[CLOSED] Zahliyaquest...2

[purifier]

Who: Zahliya, Luca, Joshua, Wolfwood, Dipper, Mamika, Siffrin, Loop, & Kiera
What: A gargoyle needs task-doers for character development
When: Mid-August, yes during the rainstorms, good luck
Where: ??? :)
Warnings: Typical Sticks trigger warnings apply, suicide, time loops resulting in multiple character deaths, Wolfwood just shot someone executioner style, more to be added


OOC notes, here is a rehash of your rules:

• Mod tags will come either a) after everyone involved has tagged in or b) after 24 hours have passed since the last mod tag. This means if you are absent for any reason, the thread WILL move on without you.
• Interaction in this log will be redeemable for MAIN AC, not just Bonus AC like most of our NPC threads.
• This questline will shape Zahliya's outcome for the rest of the game, and may or may not result in an almost-full Corruption cure and therefore gamewide impact. I will let people know midway through the quest if he's currently aimed at aggression/confidence/staying in the Grove, or if he's on passive/indecisive/leaving the Grove.
• The old OOC plotting post for this is here!

Comments

QUEST START!

[purifier]

[Every month, something happens that puts Zahliya off his quest to go into the woods and seek out what he needs. First it's the beach. Then it's everyone getting stuck underwater and Zahliya worrying so much he paced trenches into the church roof. And now it's fucking raining, and when he goes to shake Callan down and tell him to stop the rains, the man says he has no idea how and "the people demand rain, Little Goat" and a whole bunch of other shit Zahliya didn't listen to as he was leaving.

So. He's decided that this cannot wait any longer. He will head into the woods and do what he has to do, even though he's pretty sure he's going to confront something part of him doesn't want to confront. Also he's going to be so honest, he's just hoping everything works out at this point, because he's going in with zero planning and half an idea.

What he's not expecting, somehow, is for eight people to realise he's headed out and meet him at the forest's edge... God y'all better not get killed.]

Is this everyone?

[unheiring]

[Hi, of course Luca is here. He's very much invested in Zahliya's fate, after all. And even if he wasn't, he just wants to lend his gargfriend some support. that said, even he's a little surprisede that so many people have shown up. That Kiera is here is one thing, but the myriad other faces are a bit surprising.

Surprising but... strangely comforting. He gives a nod to the assembled group, before shrinking back into the crowd. Even still, that won't keep him from poking a little fun at Zahliya in kind. Luca even manages to find it in himself to grin, even if it is slightly forced.]

Who knew you were so popular.

[lupusxylem]

[Wolfwood is here! But it isn’t just for Zahliya’s sake. People close to him, not in the least of all Vash himself, suffer from the corruption. He’s figuring it’s high time they got to the bottom of a cure, hopefully in a way that won’t result in more people getting corrupted to find it.

He looks a lot like a wet dog as he stands there with the Punisher slung over his shoulder, damp hair sort of hanging in his face like a shaggy dog. He can’t even smoke with all of the humidity going on, but whatever.

When Luca says that, he gives an exaggerated roll of his eyes.]

More like more than a few of us actually care about gettin’ this corruption shit sorted.

[Said as if he doesn’t care about Zahliya more than a little bit. He doesn’t even chase him away from the church anymore!!!

And because I think it’s funny, he’s definitely got a few cheddar cubes in his pockets. You know for emergencies.]

[cryopathy]

[kiera is here for luca's benefit exclusively. he has a track record for throwing himself at... causes... without any thought for his own safety, so... of course they're coming, armed and sober and everything. the usual smirk is present, of course!]

Nothing good has come of someone running off into the Forest alone, my fiery friend.

[... okay, okay, maybe they think zahliya is a little endearing. a little.]

[ghostharasser]

[Dipper is also here, even if he doesn’t know Zahliya personally yet, though he has heard plenty about the guy from everyone else. He would never turn down an opportunity to pester a gargoyle?? Or go on a quest? Come on.]

Like I have ever left anything well enough alone.

[It’s raining too hard for him to have his journal out, but just know he is writing everything down for records sake, too.]

[leggierissimo]

[ Everyone else here has good reasons to be. Whether out of concern for Zahliya, concern for someone else going along, whathaveyou. Joshua, though? Joshua is here to observe. He could say it's for his own benefit, and it is, in a sense - he gets a good show, he gets information - but if they're able to find a cure for the corruption...

Well. Let's just say there's a corrupted werewolf somewhere out here in the Forest that's lost his mind, and that werewolf is from his city. There's a sense of responsibility. He'll leave it at that. ]

Personally, I think it sounds like a fun time.

[ It's raining cats and dogs, but is any of it getting on Joshua? Absolutely not. It's hitting some invisible umbrella above his head. No getting wet today, thanks! ]

[magicalsplashflare]

[ Mamika is already in her magical girl get-up, complete with the wand in her hand that she's also made a magic umbrella with. It's not invisible, though. There's very much just a heart shape with wings floating above her head, that will drift to cover those close to her as well. ]

I think it's our responsibility to help out where we can with one another, but... I'm also just worried about what we might find in there, what with such a big group here. I can't imagine that thing in there is gonna be very happy with that.

SEVERAL CUTSCENES WILL PLAY IN SEQUENCE...

[purifier]

[At the best of times, the forest itself can be described as "creepy and weird". Despite the initial path being marked with vivid greens and summertime splashes of colour, the further everyone travels into the fog — cutting across pathways that look like they go through the black mist to those refusing to wear the glasses, only for it to be fine in the end. The true paths are hidden for a reason, after all.

Zahliya cuts an imposing figure through it. Whether you see him as a man-shaped green inferno or simply himself, his usual inclinations to be a bit silly are completely turned off. He strides forward with one goal in mind, and that goal is simply to get through the temple.

What never goes accounted for in these situations is the time dilation. To Zahliya, time does not matter; he is infinite and timeless and too used to it to know what "normal" time feels like. To all of you? The closer you get to the temple, the more you feel as though this walk has gone on for 3 days. You pass a gnarled old tree, and suddenly you think it's only been a few hours. It's impossible to tell the time of day due to the rain, but surely your sense of time isn't that horrid... is it?

You're hungry. Then you're not hungry, because hasn't it been only an hour since you ate last? You're tired, but you also just woke up. Minutes turn into hours and back to minutes again. Your head hurts, a migraine between your eyes, yet you press on. Whether because Zahliya is hauling ass through the woods, or because of that constant feeling of something watching you, or because getting this done is more important than dealing with time anomalies... that's for you to decide.

It's difficult to miss the imposing, broken-in doors of the Temple as you approach it. It lies within a clearing of fallen trees and flame-scorched scenery that never healed eons later. Zahliya turns to everyone to ensure that you're all still here and still fine, mentally surprised that this went so well. He waves his tail at you, a flick not unlike that of a cat's, and steps a single hoof past the threshold.

...

The earth rumbles. From within the Temple comes two female voices, one that may be slightly familiar to Joshua, who happened to be at the Moon Seance.]

ARE YOU LOOKING FOR THAT WHICH YOU LOST? DO YOU BELIEVE YOURSELF WORTHY?

CAN YOU CONFRONT THE MEMORIES YOU'VE FORGOTTEN? WILL YOU CRUMBLE WHEN YOU FACE THEM, OR WILL YOUR RESOLVE STRENGTHEN?

ARE YOU PREPARED TO FOLLOW IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THOSE WHO CAME BEFORE?

[The world around you shakes and distorts, a smattering of stars over your vision like a swarm of fireflies.

All goes quiet.]

GROUP 1: Wolfwood, Kiera, Joshua, Loop

[purifier]

[When the fireflies clear from your vision, you're standing within the Temple. Zahliya is not here by the looks of it, and the Temple itself is not in a state of disarray. It's clean. Unbloodied. Untarnished.

Empty.

The four of you stand in one corner of it, in a room that looks like it may be used to honour Beiwe. Sun motifs hang on the walls, and it feels warm and loving. Secure. Safe. You almost want to stay forever.

Outside this room, something screams in agony. Sobs. It is a voice that you know just from having been here. It is the voice of the Black Sun, the False God, the Forest Himself.

Further outside, something else tries to get in.]

[lupusxylem]

[And after what feels like an eon of walking (Wolfwood likes to think he's used to the feeling of losing time here, but THIS is beyond that), they make it to their destination. And wouldn't you know it, it truly isn't so simple as just going inside. Why ever would it be? He barely has a chance to process what the disembodied voices were saying before he can't see, and he's making a blind grab in the chaos of his own vision for his Punisher, expecting to be attacked already.

Instead, they're inside. They're inside...and half of the group is missing, as is Zahliya himself. They are all unharmed, at least for the moment, and Wolfwood exhales heavily, slowly, through gritted teeth.

At least this one, singular room feels okay. But even that could be a farce, knowing this place. You know, given the. Uh.

The screaming.]

Of fuckin' course.

sorry they're like this

[theuniverseleads]

[The passage of time barely phases Loop, at least. They're used to this kind of thing! They zone out for most of the walk, sticking close to Siffrin, following whoever is currently in front of them... the glasses are in hand, and occasionally they let themselves focus back in enough to take another look at themselves. Just a shy, distant peek through the lens, a complicated emotion clouding over their face momentarily. Of course, they can't remove gloves that aren't there. Of course, they don't have anything reflective they could use to see their own face...

but it's fine. It's still them. It's still them.

Anyway, they jolt back to attention once the voices start echoing around, and their vision fills up with stars. The room's comforting aura muffles their panic, but it's still alarming. Suddenly appearing somewhere new feels bad, inherently, and it's worse once they realize people are missing. Siffrin is missing, the one reason they even bothered to come! How did they already mess this up!!

Instinctively they reach out, and— and there's something, they can grasp his mind, they can speak into it, but

something feels wrong. They don't know what it is, but Siffrin doesn't answer and that makes it worse, why wouldn't he just answer? He should know to answer! This is serious! Why isn't he]

Stardust? Siffrin! [stars they're going to be SO embarrassed if he's just around the corner, they're going to look so stupid but they're absolutely 100% freaking out right now. they turn, looking everywhere around, hand gripping the handle of the bone knife strapped to their waist. they dropped the glasses at some point but it's fine, it didn't break, they'll just pick those up later, they need to find Siffrin

The sobbing in the other room rings vaguely familiar. Not him, not theirs, but they somehow know that voice. They can't place where exactly they've heard it, but above all it makes them think of a Sadness—that kind of hopeless, miserable presence that twists into violence. Something clicks. They freeze in place, staring at the exit.

... and then break out into a sudden sprint, whipping their knife out in the same motion. Whatever the FUCK is in that room is about to get stabbed.]

double sorry that kiera is just gonna let it happen. also cw alcoholism / withdrawals

[cryopathy]

[the time fuckery of the grove is not new to kiera; she's been here quite a while now. what makes it bad is the fact that before everyone had grouped up on zahliya this morning, she'd been on her way to the bar, which... effectively means that she can't tell how long it's been since her last drink. it could be hours, which sucks but is ultimately fine, or days, which is not great. the headache could be some sort of forest torture. the tremble in her hands and the pounding of her own heartbeat could be psychosomatic. or she could be on the verge of collapsing or getting sick or any number of unpleasant things.

they finally lose the will to hold out and reach down to look in their pouch for emergency rations, but by the time they look back up... their group is fragmented, luca nowhere in sight. kiera definitely doesn't remember entering any sort of temple, and the combination of unfamiliarity, screaming, and thudding on the outer door is enough to snap them to attention out of self-preservation alone.

unfortunately, by the time she gets her bearings, loop is already sprinting off in the direction of -- the false god's voice and. honestly? kiera doesn't really give a shit. loop can make a ragdoll of themself for the creature if it gives the rest of them time to organize, or at least arm themselves. she lays a hand on her sword hilt, lets loop go, and shoots a silent look to both wolfwood and joshua, gauging their reactions as well.]

[leggierissimo]

[ Joshua, for his part, has been following behind most of the rest of the group. Not because he doesn't want to be seen through the glasses - he really doesn't care - but because he's used to observing. It's a lot more fun to observe the rest of them under the clarity of the glasses, anyway! Look at all of these new and exciting revelations that he's committing to memory. Will he use this information in the future? Maybe, maybe not.

The strangeness about time passing registers, and while the momentary confusion about how long it's truly been is very briefly and minorly unsettling, it never lingers for long. Time hasn't truly been normal for him in a long time, between Rindo's reversals and his existence in general. No, what's really unsettling to him is the odd feeling of a migraine. That's something he hasn't felt in a long, long time. Whatever influence hovers over the forest, it's clearly affecting him, and not knowing what it's actually doing isn't the most comforting feeling.

Hearing Ourania's voice before his vision goes starry had him briefly, mentally going 'Ah', as everything goes blank for a moment. If one of the voices was her, it stands to reason that the other must be...

His thoughts seem to be confirmed, once he's able to orient himself. The room they've found themselves in seems to belong to Beiwe in some respect, just based on the decor, and he takes note of that. He takes note of the sounds of agony from the other room, too, once they begin - and he registers what voice that is, somehow. Well, that's fun. Are they trapped in here with the False Sun, now?

And Loop is taking right off after it. Joshua lets out a sigh, lifting one hand to play with the ends of his hair. ]

What a shame. Too bad they've never seen a horror movie.

[ Glancing at Kiera and Wolfwood, he shrugs his shoulders in a slight gesture of "what can you do?" ]

Well? We have "rushing headlong into danger" covered. What next?

GROUP 2: Luca, Dipper, Mamika, Siffrin

[purifier]

[When the fireflies clear from your vision, you're standing outside the Temple. It's a warm summer's day, no rain in the skies.

The Temple doors are smashed in, and screams come from within. Yet perhaps that doesn't draw your attention as much as the sudden blur of black that zips past all of you, uncaring... and the stone statue that cracks apart like something within is beginning to hatch, green lines etched into skin and wings rising high overhead from their stone prisons.

You do not know this Zahliya. He is cold. Unloving. He turns toward the screams from within the Temple and merely sighs, hands on the twin swords that were once mere stone with him: One with a swirling nebula, and one a whole blade with bird wings for a hilt.

Whoever is within the Temple screams for help. Please help us, please save us, please don't let us die.

Zahliya turns away, brushing past the lot of you. Ignoring the Temple, and charging into the woods.]

May the Gods have mercy on you. I will not.

[He looks at you, realising you're there, and squints. Fundamentally, this is wrong. This is not how it happened: You were not there when he awoke. He was alone. But whatever this is, whatever time loop you've been trapped in, has upended whatever backwards logic this place operates on.

In this very moment, you may as well have been there from the start.]

Leave. You do not belong here.

[unheiring]

[In many ways, Luca is familiar with this sort of journey. Cutting a breaknake pace across unfamiliar territory is practically what he's done on a daily basis for years now. And yet there are so many reminders that he is out of place. The waxing and waning hunger, the way time itself seems to twist around him, this is all new to him.

But he can march on. He'll never say it, but he feels far more stronger, far more confident, so long as Kiera is here. Their relationship might still be rocky, but that is his sibling. And he knows they're more than capable of holding their own. That is, of course, to say nothing of Zahliya, a far more recent addition to the folds of Luca's heart, but welcome nonetheless.

It will be alright. There is strength in numbers and -

the world changes

He hardly notices they've arrived, and suddenly it all changes. We swipes frantically in front of his face, trying to clear the creatures now obscuring his vision. When he finally catches sight of his surroundings, he realizes that something is very, very wrong.]

Kiera? Kiera?!

[At once, something different slides into his voice. He had only just demonstrated himself as a pillar of resolve, someone not so weak to sentiment. When he realizes that he's alone, again something panicked grips him. He feels like a child again. He can almost feel the sticky blood coating his palms once more and -

Flickering green fire reminds him of where he is. He starts to take a step forward.]

Ahli - [But the words die on his throat. Whoever this is - it isn't the Gargoyle Luca has tied himself to. Like everything else, it feels wrong. And for a brief second, swalloing his fear feels impossible. One quivering breath leaves him, then another. He pushes down the surge of emotion, swallows down every tear that tries to fall, and then reaches for the sword strapped on his back.]

Something is not right here. Everyone... stay close.

[magicalsplashflare]

[ Mamika is... well, disoriented, as everyone else probably is. She staggers a bit when her eyes are flooded with the lights, and she closes them tightly to prevent herself from going too blind, holding out the heart shaped wand in front of her to try and at least be ready if she's meant to fight. She doesn't really want to, but at least if she can feel or hear something charging at her, she can pop a bit of magic to put distance between them.

But then she hears Luca panicking, and she peers out one of her eyes to look around. Their party... is smaller now. Something is not right here, that's true. She pulls her wand back in and looks around to get her bearings, and when she does, she reaches her hand out to grab the hand of the nearest person - Siffrin. She'd do so for Dipper, too, if she didn't have to grip her wand, but she'll do her best to finagle her arm to loop around his and move closer to Luca. Look, they're sticking together! Like glue or whatever! ]

Mister... [ Sawliya... Zalleah... Ally? ] Mister Gargoyle, what's going on...?

[ghostharasser]

[He does have a migraine by the time they’re spirited away. The fluctuations in time coupled in with the vibes of the forest is a lot for someone with his abilities to just feel everything around him. As they travel through, his hand is on his pendent, trying to concentrate just enough to keep himself centered.]

[And then they get separated, and Dipper heaves a sigh. Its like being back in Trench. Of course the forest would have some trial for them to complete, that’s just how it goes. As Luca is warning them, that panic hits Dipper like a truck and he is getting to his feet in a hurry.]

[There’s a click and then a snap as Dipper loads the Azure Pine, finger hovering near the safety as they all get in closer.]

Careful, this might not be what we think it is.

[His eyes slide over to the temple. He remembers what Heimr had told him of the fate of those adventuring merchants. He wonders, with quite a lot of dread, if his uncles had been among their numbers.]

[start_again]

[Disoriented is definitely the word for it. The world changes, and it takes a few moments in the confusion to notice what else has changed with it.]

Loop?!

[He's not the only one panicked over their missing allies, but there's no comfort in that. He breathes in and out slowly, steadying himself, and makes the handsign to try calling Loop. The lack of answer really does not help his anxiety.

Siffrin swallows down the panic. Ok, ok. One thing at a time. He stiffens as Mamika grabs his hand, nearly tugging away at first. It's been a while since he was engaging in his personal touch therapy and it feels like he's regressed, the contact unfamiliar. But he shrugs off the instinctual aversion. He can manage to hold a kid's hand, however awkward he is about it. And it still leaves him a hand free to draw his dagger as he glances around uneasily.]

WELCOME BACK TO THE CURRENT DAY, THERE'S MORE CUTSCENES //cw for brutal bone breaking

[purifier]

[Whether you died and timelooped back to the beginning, or whether you simply got the experience of hearing some voices in your head and meeting someone you likely didn't want to meet (and perhaps, who didn't want to meet you like this either), everyone will be grouped back up again... but not in front of the Temple where you all first stepped into the rift. This place is deep in the woods, in a clearing full of black rot and muck, terribly dreary due to the storm booming overhead.

You feel your feet settle into the waterlogged grass and mud, the earth squishing under the weight of your shoes. Then, just as soon as you arrived, something tugs your mind backwards, just as time itself pushes forward. Your bodies remain here, but your minds are elsewhere, and each of you is as formless as air itself.]

I really wish you people would stop walking into spells that aren't meant for you. Enjoy the show, I guess.

[Whether Beiwe intended to move everyone directly into the line of a spell, or the timing was simply bad, remains to be seen. One thing is for certain either way: As you watch the scenery shift around you, these sights are still quite apparently not those of the current timeline — something each of you can ascertain swiftly, despite the fact the forest here is still black with corruption. Something you know is true, because before you all stands a particular scene: Moder, deeply corrupted as she once was, next to a metal-and-wood centaur, both facing Zahliya in battle. Judging by what Zahliya had told you, the other figure must be the Warden... but there's a third figure nearby, one that was completely unaccounted for in his original tale — a woman. One who bears almost uncanny resemblance to the small gargoyle.

Zahliya is heavily outnumbered here. While Moder and the Warden are both injured, gouges from Daybreak and Nightfall marring flesh and metal alike, Zahliya is far worse off. His injuries don't heal fast enough to keep up with their attacks, both heavy hitters relying on stomping, smashing, and crushing with conjured trees and choking vines. The mystery woman, meanwhile, wields magic almost entirely; purple-black flame shoots from her palms into Zahliya's blind spots with every dodge, hitting him dead on more often than not. Each hit sizzles black against his skin, and those of you familiar with Corruption may recognize that getting hit by this would immediately Corrupt anyone else.

Naturally, Zahliya remains immune to it in the traditional sense; Luca, however, will know more than anyone that he's struggling right now. Those green vents in his skin expel enough black fog in an effort to purify himself that anyone unfamiliar might think that Zahliya is becoming a vector for the infection himself. And though Zahliya fights — all green flame and rage, using the light of Daybreak to pierce and maim while expending energy to make Nightfall rewind time by strings of seconds to afford him a chance to dodge or heal faster — one man can only stand up to so much. Can only endure so much. He's sluggish. Exhausted. Expending too much magic in every which direction, and it shows. A strike against the Warden's side flies off of the metal in a way the smaller gargoyle clearly isn't expecting, sending his centre of gravity completely off point. From Moder, a tree springs out of the earth and slams into Zahliya, sending him careening back through the forest and skidding to a stop in the dirt.

It's the woman who — with an eery calm — walks over to the fallen Guardian and plucks either sword from the earth, tossing both to the Warden. Daybreak shatters in its grip, but Nightfall simply won't snap; the Warden tries again, and again, and again, but the sword repairs itself. It exchanges a glance with the woman who shrugs, nonchalant.]

Whatever. Give them to me, I'll find something to do with them. Moder — deal with this.

[Zahliya tries, feebly, to pick himself up off of the ground as this goes on, and collapses back to it in a heap. Several bones are broken, and his regeneration isn't working fast enough. Everyone here is aware of it, even Moder herself, as she steps over to the gargoyle and slams her giant hooves down into him, again and again, the sickening crunch of bone and stone ringing out in the empty forest. In the end, there's nothing more than a mangled body left behind, and so Moder and the Warden simply turn tail and leave.

...the woman, of course, stays behind, just for a moment.]

Of course, you aren't going to die. I'd bet your moms are going to rebuild you, or you'll regenerate, or something. How annoying.

Can you even hear me right now? I bet not. Even if you can, I really don't need you coming after me. You don't care if I take these memories from you, do you?

...

Thought so. Goodnight, little brother.

[As she crouches down and puts her hand on Zahliya's crushed head, the vision clears, and all of you are back to where you were in the clearing.

And, of course, you're staring down the Warden and the mystery woman on its back, with an injured Zahliya kneeling in the dirt before them.]

[unheiring]

[There is a lot that Luca doesn't understand about what he sees in this moment. He doesn't know who this strange woman is, nor why she bears such a striking resemblance to Zahliya himself. He doesn't know where the illusion stops or ends, if he's really and truly seeing his beloved destroyed and beaten into the dirt.

In that same vein, there are many things he does know. Real or not, there's only so much more Zahliya can take before he crumbles. Luca has seen the Gargoyle return from the reaches of the forest in terrible shape, watched his body belch the strange flame as he patches himself together once more. But it's never been this bad.

He's moving before the illusion fully breaks. His sword is hefted from its place on his back once more. He aims, at first, to slice the woman's hand from where it sits on her wrist. But when the world shifts, when she's suddenly perched upon the behemoth, his body shifts in kind.

He presses every ounce of strength and energy he has into his hands. He pushes fire through his blade, hot enough that the metal grows a bright angry red. Once again, he's surprised at how easily it comes to him. The Phoenix, having grown used to his lack of presence, only realizes what's happening too late. Alerted by the feeling of flesh sizzling, it barks for Luca to stop, but it's too late. The young man twists his body, bending as far as he can to put as much force into what comes next. He throws himself forward, swinging the sword like a bat at first, only to let go at the end of hte arc. The sword sails through the air, spiraling rapidly as he prays to the gods of this world to let his aim strike true.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembers his oath to let Mamika negotiate. In that same space, he tells himself it isn't the first promise he's broken, it won't be the last. All he wants right now is to see the damn sword lop her head clean off, or at least burn her and leave her distracted as he throws his body in front of Zahliya's.]

Stay away from him.

[ghostharasser]

[Well, sitting there wondering out loud what to do next sure did give them all an answer, he guesses.]

[There's a lot to take in here, and he's no stranger to being whipped around temporally like some kind of astral ragdoll. As they view the memory, Dipper watches it intently, scraping as many details as he can to commit to memory. All of this is important, he's sure of it. All of this is something they didn't already know. The person fighting Zahliya looks like family. Like a sibling, and while the cruelty of his defeat is hard as hell to watch, it certainly ignites something in him.]

[You're a pisspoor fucking sister, is what Dipper has decided and now that shit is personal.]

[As they come back, as Dipper feels like he's in his body once more, he's up on his feet. Luca reacts first, understandably, but that gives Dipper time to pull out the Azure Pine from it's holster, flip the safety, and unload a round at The Warden.]

Hey! Two against one's not fair, asshole!

BIG CW: human/children experimentation/drug use mention sorry its the trauma

[lupusxylem]

[This group- the other group- reacts promptly. Immediately, to the scene that plays out before them. Meanwhile, their other half...

Wolfwood wishes he could say he was back with them in the present, but he super fucking is not.

When he was younger, Wolfwood is pretty sure he blocked out the majority of the memories he'd had of being strapped down to an upside-down cross, pumped full of countless drugs for testing, forced to be broken apart and regenerated over and over and over in the pursuit of study. He was just one of many in a very long line of experiments, trying to create the perfect human. A human that could go on to survive the harshest that the planet could throw at them. A human that did not need food, nor drink, and could regenerate from any injury.

Wolfwood had been deemed a failure. He was a miserable disappointment, only useful because he had been trained to kill, and was functionally an attack dog on a short leash until he inevitably died young face down in the desert somewhere. They didn't particularly care how many times he broke himself, or how much of the serum he wasted, so long as he remained useful. If he was useful, he'd be too much of an asset to die along with the rest.

He'd burned it out of his memory because it would have destroyed him to remember it. But in this moment, as his body is snared by vines and strapped unmoving to the wall, forced to remain there alive as he's gutted and torn open, in unbearable agony but still conscious enough to know that his death will not come quickly, it comes back. He loses track of the others within moments, and for however long he's stuck there, dying, he's someplace far away. The vines are medical lines and the blood that drips down his body may as well be limitless for how long it feels like he remains there, bleeding and being drained until there's nothing left to be taken.

Then they're whipped back to the present, stitched back together and whole as if nothing happened.

He has no idea how long they're back in that room, just that it's not enough to "recover" before they're someplace else now, in the forest witnessing a bloody fight. And honest to god, Wolfwood barely registers any of it. It's not for lack of caring for Zahliya, nor does he find the brutal beating to be anything but horrific, it's just that he can't take much more input before he literally blows up. It's a good thing, then, that the others are here to take up that mantle because he does not take the first shot, for once.

He doesn't take the first anything. He stands there, fighting the urge to be sick, half bent at the waist with one eye sharply visible behind his shades as sweat drips down the sides of his jaws and nose, disappearing into his collar.

Wolfwood says nothing.]

cw: uh yeah also gore. also mention of ?? being Forced to perform violent acts. idk how to cw it

[cryopathy]

[it feels like kiera has spent the last few months in a state of constant paranoia, even more so than usual. things have been just starting to feel normal again; it's actually been satisfying to taunt the motherfuckers who unleashed the false god in the first place, and existing in a sort of safe-zone on the edge of the room has resulted in vastly unearned confidence.

seeing how it killed the traders might be useful, at least in understanding their enemy. but that's quickly overshadowed when they are the one being killed.

despite being half human, kiera has never been bled. vampires don't feed off of one another, and that taboo extends to dhampirs. but having fed, even long ago, even against their wishes, and having quite frequently leeched energy, they know what it feels like to gain. and so they can gather right away that this is the opposite. this is what ordinary humans go through at the hands of the empress' people -- and in the case of sapping willpower, at kiera's own hand.

lazy as they may be, they're still a warrior. they have their fair share of battle scars. maybe nothing quite so fatal, but the pain is... it's all-encompassing, but somehow they're also numb to it. their turmoil is more in the despair of knowing, and eventually even in the fading of said despair as they shrivel more and more toward being devoid of not only blood, but also will. the numbness floods their body as well as their mind, and all they can think is that this sucks.

then they're yanked to another time, then the present, just as the rest of the party is, and it seems they're not the only one shaken to the core. the explosion of feeling once more is overwhelming, feels like a goddamn supernova under their skin and in their head. vaguely, they can sense luca's flame, can hear his voice, but everything is so bright and so present that they struggle to ground themself. they can only make out the vague shapes nearest them -- one is the priest, they think? maybe...

it takes some effort, but kiera forces magic through their hand. their fingers twitch as they cast a frigid breeze in a circle around themself, both to refamiliarize themself with being alive, and to hopefully rouse their other companions out of shock.]

gagtag

[magicalsplashflare]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[magicalsplashflare]

[ Oh everything is happening! Ohhh, no?????? Oh no! Mamika is dumbly frozen in place as she stares at her companions who all seem to be at least sorting themselves out somehow, if not taking action, and Mamika... Mamika just stands there, gripping her wand to her, feeling so out of place. At least when she had approach Altair, it'd been on her terms. This? This is... so much. It's so much!

She opens her mouth a few times to try and say something, but all that comes out is soundless words. "Stop"s lost to the air. "Wait"s buried in conflict.

She takes another breath in, and then gathers up what little will she currently has to fly into the air and try to get close - to even put herself between the fight, if she can. ]

Why are you doing this?!