childrenofbahamutlogs | EVENT #2: BRAIN BOGGLING

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EVENT #2: BRAIN BOGGLING

A CRASH IN THE NIGHT

In the dark hours of a snowy early morning, a sudden BOOM can be heard all across Town. It is swiftly followed by sounds of warping metal and then a screeching crash. Curious, albeit groggy, residents emerge only to find a smoking wreck just a mile outside of Town.

The strange craft appears to be almost nautiloid in shape with wrenched, broken tendrils streaming out the opening.

Much of it is metal although some of it almost seems... organic.

Those who with to get a closer look will be met by Charlie and Dimitri who are already on the job. They request curious onlookers keep their distance since this craft is, without a doubt, tremendously dangerous.

Later in the day, there appears to be an outfit of officials coming from the west to investigate and clean up the wreckage. Thankfully(?), you will all find out soon enough what's going on.

INVESTIGATION & PROTECTION

Deathcard Cabin by Jonah Senzel

4:07 / 13:06

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Click here to listen.

From the Inscryption OST: A unique and haunting sound paired with a unique and haunting game.

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Charlie reports to the citizens of Town that an Illithid cargo transport. The pilot did not survive the crash, but they appeared to be transporting some kind of new breed of Intellect Devourers.

"We do not yet know what this new breed is capable of, but..."

Charlie does give everyone a rundown of what an Illithid and what an Intellect Devourer is, what they are capable of, and a keen warning to tread lightly. Many dead ones were discovered in the cargo but several of the enclosures were damaged in the crash and the likelihood of escapees is high.

Charlie reiterates: These creatures are to be killed on sight, or contained until someone can kill it. If you are not confident in your combat abilities, please remain in your homes as much as possible and seal all openings to your dwelling. Those who are capable though are urged to begin patrols of Town alongside Slayd, Dimitri and himself to ensure that Town and the surrounding areas are safe.

Please travel in pairs or groups, do not be alone! Attack from a distance when possible. Hoshiko will offer her assistance as a markswoman as well by picking off any Intellect Devourers from a distance that she can for those that are forced to travel alone. (Don't worry about any jokes she makes of her service not being cheap though. Charlie wouldn't actually let her charge you anything.)

Unfortunately, not even they can predict the blizzard that rolls through Town in the midst of all this. If you happen to see anything skittering through the snow, don't panic too much. It could just be a tiny woodland creature looking for a warm burrow to hide away in!

At least you hope it is.

PROMPT #3

Hybrid intellect devourers are unique from the regular ones in that the goal is not to kill their target, but to gather intelligence and act as a kind of spy network.

They will flee when confronted directly by greater numbers, but will attack a lone target. They do this by jumping at the target's head and wrapping a wet tendril around their neck. They will choke who they've wrapped around if anyone tries to remove it. They are also far more likely to try and attack sleeping target (hence the advice to keep your homes closed!).

These hybrids emit spores that will keep the target asleep during feeding. Their primary goal appears to be infiltrating the targets' minds and absorbing some of their memories. The target will have their mind left mostly intact... though they may suffer short term memory loss, confusion, distress, fatigue and head pain.

Here's where the fun starts!

Once one of these critters has fed on someone, they are onto their next target. When a fed Intellect Devourer feeds from another target, that target may absorb some of the previous target's memories. This can span across multiple victims and be erratic in whose memories taint whose mind. The memories will cross-pollinate in the form of dreams or waking visions and hallucinations.

If one of these creatures is killed, it will explode, releasing a powerful psionic wave and the memories it had absorbed from any recent targets. Anyone within ten (10) yards of the dying creature will be afflicted with extreme head pain in the short term and also witness the memories of it's previous victims.

Enjoy your muddled memories and leggy brain-hunting!

The outfit of people who have come to investigate are from New Svihelen's disaster containment squad and are investigating the hybrid creatures and the possible reason for an Illithid ship to crash here of all places. Right now, the running theory is that interference from the selfsame summoning circle that brought you all here could have caused the interplanar navigation systems of the ship to malfunction but nothing has been determined yet.

Eventually, these creatures will all be rounded up and taken care of. They are persistent and stealthy though in their efforts to survive above all else. Charlie assures that they're doing all they can to make Town safe once and for all but it will take some time.

Notes

⁂ The partner plotting post for this event/quarter is also up!

⁂ Additionally, we have a state of the game post available for people to read about updates, clarifications, and housekeeping items!

⁂ If you have any further questions or feedback about this event specifically, please comment here!

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"To bear the mantle of solitude in itself is not a strength." Elidibus would know, now that he has the capacity to look back and truly understand what it had meant to be the last of his kind.

A soft sigh. Popp would not know that. What he needs is reassurance.

"You have admirable strength, but more importantly," and he pulls back to look Popp in the eye before finishing, "you are enough. As you are now, as you were then."

Especially then. While he does not know the lead-up to those memories, what they contained was a self-sacrifice that Elidibus would make himself, if it came to it. TO give all he was in order to bring salvation for those he loves.

"There is no shame to be had when those who love you wish to keep you safe."

Edited 2025-02-16 03:02 (UTC)

"I mean, I get that. I want to be the one keeping people safe, just like he did..."

How's he supposed to stop crying when you keep telling him these things, Elidibus?! He manages to hold the eye contact until he suddenly breaks and shoves his face into the Emissary's shoulder. His voice is muffled.

"I really messed up last time I had the chance, you know?"

His robes continue to grow wet from tears, but Elidibus is far past caring about that. Shifting back, he shifts their combined weights to lower himself to the ground and fully sits with Popp hauled into his lap. He spares a hand for his next task - snatching up his staff and firmly seating upright into the ground next to them both, where it remains standing.

There. Now the effort he spent to put wards on it can actually be utilized, giving them some amount of privacy and safety.

"No, I do not know. Because from what I have seen, you committed no errors - another made a choice, and that choice was to defend you. You are not at fault for that decision. Nor are you at fault for my decision to protect you. Had I lost that skirmish, it would no more be your fault than it would have been mine that you were apprehended in the first place."

Elidibus feels a great many things, and quite a bit more of them are playing over his face than they usually are. Perhaps it is the heat of the moment, but he comes to make a decision. A gift. The most precious he has.

"You will grow to keep people safe. This I know, that you shall find strength and grow to be one of your world's mightiest defenders. How can it be otherwise, when you are you?" A last breath before the plunge. "And to show how certain I am of this, I speak to you not as Elidibus but... as Themis."

He smiles, eyes welling with tears of his own. Emotional with his own decision. "That is my name. Themis."

It's not his fault. It's something that happened and that he has to live up to, but there's no blood on his hands and he will live up to it. For this moment, at least, Popp believes this unswervingly. He feels lighter in a way he has not felt for some time, but also flat out exhausted, mentally.

The outright sobbing quiets down, but there's a lot of emotional fluids oozing out of his face. The light cilantro scent of diluted dragon venom hangs in the air. It's... probably fine, unless someone tries to eat the robes.

"Themis..."

He doesn't actually grasp the full significance here, but he does get that it's a big deal as a gesture and when he takes a peek that, uh, Themis is crying about it so now obviously he's tearing up even more.

"Isn't that... really personal for you? Is it really okay to just tell me something that important?"

Why do you believe in someone like him so much?! He's still speaking normally, if kind of hoarsely, but his face is just really... quivery right now.

"When we are elected to the Convocation, it is almost exclusively a lifetime appointment. We live for long enough that our names become the titles granted to us. I am Elidibus. It is my name, for as long as the seat was mine to hold - will forever be mine, now that we are gone."

That his people no longer live is a topic he has not touched in detail with Popp, he does not think. Skirted around the fact that his world is gone, perhaps. But now he pulls back some of the curtain.

"But my name, too, will always be Themis. While I hold the mantle of Elidibus the Emissary, I remain Themis the man. In my world, prior to our current Hero, none were left to remember me as I was. Even so, those small handful who know it now will pass through their mortal lifetimes, and once more the name Themis will fade from memory. Elidibus is all that will remain."

His eyes have dried somewhat, with the explanation.

"What that all leads us to, dearest Popp, is that it is my gift to give, and I do so to you gladly. In public, will I remain Elidibus. But to you? I will be Themis, if you are willing to accept this gift."

Oh, that's really serious, actually. Popp unburrows from all the robes and fluff so he can look at him eye to streaming eye.

"Of course I will, Themis! All that Emissary stuff is impressive, but it's not why I like you!"

Having recently found out that Master Avan was also the last of a lineage and felt set apart from ordinary people, Popp is still projecting a significant amount of personal issues that Elidibus might not actually have, but it's still good to, you know. Tell people how you feel about them before they leave your life forever...

It is a strange feeling to have his gift accepted. Each time he offers of himself, Themis cannot help but hold his breath in some fashion, hoping perhaps slightly irrationally that he will not be rejected. It is a strange thing, to put oneself in the hands of another, to be vulnerable for them, and hope they do not harm you. Knowing that they will not yet still hoping regardless.

It happens each time. Still, the tension drains from his spine.

Eyes drying further, his tilts his head slightly. His lips twist up into a smile, "And if not such for those things, why would that be, hmm?"

They both rather need the distraction, and he knows Popp will oblige.

Popp wipes the rest of the general goop accumulation off his face with his sleeve. At least he's not using Themis's? While he has a handkerchief on him somewhere, he's still loopy from the psychic wave and he doesn't want to let go long enough to work out where his pockets are.

"Well, you're really kind - you're always doing everything you can to help people out and keep us safe. Sure, you do have ten thousand years of mystical knowledge, but right now you're just holding me close - my mom could do that, and she doesn't have any titles."

Talking about, or to, or with the people he cares about is also relaxing. Dangerously so, maybe, this is not a comparison Popp would normally make, because he does have some capacity for being embarrassed.

Oh, that reasoning strikes Themis through the center of his ribcage and leaves behind a wake of blooming warmth. It unfurls like a living thing, delicate vines twining up, up, into his throat and catching his breath with the most gentle of caresses.

"Oh," he manages, voice choked.

A hard swallow sorts him enough to be able to speak clearly again. He's still unbalanced. "Thank you, for saying such things. For believing in me in that way." Themis could say more, but he refrains. Instead he takes a deep breath and, upon letting it out, it unspools much of the vice-like tension that had gripped him since the start of all of this.

It's clear that the relaxation effect is going both ways.

Wow, he can feel everything kind of... soften up just like that. They're cuddled in pretty close, it'd be impossible to miss!

"Well, it's not like you're hard
to believe in... Themis~"

Popp says the name with honest affection, with as much care and feeling as he puts into saying a new spell, but also a certain amount of glee at having some emotional power of his own here. Then he sneezes.

"Hey, uh... How about we head back to Town? You probably need some rest after all that magic, right?"

Sure, like just one of them needs a break. Is Popp offering or even trying to get down? No. He's had an ordeal, okay?

Little does Popp know how much Themis wants those words to be true.

"It is due time for me to take a moment of respite, yes. You as well, need to be cared for." It is quite cold outside and they appear to be fresh out of blankets. There is a moment of deliberation on the logistics of how their travel is going to work, before Themis nods to himself.

He makes Popp's decision for him, shifting his hold into something a bit more solid and standing up without relinquishing his hold on the boy. There is a spark of magic and his weapons vanish into blooming blue light with a soft sound - he can defend them with his shield and magic alone, if he needs to.

Setting off at a brisk pace, Themis's voice is soft. "Are you cold?"

Popp tends to believe strongly in the people that he's fond of, whether they agree or not.

He makes a disgruntled oof sound when he's hefted properly, for the sake of his remaining dignity here, but look. It's pretty nice to feel cared for. In theory, he could Zoom the both of them right to Themis' front door, but...

"No problem, I can handle that part. I'm a pretty good mage, you know?"

The excuse he makes to himself is that he's still rough on landings, this is safer. He likes being fussed over, but he also doesn't like being entirely dead cuddly weight. The start of a weak heat spell blooms in his hand. As long as he keeps his focus, it'll hang out radiating warmth... And if they get attacked, he can always finish the spell and blast it.

"I know that very well, dearest Popp."

Thankfully for them both the walk to Themis's home is peaceful. The snow provides a hush to their surroundings, making the world shrink down to his footsteps and the idle conversation that fills the gaps. Though the cold had bothered him less than others, that heating spell is welcomed, especially for his bare fingers.

Knowing that Popp would like to keep some of his dignity Themis moves to set the boy onto his own feet once they reach his doorstep. He pauses after having a thought. "It occurs to me, now, that I did not ask if you wished to be brought to your home or to my own. Will this suffice for now?"

There's a certain deeper quality to a mild peaceful moment that comes after... all of this combined, the fight and the memory and the spilling his guts out over a bunch of fears and insecurities he's been holding onto for a while.

"Your place is fine - especially if you want to talk about any of the stuff you saw. Especially if what you saw is what I think it was."

Popp's keeping the heat up until they get inside, but also he's very interested in spinning the spell around on his index finger right now.

"I had hesitated to bring up the subject in case you wished to refrain from discussions involving what the memories had held." If Popp did not want to speak on it, Themis would not ask it of him. His privacy had been violated enough for one day.

But they were still upon his doorstep.

"Come, let us make our way inside and into the warmth. There is a guest room upstairs that we may find privacy within if you wish to speak." With a deft motion, he opens the door and beckons Popp into his home. If he does want to speak on the memories, he will move them both upstairs.

If not? The kitchen.

The trip back and the quality time have unrattled Popp enough for him to give a wave and a quick greeting to anyone else sheltering in Themis' household. His face is still red and blotchy from all the crying, but he sounds overall upbeat... which is in large part a front that he's putting up, this was an upsetting experience that isn't over. He's quick about hanging up his snow-covered cloak and heading upstairs with his current teacher, where he makes himself right at home. Even if there's an actual chair, he's taking the edge of the bed.

"Ahh... you know, this is actually a pretty ritzy living situation. Master Avan liked camping outdoors, and Old Matoriv had this creepy cave out by the whirlpools... I'm pretty sure you saw Avan, I was with him a long time, but uh... I've had a few teachers."

In the absence of the cloak and presence of warmth, his wings flicker out and wrap around his shoulders for comfort.

Dutifully following Popp up the stairs, he listens as the boy continues to speak in a way that deflects the situation at hand. Themis shuts the door behind him and locks it before taking any other action. Popp deserves what privacy he may provide. And comfort. Privacy and comfort. To that end, Themis crosses the room and selects an extra blanket from a pile before settling himself next to Popp on the bed. With a flourish, the blanket is draped over both of their shoulders.

Popp's comfort may be provided in tandem with Themis's own.

"I have worked to improve what I was provided at the beginning. Would that my abilities were at their full strength, I would show you the wonders my people were capable of Creating. My tastes were never as ornate as some, but there was a certain style in Amaurot that I find myself missing even now."

But now is not the time to think of geometric patterns and lost civilizations. Now is for Popp. Themis slinks a hand around his shoulders beneath the blanket.

"...It was Avan that I saw, yes. What I presume to have been his end."

It's still kind of unbelievable that Elidibus isn't in top form as is; Popp's seen him pulling out minor miracles and still hasn't seen him on the back foot outside of navigating otherworldly social differences now and then.

"Yeah." His voice cracks, and he looks down at his hands. "The Avan here, the young one. You can't tell him; he doesn't know anything about it. He's not even a real hero yet; I can't go putting all that on him."

Not that Popp feels particularly heroic right now. He might not be physically leaning on Elidibus for stability right now but his heart sure is! Even so, he considers himself more mature than Avan in some respects and confronting your own mortality is one of them.

The Emissary is a seemingly endless well of energy, but that is only because he has others that help him behind the scenes. Had he been alone in this place, he would no doubt be far less productive. As it is, however, he is able to spare enough to comfort both himself and Popp after this experience - and as Themis, the man.

Considering he had witnessed the memory himself, it does not come to a shock that the Avan here meets his end as he had seen. But the young hero is nothing if not clever, playing the fool for the public and holding all cards close to his chest. Themis pulls Popp slightly tighter against his side as a thought comes to him.

"He is the type to know more than he allows others to see. Do you think, perhaps, that he knows about it in some manner? Or suspects?"

This close, Themis can feel Popp's heartrate spike as this possibility hits him like a tidal wave.

"W-what?! No... No, he couldn't! He's smart and all, but there's no way he knows!"

If he does know, it's because Popp failed at keeping a secret; who else would have given it away?! He really doesn't want that to be the case.

The next part must be done delicately, but honestly. Popp deserves the truth that Themis suspects. But it does not feel good to know that he will deliver such a blow. Though he knows Popp will perhaps not appreciate the style of comfort he's about to employ, far more fitting it is for one younger than the boy, his heart urges him to do so regardless.

And so he shushes Popp, softly. Brings a hand to stroke through unruly hair the way an adult would do to a frightened child. It's meant to calm, to soothe, though he does not linger in it overlong. The truth must be given, after all.

"From what I know of him, he may indeed suspect it to be, though not from any revelations from you - more the lack thereof. I am certain he knows that he was your mentor at some point, and could have drawn his own conclusions based upon that fact." What we do not speak of reveals more than what we do, he does not say.

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EVENT #2: BRAIN BOGGLING

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