sticksandbones | [CLOSED] Zahliyaquest...2

Entry tags:

[CLOSED] Zahliyaquest...2

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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Ah. There she is. Good to know it works!]

Howdy. Good to see you again. What about the others?

[Before I forget again: Yes those citrine crystals have a layer of dust over them, as does everything else here, but it looks like the calendulas might be magically preserved. They're cut, but they're not withered, nor are they sitting in water. Dust, though? Yeah they got dust. Very real flowers with very real dust.

Anyway! Now back to your regularly scheduled God shenanigans.]

Sure, Loop. You're here because of the time rift I just mentioned you walked into. Why you're in this Temple, though, I don't know. This isn't one of Amun-Ra's memories, but it seems like the rift launched you back and plopped you here. There are a few of those around the woods, the deeper you go into them.

Amun-Ra is in his own rift elsewhere. I can try to pull everyone out, but you'll have to give me time, heh. That sort of magic isn't mine.

The others are about five minutes ahead of you, at the point where Amun-Ra first awoke and when the Temple was broken into, during the secondary fall of mankind. That apocalypse that killed you all. [She says this, and her voice very slightly wavers. This is the part that sucks, after all. Time rifts are easy, reliving the past is not.] You're before Amun-Ra's time of truly living.

[Oh... they're a little surprised at how quickly she answers. Speaking plainly, giving details, almost like they're on even footing... it grinds against their expectations, knowing only of gods that lay silent and gods that find their suffering to be amusing.

They do kind of like this one, maybe. She does seem nice.

But they reserve their right to be wary, still.]

So... we just have to wait it out? How long will that take? [gods don't exactly think of things in terms of mortal lifespans, please don't give an insane number like 100 years they'll lose it they'll seriously go back out there and kill themselves again]

[and honestly, while they have her attention...]

Will disturbing anything in this room release the creature?

If you'd like to wait, that option is available to you. At max, it'll be... oh, an hour? Half of that?

If you'd like to explore and, say, take anything — the future is already set in stone. You messing with anything here won't change the outcome. My dastardly sibling will already escape in a few minutes regardless of what you do, be it undoing the wards tying him here before the merchant caravan outside gets to it, or trying to reinforce them.

Knock yourselves out, little ones. Perhaps there's something beneficial you can glean from this place.

[Wolfwood grits his teeth and clicks his tongue audibly, hearing this. So it is as he thought. The Creature is in there, and they're minutes from their escape. Which leads him to ask:]

Hang on. What's gonna happen to us when he breaks loose?

[He was still tied up, and he managed to vaporize Loop in an instant after all.]

[... it's that simple? It sounds way too easy. They're still trying to wrap their head around the mechanics of this not-time-travel-but-maybe-time-travel-time-rift when Wolfwood brings up another very good point. Ah.

Right. That's... kind of extremely bad?? Maybe the worst part of this???]

Is the... the looping, is that just me? Or does it work for everyone else? [As much as they're sure everyone will protest, hey, they do wanna know if it's cool if they all die here. If Loop is only looping because that's what they do then they're definitely not going to let anyone else take the risks.]

Is it your blessing?

[... no consequences, huh? okay, cool, cool. in that case, succumb to magpie brain. kiera is definitely picking up the biggest, purest, shiniest citrine on the altar.

... maybe they will go inspect that sword a little closer, too. is it plain plain or decorative? kiera does love embossed blades and fancy hilts.]

[Sharp sound of breath being sucked in through teeth, then a very quick:]

OoooohfuckIforgot. [So yeah, there's a reason she's the War Wife and not the Put Together Wife.] Oh, scratch that, you have about five minutes until you get tortured to death, or one of you gets eaten. No pressure or anything, but you might want to leave. I might be able to turn you invisible while I try to plop you outside this rift to spare you the cycle of automatic reincarnation.

[So that's nice. Anyway, for the rest of your questions:]

The reason you're a looping Loop right now is because you aren't really part of the fabric of this reality. You're anchored to the point you showed up at, but you're also not really here, thus the dying — this affects everyone, by the way — doesn't really count, as far as loss of a soul and such is concerned.

[Meanwhile Kiera is looting, good for them. The sword overall is very plain, sorry, no embossing here.]

[damn.

... they touch it anyway. maybe they'll all get super lucky and this plain hunk of iron is actually Daybreak under a glamour.

or maybe kiera is literally just looting a religious institution.]

[Wolfwood hears the words "you have about five minutes until you get tortured to death" and kindof tunes out the rest, unfortunately. Good thing there are other people here actively listening and trying to be productive because he's just going to take a moment to disassociate, briefly.

He's not afraid of death. He's not even afraid of getting hurt. But he does not have a stellar history with torture. And he can think of far kinder fates than that kind of slow, painful, agonizing death where you're begging to die but won't until your captor decides you've suffered enough.

So, yeah! Cool great cool cool cool-]

[They stare (at... the skylight? look, she's a sun goddess, they assume she's in that direction) for a long moment, not quite sure what to say. Is this really what the gods here are like?

Anyway, while Wolfwood is having a panic attack Loop just laughs. This is fine with them, honestly.]

Hah, alright! Thanks for all the tips, Radiant One~ [wink☆]

Hmm, do you think it would come in here on its own? A dead end isn't the best hiding spot... but I don't mind going out to act as a distraction. I'm sure our little friend is bored! Maybe he'd like to chat!

[Is this the same dumb plan they had before? Kind of. But they are actually calm this time, for what it's worth. They know full well what they're signing up for.

Besides, isn't this a great opportunity? A chat with their captor... maybe they can learn something! If there are no lasting consequences, why not?]

[ Ah... Huh. Well, five minutes until torture, then. Sounds exciting. At least the death has no impact? Like rewinding a tape over and over. You can't change what's recorded, you just get to see it again and again and again.

Hmm... ]

I somehow doubt he's in the mood for talking, but the situation could tell us something we don't know.

[ Joshua taps his chin thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes down at the altar for a moment. The torture is inevitable. But, they're in a unique position to see exactly what happened when the false sun broke free. This could be a key part of the answer they're looking for.

Or, it could be a waste of time. But, if they're going out with a bang anyway, might as well get a show out of it. ]

So, even if you can make us invisible, that won't stop the inevitable. It's an opportunity we can't waste, though. I think I'll pass on trying to leave before anything happens, Beiwe. By all means, keep trying to fix the problem at hand, but I'd like to take a few notes while we wait.

[ok, focusing again. sword is just a sword and a beast worse than the leviathan is in the next room.

... honestly, as much as they'd like to avoid pain, kiera is rather on the side of joshua and loop here. getting everyone out of the grove entirely is more important than the four of them escaping this time loop.]

I'll stick around as well. I think we need Father Nicotine's opinion, too, though. [nodding toward wolfwood, who is currently losing a staring contest with the void.]

Studious. I'll work on plopping you into the correct timeline, or at least the one where the rest of your contingent is. [Will it work? Unknown, Beiwe is not a time mage. She's omnipotent but Gods are limited sometimes.] I'll leave you to it, I suppose.

[...]

Please see little Mizuki after you all get home safe. I think he'll help you work through this.

It's a party, then! [yay] If the room blows up remember not to look directly at it, okay~?

[... they're not that hyped to die again, but. Maybe they can talk their way through this, at least for awhile. It's worth a try. They don't want anyone else to have to experience that.

But before they hang up the god call and go back to their plans... Loop looks up again, hesitating.]

Before you go, Radiant One... Beiwe. [she's a goddess, right? and she's a sun goddess, right? so... so maybe...] Do you... know anything about the Universe?

[this isn't their world, isn't their Universe, but... maybe she would still know something? anything. it's not like It would ever answer them.]

[Yeah no, Wolfwood has just been gently spacing out for the last few minutes, not picking up on any of the conversation really whatsoever. He gets the important bits and pieces, like the understanding that what's about to happen is inevitable so they might as well deal, and the offer from Beiwe to shield them while trying to get them out. And the entire time, a voice in the back of his mind that he managed to shove away a long time ago resurfaces, young and terrified, begging to go home. I want to go home I want to go home I don't want this I don't want to be here

But he doesn't have that luxury. He never has. He came here with the knowledge they'd be in danger, and the understanding that they could very well die. That means just as much as if he'd be dying once, or a thousand times. He doesn't have to like it. This isn't about him. It's about solving the corruption problem, which is liable to become a crisis if they don't do something about it soon.

So when it's finally fallen on him to give his input, he drags himself back out of his own head and silences the voice once more. He completely shuts it down, choosing to compartmentalize and deal with that later whenever it hits him, however it hits him. They've got work to do, right now.]

No...yeah. I'm stayin'.

[Jokes on you Beiwe he already sees Mizuki every Tuesday!!]

...whatever ya'll need me to do. If it's lookin' for clues and shit, or standin' guard while you look. Whatever.

Sure. I know some things about the universe. I know that it's vast, and I know that my darling wife is the reason all of you are here — though she can explain it better than I can, and as I recall, she has. If you find Pure Vanilla, he should be able to recount the conversation, but in essence it has to deal with a rift open within her that will need to be closed.

Does that count? If you're looking for knowledge on why there's a universe, or a multiverse at all, I can't help there. Sometimes things are the way they are, and there's no rhyme or reason to it.

[Oh... that's not really— well, she did answer the question, but it's not what they meant. They can't help but look disappointed. She doesn't know what they're asking about.]

No, that's... it's fine. Thank you, Beiwe. For speaking with us, and offering your aid.

[... well. Back to the stage.]

[Cheeriness: ON!!!!]

So! Should I go in now? I'll let you all know what happens, so you can stay cozy in here if you want! Sound can travel pretty far in a building like this! [so like everyone should know what they're chatting about or if Loop starts screaming in agony or whatever]

[ Well, now that that little conversation is over with-- ]

It sounds like we're all in for it, so there's really no sense in anyone trying to be a martyr, is there?

[ loop you are grounded ]

We only have a few minutes until it all hits the fan, so I think we should use what time we have to explore that other room. I want to get a good front row seat to what happens, personally. And besides, the more time we spend in here discussing it, the more likely we're going to miss the show.

Are you sure? It'll hurt a lot, you know. It's not for the faint of heart. [They still sound way too cheery for this topic, but there might be the barest hint of severity in their tone. Even if these people are still strangers to them...] I don't mind, really. It's more practical to have someone who can recover quickly taking the blow, don't you think?

[... but they won't kick up a fuss if people decide to follow, despite their warning. It's a waste of time that could be better spent making the most of this loop.]

Oh well, do what you want~ If you regret it don't blame me, teehee~

[ANYWAY.

Before they fully commit and head out... they stop, because hey there's still one more unread message from Siffrin, but this time when they whip out their phone-hand they just. listen? Think about the implications for a second. Hmmmm.

They don't want Siffrin to worry, so they should try to get that across instead of panicking?]

I think there's a problem with the line, stardust! Don't worry, we're all fine. We're in the temple so we'll meet you there, okay~? Don't call unless it's important! Bye bye~

[this will definitely be reassuring and put team zahliya at ease, yeah!!

anyway we're doing it now whoever wants to follow w\ Loop and Josh can follow, what's da false sun doin]

Edited (WORDS) 2024-08-22 15:35 (UTC)

[Yeah no Wolfwood is coming this time, he’s got the Punisher because fuck it we ball. He isn’t saying anything right now but the PTSD has been compartmentalized so we’re (???) good!!!

Just look at him with big wet sad eyes if you need something to get laser blasted he’s gotchu fam]

I don't believe you're in the presence of anyone faint of heart, little star.

[honestly, they don't even care if that's inappropriate. they kind of hope it is, in fact.]

[With that, Beiwe is going to go try to figure out time magic. She will probably be consulting Ourania about this.

As for you guys... ooh boy good luck!

The Temple doors are still being banged on (it sounds like a heavy object, if you had to guess) when you step out into the main chamber. No one is immediately obliterated by the Black Sun on the altar there, luckily for you.

Of course, if anyone gets closer than merely leaning against the back wall, you will be vaporized, so watch out for that one. You also have about two minutes until you become a pile of ashes, so!

What are you doing. How are you doing it. Let me guide you toward the plot.]

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cw: ptsd/disassociation oopsie

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