seem pretty omnipotent to me.

[ His body is that of a monster; everything he's going through has been following those of the visions he's seen as if they are previews of what's to come, and he can't circumvent or prepare for them. ]

Will you tell me of these signs, though?

[true_noir]

Well, for one. I've seen evidence that they had to do very normal things to hide the blueprints of their building. I saw a fragment of them tucked into a filing cabinet, in a place where someone might find something old like that. It was torn out, like they were hasty to get rid of it...

And yet, it was still there, plain as day wen I looked and found it, in a place we shouldn't have been able to find normally. They have covered their tracks well, and they're very powerful... but they aren't perfect. Despite all they try to seem, I think they're still very human.

[appraiser]

[ "A place where someone might find something old like that." "A place we shouldn't have been able to find normally."

Ryoji laughs despite himself, and has to press a hand over his mouth to stifle it, looking apologetic. ]

Sorry. I know you're not being cryptic on purpose, but cautious as not to let people know where you've gone, in case Retrospec might eavesdrop.

[true_noir]

Hmmm... no, Ryoji, because if I actually tell you, then you'd be an accomplice if I went somewhere illegal, yes?

[She cocked her head and smiled, ever so innocently.] Of course, I'm sure I just found an old abandoned building time forgot that it was wedged in. Obviously, and not somewhere I shouldn't have been just because I was small enough to get in without being seen.

[appraiser]

[ WHERE DID YOU GO WHAT IS THIS BUILDING he is so curious now; if only he had some power that could shrink him down to the size of a bean again instead of the complete opposite, the hulking monster Thanatos that is so conspicuous. ]

You're killing me, Chloe, I want to know! [ He might be shaking her arm a little, but come on, she can't tease him like this ] I won't tell a soul- I promise! Please?

[true_noir]

[She chuckled]

If you tell anyone I'd just deny that I might have found a room in the city offices nobody's used for a very long time, that has all sorts of old documents. It looks like it's associated with the County Clerk's office, but it's attached to the Mayor's instead. They were so fast getting the blueprint out they left a torn piece.

They haven't always been this 'in control.'