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etrayalogs2024-09-13 07:54 am
etrayamods) wrote in etrayalogs2024-09-13 07:54 am
Entry tags:
- !mission log,
- baldurs gate: shadowheart,
- dimension 20: fabian seacaster,
- dimension 20: gorgug thistlespring,
- dimension 20: riz gukgak,
- mcu: loki,
- my hero academia: izuku midoriya,
- supernatural: dean winchester,
- ✘ blade of the immortal: asano rin,
- ✘ final fantasy vii | aerith gainsboroug,
- ✘ fullmetal alchemist: edward elric,
- ✘ mcu | ava starr,
- ✘ mcu: yelena belova,
- ✘ star wars | padmé amidala,
- ✘ worm: amy dallon,
- ✘ worm: francis krouse
MISSION 005 (part 1)
WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: September 13th-September 27th
WHERE: Throughout Etraya
WHAT: Mission Log!
NOTES\WARNINGS: Horror elements, including fear-inducing landscapes, distorted environments, unseen predators, mental/emotional distress, potential body horror, corruption, possession, brainwashing, and compulsion.
WHEN: September 13th-September 27th
WHERE: Throughout Etraya
WHAT: Mission Log!
NOTES\WARNINGS: Horror elements, including fear-inducing landscapes, distorted environments, unseen predators, mental/emotional distress, potential body horror, corruption, possession, brainwashing, and compulsion.
 ⏵ reality bends ⏴ A strange anomaly has overtaken Etraya. The skies, once familiar, now shift unpredictably, cycling through hues of unnatural colors as an eerie hum fills the air. Tension crackles beneath the surface, leaving an unsettling heaviness across the land. Aurora’s mission announcement offers little clarity—more cryptic than comforting—and she remains unavailable for further explanation. Reality begins to warp, twisting Etraya into a surreal, haunting reflection of its former self. The hospital deteriorates into a decaying structure, its halls haunted by phantom patients, endless corridors leading to nowhere. Rooms morph into massive white padded cells where characters may find themselves imprisoned, alone with spectral figures who whisper of treatments yet to come. Some of these apparitions seek the attention of those roaming the hospital, warning them of a dire fate: failure in this mission means not just the death of their worlds, but their souls becoming trapped in this fractured reality, far from home, forever. The forest transforms into a dark and twisted labyrinth. The trees close in, their branches twisting unnaturally as unseen predators howl from the shadows. Narrow pathways wind through the maze, and while some may navigate unscathed, others will be violently pulled into the depths by horrors lurking just out of sight. Within this twisted forest, a small cottage appears, its walls echoing eerie whispers: "little scorpion," "selfish bitch," and "by the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes." The rivers, usually calm, have become a dangerous, volatile force. Their waters churn violently, and inky black tendrils rise from the depths, lashing out at anyone who strays too close. These dark appendages drag their victims beneath the surface, where those who resist must battle their way to freedom. But those who surrender will be drawn into an otherworldly dome beneath the water, surrounded by strange fish, far from where they should be. Inside, they will find an eerie stillness, but their earpieces still allow contact with the world above. A large mirror dominates the dome, offering an uncertain way back.  ⏵ shadowy haunts ⏴ Those inside the zones come face to face with an echo of fear - a personalized manifestation of what scares them most. It could be an oppressive figure from their past, or something more abstract, such as the feeling of failure, or isolation. These echoes are relentless, feeding off their weaknesses and digging into what makes them most vulnerable. The Im'mari hungers, and preying on characters' weaknesses appears to be its chosen way of feeding itself. While characters may become stuck in their nightmares by themselves, some of these nightmares are shared between companions. Characters may become trapped within their friends' fears, or strangers'. However, the emotional distress felt by the individual the nightmare belongs to will affect everyone within the nightmare. An emotional prison built to torment those whom it belongs to, these echoes of fears may test the bond between companions, forcing them to face truths they may have rather avoided touching on. Earpieces will still be functional and may prove to be crucial in assisting characters when it comes to escaping their nightmares.  ⏵ contamination ⏴ Im'mari may be weaker than before, but it is slowly regaining power, and the creature’s influence is spreading. It infects the wolves, the plants, and even the very essence of Vanessa Ives (and in addition, Aelwyn Abernant), feeding off the deep-seated fears of those around it. Im'mari thrives in the shadows of fear and darkness, growing stronger with every moment of doubt, pain, and despair. Its presence lingers beyond the edges of awareness, whispering to its victims, urging them to succumb. Through Vanessa and those she has infected, Im'mari extends its reach, turning once-familiar faces into agents of fear, pushing their companions to the brink. For those who fall under its sway, the transformation is slow, at first nearly undetectable. Perhaps a friend acts off, says something out of character, or expresses sudden, unprovoked anger. But as Im'mari’s power grows, so does the darkness in its agents, until they are no longer themselves—twisted into something monstrous, compelled to spread fear and destruction. Welcome to your nightmares. We hope you have a pleasant stay. For all questions relating to this mission, please refer to the plotting post. We will be utilizing this post throughout the mission - including when we process the next round of applications, so please keep an eye out for new comments! All other questions can be directed to the FAQ. |
no subject
With Coil. She doesn't want to see him again either. So she moves closer, standing opposite her and resting her back against the wall.
She doesn't reach for the phone.] Is now the time where I deliver an extended speech about how murder is never the answer? Or say that if you kill him, you'll be just like him? Is that appropriately sanctimonious and annoying?
[The limbs behind Amy, a neverending cascade of flesh, they shift. She tries not to look at this reflection of Taylor. Even when it feels like it's staring straight at her. Thinking of the doll still sends shivers up her spine.]
He set you up with the bank robbery. Where we fist "met."
no subject
Which means that even though Amy isn't delivering the smug lecture, she might as well be. Amy is scared, and Tattletale isn't. Just like Amy is a hero, and Tattletale is the scum of the street. Amy, standing tall, and Tattletale, made small in her cell.
When Tattletale grins, it's clear that she's making a threat. ]
He did. He directed all my movements until I killed him. Did you know the bank robbery was just a diversion?
[ And when Tattletale got to see what they'd done - what she helped achieve - what Coil had in store as her inevitable future - ]
Which meant that our interaction, and your ensuing episode, was even less important to everyone else than you initially believed. You threw your whole life away, your chance at escape, over nothing.
[ - and Taylor had said: no.
Tattletale rises. She picks up the phone. ]
Heya, boss. [ Her voice is too light, too easy, too obviously an act. ] Got a new recruit. The cape formerly known as Panacea.
[ A man's voice rings out over the receiver, made richer by the distortion of the telephone. ]
Good. Welcome, Amelia to our organization. Apologies for the accommodations. We've had some staffing issues as of late. I'm hoping you can correct Tattletale's...deficiencies.
no subject
Tattletale immediately picks up the phone, includes Coil in the conversation.
Coil is a corpse. The fact that Tattletale can't seem to grasp that just goes to show some of the inherent disappointing fragility in her tough guy persona. This doesn't matter.]
I did know that. I did know that you destroyed my life and my relationships out of nothing but idle malice. So your boss could kidnap a little girl. I'd put that together, yeah.
[She glances at the phone, wondering how to respond to that. He's trying to set them against eachother, probably. Not that Lisa isn't doing that all on her own. She decides to ignore it altogether.]
Is that what you think I wanted? Importance? I spent my whole life withering away in the spotlight, wishing I could disappear into obscurity. There's nothing I want less than to have the worst moments in my fucking life held up with some... cosmic significance.
[I'm not Skitter, is what she doesn't say.
But she thinks it.]
no subject
[ Amy doesn't do that. Instead, she sticks her nose where it doesn't belong, crosses a line that should never be crossed, has a thought that reads as plain as day to Tattletale as if she'd said it out loud.
As Tattletale's grip tightens on the receiver, Coil's voice trickles through. ]
I agree. Gratitude is one of the many virtues Tattletale lacks. Gratitude, and prudence. You'd think she'd be more respectful of the person who gave her a roof over her head, and she'd be more investing in ensuring that such a roof does not become...unavailable.
[ It's not a threat that means anything. Coil is long gone, and besides, after Lisa met Taylor, the roof Coil put over her head was no longer her primary concern. It just needed to be nice enough that Taylor would want to stay there.
(But it calls to mind the image of another girl - one whose name was somewhere between Lisa and Sarah, who died her hair blue, who might have had friends - ) ]
Shut up.
[ Tattletale says, low and dangerous.
Amy isn't Skitter. Amy isn't Taylor. Taylor is gone, and she isn't coming back, and the girl with blue hair is gone and isn't coming back, and the only person who knows what happened is looking at Tattletale like she knows everything, like Tattletale is just some stupid nobody. A fuckup, a person who was too late. ]
Shut up!
[ She throws the phone directly at Amy's head. When it lands on the floor with a clatter, all that can be heard is a single dial tone. The line is dead, at least for now. ]
Of course you wanted fucking importance. You wanted to be important to dear beautiful Vicky, and guess what! You are! You win! Her life will never be the same, and it's not thanks to me. That one was all you.
And you know what, while we're at it? You're important to me, too! Because you fucking took her from me, and I promise - I swear on the whole fucking world - I will make you regret it each and every day of your unfortunately long life.
cw for uh. victim blaming, threats of lobotomization, amy dallon, uhh yeah amy dallon
At least Lisa isn't listening to Coil. She was getting a bit pathetic there for a second. This? This is someone Amy can hate.
The phone hits her - her reflexes nowhere near fast enough to block it, and her mind wanders through the pain to wonder about any damage. She's seen brain damage cases over less. And she's bleeding now, pretty badly, but that's a distant problem. She doesn't need to see in her left eye.
She rushes forward and grapples Lisa, pushing her against the wall and pinning her by the throat once again.] Don't you dare fucking talk about her. [It's somewhere between a hiss and a growl.] You have no right.
When your brother killed himself - [Educated guess, reverberating through Tattletale's body with instant confirmation -] Was it harder without someone to blame? Or did you just go on with blaming everyone but him? I bet you tried to deflect it outwards, maybe your parents, maybe his friends, maybe his therapist - but you couldn't make the guilt stick for anyone but you.
Because it's all about you, Sarah.
Did your power tell you that we told Taylor to involve you and she said no? Did your power tell you that she'd been planning this the entire fucking time? Because mine did. She buried it deep under different feelings - I can only assume to fool you, but it had always been at the back of her mind, a hunger to get stronger. Knowing she'd be leaving you behind for the second time.
How's that? [Amy's face gets closer, eyes wide with hate and anger as the threat of what she might do is made completely clear. Her nose is practically pressed up against Lisa's - not Lisa, Tattletale's - and she can feel every small vulnerability in this girl that she can exploit or protect or -
She wants to hurt Lisa, she wants to watch her break down and cry, make her smaller and more vulnerable, but distantly she thinks it might not even be hate that drives her to want that anymorw. She wants Lisa to be weak for a change. She wants a Lisa that doesn't look down on Amy, that can't sit high and mighty and sneer. She's sick of barbs and deflected blame, sick of being spat at like a stray dog following after Lisa's coat-tails. She wants Lisa to be someone vulnerable enough that she can be friends with. Someone she can... someone who can...
God, she's so fucked up.] Did I do a good job at delivering a Tattletale speech? Would your master give me a treat and a pat on the head over it? [Her voice becomes choked midway through that sentence as tears and blood come streaming down her face, and her grip loosens.]
I'm sorry. [It's half a sob.] Is that what you want from me? I'm sorry.
no subject
Up until now, Krouse had been content to keep his mouth shut and stay out of it. The last place he wants to be, after here, is in the middle of another of the patented Lisa knife fights of a conversation. Amy's a big girl. She handled the Birdcage. She can handle this.
Once he's proven wrong - when it's clear neither of them are handling this - he spares a second to wonder if he was deluding himself on purpose, or if he's really that much of an idiot. Likely somewhere in the middle.
He's on his feet under the vent between his cell and Lisa's, fists clenched, utterly fucking unable to intervene. Not that he could if he had a line of sight, except to - what? Swap himself for Lisa? Try to stick his hand into the fight, like he was shoving it between two dogs with rabies? He should be letting Lisa get what she has coming, after what she did to Amy.
After what Amy, apparently, did to Victoria, to Taylor. Unknowns, things he doesn't get, except the outline of them fits into a shadow of a conversation that happens in these cells a lot like fucking this.
If he could have gotten his hands on Lisa, he wouldn't have handled it any fucking better than what he thinks he's hearing. ]
We're all sorry.
[ His voice is taut with frustration, with something too close to concern, with the echoes of his haphazard role as the guy who never wanted to end up sorting shit out and was never any goddamn good at it. It's no hi, Amy, how's it going? pretty fucking bad?, but there it is. ]
We all did shit, all right? We all fucked up. Is this making either of you feel any fucking better about it?
[ It doesn't, but that's barely the point, is it? He heaves out a tight, shallow breath, fisting a hand in his hair. ]
Come on. [ He says, quietly, less cajoling than exhausted. ] Don't do this.
cw: grief, child abuse, self harm seeking, victim blaming
That doesn't mean this doesn't hurt. It does.
At least Tattletale can find comfort in the fact that Panacea is really fucking off-base. Typical. She's got the direction backward. Sarah never tried to blame her parents. They got to her first. Maybe it would have been better, if Sarah's parents did something like this to her, instead of cold funerals and cold mealtimes in an empty, quiet house. Cleaner. The kind of surgical incision that has a chance of not waking up the parasites they carry around in their brains.
And then comes the rant about Taylor, and at least it's all things that Tattletale already knows. That's the whole point of her. She even said some of this shit to Krouse. Doesn't make it any better to hear, but at least this isn't a secret, brought wiggling and squirming out into the light. It's just really fucking pathetic.
Amy gets what she wants. When her grip slackens, Tattletale hunches forward, doubled over and breathing heavily. She tries for a smile, because what the hell else can she do? ]
B - [ Tattletale coughs, wipes across her mouth ] - minus. Not the kind that gets you a reward, I'm afraid, because you're spewing out old news at best, and inaccuracies at worst. He never had a tolerance for that kind of sloppiness.
[ This isn't what Panacea wants from her. And Tattletale won't give her that vulnerability, even though it would take care of the knives in her gut or the splitting headache. She can't give it to her, because she doesn't know how.
The most tolerable thing about Amy was that Lisa never had to explain much. Maybe she still doesn't. Amy called her Sarah. ]
I don't want your fucking apology. [ A little louder: ] And I don't want yours either, Trickster, and you don't want mine. What are you trying to do, turn this into some after school special?
I want Taylor back. You want the old Vicky. He wants the old Noelle. You can't give that to me. None of us can.
[ The two most dangerous words in the English language. I want. ]
So what's left? [ A cold, high, bark of a laugh. ] I'll settle for making you hurt. And here's some constructive criticism, so you can return the favor.
[ She counts it off on her fingers. ]
I didn't blame my parents. They blamed me. [ That's one. ] And I've known what Taylor wanted from the moment I met her. [ Two. ]
You could have said no.
[ Three. ]
cw for amy's creepy ass body reading powers, suicidal ideation
Her body tells a different story. Every reaction, every feeling, everything travels through the nervous system, through the beating of her heart, the twisting and bloating of her stomach. It's like she actually knows this girl. This writhing mass of stress, hormones and flesh, all the same as any of the others. Not a monster. Just a pitiful wretch like everyone else. Like Amy.
She lets go, and Lisa lies again. And again. And again. There's glimmers of truth in it. Fragments of it, but nothing more.
Amy allows herself a moment of scornful pity.]
Stay out of this, Krouse. [Amy doesn't shout, but her words are dark regardless. Firm in a way that she isn't ordinarily.] This is between Sarah and I. Whoever the fuck she is.
[Amy wipes her face, wipes the tears out of her eyes. Victoria called her a crybaby once when they were little, it made Amy cry harder and then she thinks she remembers Victoria hugging her and that made it alright. She thinks she remembers.
Lisa wants Taylor back - the Taylor that was always going to kill herself - Amy wants her relationship with Victoria back - the relationship that Amy was always going to ruin.]
I could have said no.
[Amy closes her eyes. They're still wet. Her voice still isn't even. Understanding Parahumans means understanding triggers. It means understanding that every action that the shard and the host takes together is a reflection of the event that prompted the shard to awaken.
I didn't blame my parents. They blamed me.
Fucking typical.]
It would have been easier to come to terms with, I think, if we'd all died. You, me, Taylor, your Undersiders, Victoria, Carol and Mark. All dead in one big flash of light, when all your useless schemes fell short. [It's not a thought she's ever voiced before. A half glimmer of vulnerability, mockingly offered to the one person who has always known how to hit Amy where it hurt.] So fine. I could have said no.
I didn't. And now she's dead along with everyone she killed and I helped her kill, Krouse and my aunt included. I'm not sorry that I made the choice I did, Sarah.
[Amy slumps down, dropping to the floor with her arms over her knees and an angry look in her puffy eyes.]
I'm sorry that she was never yours to have back. [It's a spiteful snarl, born out of a desire for Lisa to hurt. And yet. It isn't quite a lie, is it.
If there's one thing Amy understands it's that loneliness.]
cw suicidal ideation, suicide baiting, blood, self-harm, retraumatization
But then Amy pierces that shell. She does it once, and then does it twice. Sarah. It hurts like a migraine.
The silver lining is that Amy has made a miscalculation: she's let her go. Tattletale strides over to the computer monitor, the only piece of technology that hasn't been ransacked here. She makes a fist, and she plunges it through the screen with a crash loud enough for Krouse to hear, shattering the glass. When blood runs down her knuckles in between her fingers, it doesn't even hurt.
(Taylor held her face together after Jack's attack. Nothing hurt as much after that.)
She takes a shard with her uninjured hand. Melee combat against the world's most powerful biokinetic is practically a death wish. Maybe that's the point. Or maybe Tattletale doesn't care. She's not really examining it right now. Instead, she lets the walls of her power down. Information rushes in like a wave, and then Tattletale can't even tell where she hurts. It's too crowded out.
If Tattletale was more maudlin, maybe she'd think that was the point. ]
Kill yourself.
[ Tattletale begins, now that Amy has made it clear she knows exactly why that's such a significant threat, coming from her. ]
Or I'll do it for you. Call me Sarah one more fucking time, and I'll carve up your heart so bad even you won't be able to heal it.
You know she hates you for turning yourself in? You ran away from her, you pathetic coward. All of your whining about being sorry or working towards a second chance, or knowing that Taylor would have done what she did anyway, so it's actually okay - that's a fucking coverup. Believe me, I know those when I see them. You've never taken responsibility in your miserable fucking life. You're too scared of it.
[ A nasal, singsong, mockery of Amy's voice: ] I think it would have been easier if we all died. Of course it fucking would have! So why don't you put your money where your fucking mouth is and end it all, right here, right now.
[ The grin is back. There's something broken in it, though. Like she doesn't know how to take it off. Tattletale doesn't even look at Amy. She looks behind her and up, as if there's someone hanging from the ceiling. ]
Go for it. I'll wait. Like you've so astutely pointed out, I'm an expert in watching these things play out.
cw for... idfk, this thread
Distantly, Amy remembers that she didn't want this. She didn't even want to fight Lisa. She'd kept 'Sarah' under wraps for a few months, was that just so she could hit Lisa where it hurt the most?
Evidently. As soon as she could, Amy lashed out in the exact same way Lisa always does. It's not like Amy had any sort of moral high ground to begin with, so why does she feel dirty?
She squeezes her eyes shut as the shots ring out. Victoria. Always Victoria. It's the only sore spot Lisa knows how to target, and it's the only sore spot that always works. She knew, of course. Victoria made it very clear.
There's a lump in the back of Amy's throat.]
I wanted to - tried to... [And then with a shudder, she shakes her head.] I'm not going to defend myself. Not to you.
I know. Of course I know all that. You have to know that I would know that's exactly how she feels. How she sho - [She can't quite bring herself to say it.] You know.
[The line between where Amy is weak and where she's strong - it's a nebulous thing. She's not sure she's ever been strong. But she hasn't given up yet. That's one thing she can say that Lisa very much can't.]
And you should know that I've never been allowed the option of taking the fucking easy route. It would have been easier. But we're stuck with this. [She gestures to their surroundings. This cage they've locked themselves in.] I understand what you're doing, Lisa. [Not Sarah, she can respect that much.] And I also think I understand just how fucking exhausting it must be to just be this all the time. So... [She doesn't even know what she's saying. She just wants this - whatever this is - to end.] Either kill me yourself or just stop. There's no other ending to this that you'd want.