❪ event ❫ hour of ruin

[natha]

HOUR OF RUIN     Sometime after midnight, after preparations have been put aside in favor of drinks and rest, a thunderous beating of wings shatters the air — the High Dragon Ysverai, once again risen. The sound echoes high off Namarak Mountain, but travels easily to both Wyver and Olympia: scream after scream rends the still night, as though a creature were dying rather than being born again. Having only had days to plan their defense against the creature, Olympia and Wyver snatch up their arms. The Royal Guard and the Knightryders can be seen on their steeds hurrying through the cities, because Ysverai doesn't remain isolated at the mountain's peak for long. There are pictures of Ysverai in abundance throughout both cities, but the creature that circles in the sky looks nothing like the majestic creature spoken of in history books. Even from far below, wounds and lacerations can be seen marring what should be smooth scales, and blood falls with every beat of the dragon's wings. The damage becomes more clear when moonlight illuminates Ysverai, revealing the rotting dragon for all to see. The sight of flesh peeling away and thick blood where it oozes from his cracked, greyish hide is as frightening as the power he possesses. REASON'S TRANSCENDENCE     Mad from the anguish of his forced revival, Ysverai will show none of his renowned wisdom or compassion, mindless and seeking to inflict his pain onto whatever emerges in his path. His very presence creates chaos: animals (Olympia | Wyver) domesticated and wild, flee from the merest hint of his approach, panicked and stampeding in wild droves. The reason is obvious: organic matter exposed too long to his presence begins to rot and decay. A field he lands in rots and lies fallow. Buildings crack and crumble, their supports pitted and corroded as though they've been left in disrepair for years. Even the ground that Ysverai walks upon is tainted; a corrosive sludge bubbles up in his massive, clawed footsteps, the ground beneath him putrefied and toxic, oozing corruption. This sludge can be tar-like, poisonous and sucking people in like quicksand; panic, and you'll only sink faster. Prolonged exposure to Ysverai takes a mental toll on anyone in his proximity as well. Effects similar to those from being near his heart — selfish desires and lowered inhibitions — will begin to fester in those around him. Every time Ysverai roars, pain will run through all those that hear him — a pain not just physical, but of true, anguished heartbreak. Those who hear Ysverai will feel (to a degree of your choosing) a sharing of his pain, the agony of flesh rotting from their bodies, blood oozing from under their skin, and a terrible, incandescent fury — and beneath that, a gut-wrenching sadness. This effect is further enhanced by any exposure to Ysverai's blood, and being drenched in greater quantities will cause one to become more in sync with the dragon. Finally, Ysverai is aggressive, attacking anyone and anything that approaches. He starts by breathing out a smog, acidic and putrefying — characters caught directly by this attack will find that medicine and healing magic of any kind hurts them for hours after exposure. The dragon will ignite the smog to breathe fire, if sparingly. IN WYVER     Ysverai's shadow falls over the near reaches of Wyver first. Upon hearing Ysverai's cry, the dragons in Wyver become completely frenzied, turning against their partners among the Knightryders without the slightest resistance. Those familiar with dragons might deduce that they're in pain, though they don't show any sign of injury. The dragons knock their riders off their backs in midair and dive at citizens, jaws wide. Any attempts to soothe them will be long fought, achieved with great difficulty, and will see them retreat into a cowering state. It's not just the airborne Knightryders taking to the defense of the city however, and people on the ground are mobilizing as well. On rooftops across the city are cannons set to fire harpoons. And if the spearheads alone aren't enough to injure the beast, they're coated with a paralyzing poison as well. Unfortunately, the soldiers stationed on the rooftops are prime targets to the frenzied dragons populating Wyver's skies, leaving the cannons open for ordinary citizens to use should they choose. Left alone too long, and cannons may fall under the control of the few remaining radicals that had opted not to flee the cities to join up with their leader Raysc, choosing instead to wait for an opportune moment to unleash their anger on the people of Wyver. These radicals will need to be dealt with before they can turn the cannons upon Wyver's defenders. IN OLYMPIA     In Olympia, the gryphon partners of the Royal Guard react with immediate hostility to anyone showing signs of Ysverai's influence. Their keen senses allow them to pick up the smell of Ysverai's blood and they attack anyone with so much as a drop of tainted blood on them. Those who bear lingering effects of Ysverai's mental attack and who remain in sync with the dragon after hearing Ysverai's cry are also targeted and must face the gryphons' wrath without mercy or restraint. The gryphons must be disabled, for Olympia will not look upon any injury to their prized steeds lightly. However, the gryphons also show some resistance to Ysverai's cry, which is a great boon in battle against the dragon — gryphons that have lost their riders will be available for use, able to carry two passengers at a time. The people of Olympia aren't planning to restrict their offense to pure brute force, and the mages of the city can be seen across Olympia wielding enchanted chains, using telekinesis in the hopes of restraining Ysverai and assisting in the airborne troops. But like the decaying buildings and wildlife, Ysverai is warping the magic around him, the chains faltering as they approach him, whipping back toward the city instead to cage whoever happens to be closest. It's not just the enchanted chains either, but other magic might behave erratically in his presence, as if the very essence of the spells have been corrupted. VIRTUOUS VERSE     Both cities realize they need to seek survival rather than victory against Ysverai, switching gears to carry out diversion efforts and evacuation plans. It falls to refugees to continue the offensive while the Royal Guard and the Knightryders devote their attention to ensuring the safety of the citizens as they flee. With official forces stretched thin, civilians and refugees alike will also need to step up to help herd citizens toward safety among a maze of collapsing buildings. Others will need to see to gathering resources for the evacuation, and while gathering non perishables is easy enough, it's considerably harder to wrangle livestock into cooperating amidst such chaos. Those fighting may be asked to act as bait for Ysverai. Chatter through official troops speaks of a switch in strategy: the objective now is capture the dragon's attention and draw him away from the populous cities and towards the South Outpost. Whether or not it's possible to defeat the dragon remains uncertain, but there's no question that it will be easier to battle him without worrying about civilians. THE RAGE     Luckily, the dragon is indiscriminate in his rage, and easily lured so long as a suitably infuriating target is before him. It doesn't take long to draw him to the South Outpost, but the trail of destruction he leaves in his wake is vast. Once there, the combined forces are greeted not just by Ysverai, but also by the appearance of Ysverai's master. How bravely you've all come to meet your doom! Great heroes, one and all, ha! I welcome you, bring your best. Show me the power that's protected Olympia and Wyver, all that you have to offer me, whatever pitiful excuse for valor you seek to cling to when the fear has you cowering in your beds. All will be for naught in the face of Ysverai's might! Let history witness the day the glory of war is reignited — the day that Wyver remembers its fangs once more! Come, Ysverai, last and greatest of the High Dragons! Come, and restore Wyver to its rightful place! Come, fulfill the promise as our protector that you could not in life! Raysc lifts a gleaming device as he issues his command. Red lights blink and blood, the same oozing liquid that drips from Ysverai's many wounds, runs in clear tubes through the device. Ysverai rears back as Raysc makes adjustments to a control panel — and then lunges forward, mouth agape. With a single swallow, Raysc meets his end. Raysc's attempt to control the dragon has only enraged him further, spurring Ysverai on to new heights of fury. It's become more vital than ever to face the dragon and take him down here and now. A few effective strategies are learned from research efforts and observed while defending Olympia and Wyver: goading the dragon into breathing fire will hurt him, burning him from the inside out, and attacks to his joints, eyes, wings, and exposed bone are effective. Ice is a natural repellent to dragons and can be used defensively or to weaken the dragon's hide. Healing spells will also react unnaturally to Ysverai's flesh, hastening his decay. However, while concentrated efforts will lock him down, Ysverai cannot be permanently killed in this state — his flesh constantly rots and spawns anew. Attacking him here is to protect civilians, keeping him busy to avoid mass destruction elsewhere. Therefore, the battle is one of attrition, a matter of a race against time. You must destroy his flesh faster than it is able to regenerate to have any hope of victory. Finally, when Ysverai is weakening, little more than bones with a few last vestiges of rotten meat hanging from a skeleton, the pathetic remnants of the last High Dragon takes to the skies. His wings are barely intact enough to carry him, yet desperation lifts him, higher and higher, until he lets out one great, earth-shaking roar. A roar that carries across the battlefield, sending all who hear it to their knees. A roar that shatters the swords in soldiers' hands, that rends apart the very air itself — Ysverai's last act, a great curse upon El Nysa, to bring down the sky. AND THE WORLD STOOD STILL     The terror of Ysverai's destruction hangs overhead — a tear in the sky, darkness pouring through, tendrils reaching down towards El Nysa to swallow up the planet in the dragon's final act of revenge. And yet nothing moves. A halo of brilliant light surrounds the rift in the sky, holding the grasping, hungry tendrils in check. And on the planet, not a creature moves. Not a blade of grass stirs. You're not able to even draw a breath. No matter where you are, not even the heart in your chest is beating. Everything has stopped — time has come to a standstill. In a wash of light, an aurora of transport, you find yourself delivered to Thesa Station. Darma stands before you, her expression solemn, perhaps even grim, though that may just be a trick of the station's harsh lighting. She explains what has happened in short order: planetside, time has been completely frozen. We have seen the birth and end of worlds. The rise and fall of civilizations infinite times over. We have seen all threads of possibilities that could have lead to this very moment... Or should have. Perhaps you might doubt our sincerity when we say this comes as a surprise to us, as well... Special technology has been used to blind us. To this day, we only know of one region capable of creating and utilizing such technology... you will find this technology in a city known as Nadril. We understand that you have created a life down in Wyver and Olympia, but now we must ask that you put that life on pause. We ask you to travel to Nadril and find the original Refugee, and with him, answers. As you will discover, he does not wish to speak to us. It is no matter. By now it is too late to keep the Nysan public unaware of our existence. We commend the efforts of those who wish to protect their comrades on the battlefield below, but a creature like poor Ysverai, twisted and warped, given unnatural life with terrible magic and technology, does not simply go down with manpower. Please, leave Ysverai to us. Time on the planet will remain stopped while we determine how to deal with the dragon. For now, rest and recover your strength. We have returned, and soon, there will be new refugees awakening. Perhaps you might like to prepare yourselves to greet them? I'm sorry that I can't answer more questions, but for now, all our attention must turn to finding a way to stop what Ysverai has wrought. A bank of monitors behind Darma displays the battlefield below: Ysverai's frozen, looming figure and the breach in the sky, and the Natha's halo, holding the destruction back. Though time passes normally on Thesa Station, El Nysa remains frozen, and all Refugees are unable to return to the planet until Ysverai's menace is dealt with. Luckily, with the Natha's return, full functionality has also returned to the station. The lights and environmentals are back to full power, access to all areas has been restored, the cafeteria is serving its normal offerings, and there's no evidence of any glitching or malfunctions. Doubtless, the period of rest is much needed after the hard-fought battle. For now, with time on El Nysa at a standstill, there's little else to be done but enjoy the reprieve aboard Thesa Station. FINAL OOC NOTE     Characters that reach an AC length action thread in this event will receive 2 rep for all factions, including Natha. Note that while these are split up for ease of processing, players may submit for all three. OLYMPIA | WYVER | NATHA Players can expect this event to run three days ICly before everyone is teleported to Thesa Station! From thereon, all characters will be grounded at the Station until the Test Drive Meme later this month. QUICK NAV premise ● faq ● lore ● map ● npcs ● bestiary taken ● atp/emp ● application ● rep/acp ● quest bulletin calendar ● hiatus/drops ● modbox [ FULL NAVIGATION ] elnysa nysalogs nysaisles nysaooc elnyan

Comments

[colorature]

It did the same to me. It hurt and drove me crazy.

_{[Beyond crazy even.]}

I think I killed a lot of people.

[thetaintedsorrow]

Killed?

[He didn’t...kill anyone while under Ysverai’s influence, did he?

...]

It’s not like you meant to, right?

[colorature]

_{[MAYBE YOU DID CHUUYA...IT'S A MYSTERY...]}

I don't think I meant to. I mean...I was really, really upset and angry so anyone who was in my way ended up a target.

[thetaintedsorrow]

At least it wasn’t anyone you cared about, right?

[That sounds...really cold, but if people have to die, it might as well be random strangers, right?]

Are you afraid of Atsushi finding out?

[colorature]

I don't think so?

<sub>[From what she can remember no, she didn't kill anyone she knew or cares about. That's a good thing, at least.

The second question has her pausing, eyes shifting away from Chuuya's stare to fixate on the wall instead, as if it's suddenly incredibly interesting. Was she scared? Was that even the right word for it?]</sub>

I don't know...I don't want him to hate me.

_{[Especially when he does so much to validate her in the first place.]}

[thetaintedsorrow]

At least there’s that.

[Chuuya doesn’t miss the almost worried look Diva gets just then.]

I don’t think he would, even if he knew.

[Especially if it wasn’t her fault.]

[colorature]

Mm...he might.

_{[There's a shrug at that as she turns her focus back to her bandages, lifting her fingers once more to resume picking. She doesn't want Atsushi to hate her, but if he began to she wouldn't blame him for doing so.]}

He has a good heart.

[thetaintedsorrow]

True enough.

[Chuuya could go on about how overly good guys never win in the end, but then he gets distracted by Diva’s scab picking.]

Picking at those isn’t gonna help them heal. Even if you do regenerate quickly.

[colorature]

Mnn...but they're so annoying.

_{[Not to mention gross and itchy.]}

I'm not used to being hurt like this.

[thetaintedsorrow]

I’m sure they are.

[He’s endured his fair share of wounds, after all.]

Why not soak in the tub? I’m sure there’s some around here somewhere.

[colorature]

_{[It's not a bad suggestion, there just seems to be one kink in that particular plan.]}

I don't want to have to rewrap these.

_{[The bandages, that is, even if they're not very well wrapped in the first place thanks to her picking.]}

[thetaintedsorrow]

I can help you wrap them once you’re out of the tub.

[Even if there’s places that can’t be wrapped without her being nude, he can deal with it. The blood really did help him, after all.]

I’ve done plenty of bandage wrapping in the past.

[On himself, and a certain bandaged bastard.]

[colorature]

I might also fall asleep in it.

_{[Which...is less than ideal, but at least if she slipped under the surface she probably wouldn't drown. Her fingers slip under one of the bandages for a particularly wince inducing dig. She really is like an animal who can't keep touching their wounds.]}

I hate it Chuuya.

[thetaintedsorrow]

Do you want me to go with you?

[To make sure she doesn’t fall asleep, not to be a creep-o.]

Yeah. I imagine. Especially if you’re not used to it.

[A pause.]

I need to wash off all this blood too. So I don’t see why we can’t bathe together.

[Totally normal, honest.]

[colorature]

<sub>[Chuuya's offer garners him a proper look as she diverts her attention from her arm to his face. She sees no issue with the offer. After all, nudity, especially in front of men has never been an issue to her, not to mention turning down a bath isn't exactly something she's keen on doing.

So, why not? It isn't as if Chuuya would be oogling her, considering he's a big gay.]</sub>

You'll have a bath with me?

_{[She seems a bit perkier at least from the suggestion.]}

[thetaintedsorrow]

Yeah. Don’t see why not.

[He glances around, looking for signs to the bathing area, and figures out that it’s down the hall a ways. Grabbing up some bandage supplies, Chuuya gestures for her to follow, and manages to snatch up a standard set of clothing for newly arrived refugees along the way.

The bathing area has showers as well as a rather large bath very similar to those back in Japan, and once they’re in an enclosed space he starts stripping off his own layers.]

How hot do you want the water?

[colorature]

<sub>[It's east enough to follow Chuuya's lead, as Diva trails him through the corridors until they happen upon the baths. It's a standard enough layout, and when she sees Chuuya begin to strip she decides to do the same.

It isn't hard to rid herself of the simple dress she wears, leaving her to stand nude aside from panties as she begins to peel her bandages off. They're wrapped rather high, from the start of her wrists up to her shoulders. Her legs mirror the same layout in reverse, from thighs to ankles. Her middle though, is bare from wraps.]</sub>

Warm, but not too hot.

[thetaintedsorrow]

Got it.

[Once Chuuya is stripped down to his underwear he starts up the bath, keeping the temperature warm but not too hot, and luckily there’s some kind of nice smelling, rose-scented oils that he adds to the running water.

It’s no big deal to slip off his underwear and slide into the water with a pleased sigh.]

Feels nice.

[colorature]

<sub>[It's a bit of a struggle, as Diva tries to peel her limbs free of her bandages, and she ends up having to sit down on the tiled floor to accomplish what she's set out to do. With her arms and legs finally bare the damage inflicted by the dragon is finally on display. There are patches of what looks like raw skin covered by only a thin layer that could break at any time. It looks more akin to a burn than anything else.

Standing she pulls off her bottoms, moving to step into the tub to join Chuuya. There's a hiss as the water hits her wounds, a pout on her face.]</sub>

Nnn...

[thetaintedsorrow]

[Even if Chuuya has other tastes, he won’t deny that Diva is exceptionally beautiful, her body built like that of a perfectly sculpted art piece...

Which makes the sight of those wounds even more sad.]

Sorry it hurts.

[Chuuya cups a bit of water in his hands before wetting the top of her head. Maybe some pampering will distract her.]

I’m sure you’ll heal soon. I’d offer you blood but I’m not up to snuff right now either.

[colorature]

_{[Chuuya's instincts serve him well enough. The water that finds its way atop her head distracts her as she lowers herself down further into the bath.]}

It's okay...I don't want any right now.

_{[For once she's not thinking with her stomach.]}

[thetaintedsorrow]

[He’ll just start combing his fingers through her hair before grabbing some nearby shampoo and lathering it up. His own hair is a blood-matted travesty, but he’ll get to it soon enough.]

Once the world is un-fucked we should do something fun. What do you like doing in your free time besides singing?

[colorature]

_{[What does she like to do? The thing about Diva is that all her time is free time. Solomon won't let her get a job, after all, and she doesn't exactly have much in the way of hobbies. There's a reason why she always seems to get herself into trouble all the time.]}

I like going for walks and exploring. I don't like being inside if I can help it.

Do you have anything you like to do?

[thetaintedsorrow]

Yeah? Ever been to Murkwell Hollow?

[He hums as he rinses her hair.]

I’d say drinking, but exploring is fun too. So is a good fight. And trying on different clothes.

[colorature]

Not really.

_{[Not that she can actively remember. As Chuuya rinses her hair she can't help but lean into his touch instinctively.]}

I like fighting...but I think I've done enough fighting for awhile. Dressing up is fun though. I like to feel pretty.