Event Log #002

[caelumstaff]

EVENT LOG number 002 The hotel humbly hopes that you're settling in well and are taking advantage of the various pleasures on offer for your stay. In Mr Bennet's opinion, things have been going quite well and he doesn't think that the guests are unhappy at all. New guests have arrived, some have left, it's all going along perfectly. So, of course, this is when the next troublesome thing pops up. SHADOWS One morning, characters will find the hotel to be a little dimmer than usual, a little more shadowy. Yet if anyone asks Mr Bennet about it, he will claim to not have noticed anything different than usual. Either way, as the characters move on with their day, they'll start to notice a few odd things start to happen. PHASE ONE: Initially, characters will notice their shadow beginning to move a little out of sync with them. Discreetly at first until eventually, their shadow takes on a life of its own, mischievously playing with characters and enjoying their newfound freedom. Very Peter Pan, and completely harmless. PHASE TWO: Now, shadows might disappear entirely, roaming the hotel to their own discretion and ignoring the characters they belong to. As the shadow takes on this free will, characters will begin to feel slightly off balance and have a hard time feeling whole without their shadow around. The shadow may become slightly aggressive as well if told they should return to their characters, fighting back in their own way from knocking things over to outright attacking other characters. It's a little hard to fight back though when your opponent is a shadow, isn't it? PHASE THREE: The shadows have become fully aggressive now, fighting anyone who tries to get them to return to their original person. Characters will find themselves feeling weak and low energy as a result of losing their shadow. Eventually, the shadows will come back to their owners but the characters will find themselves sinking into their shadow, eventually changing places entirely with their shadow. The only way to rescue a character from this fate is for another character to pull them out of their shadow forcibly. The bright side is once a character is pulled out of their shadow, it all returns to normal and their shadow is no longer sentient. These phases will last over the course of the week and it is quite alright to stay in phase one/two/three. Not all shadows will become aggressive, not all shadows will be playful. Feel free to manipulate your character's shadow in the way that's most fun for you. NAV | PREMISE | RULES | FAQ | TAKEN hotelcaelum | caelumserver | caelumooc

Comments

[velluminous]

[ the way her eyes are, twin abysses of violet and black, it's difficult to tell when she's looked at you askance; a flicker of movement, maybe, or the angle of her face. she does it now, regarding Winter from beneath her lashes. a tired once-over, but a once-over nonetheless. the thing about thieves is you clock them less often than you'd expect. on obvious thief is a poor one. ]

...I have question for you.

[icyspicy]

And what might that be?

[ It's not a promise to answer, of course, but he is curious about what she might want to ask. ]

[velluminous]

Why have you come here?

[ she doesn't ask whether it's for the wish. she just presumes this to be true. ]

[icyspicy]

[ He laughs a little, a low, amused rumble. ]

For a vacation. And because my patron insisted.

[velluminous]

Ahhhh. You are pacted.

[icyspicy]

That's right. I suppose you've only seen me Levitate, but I have had cause to sling an Eldritch Blast or two around the hotel. What I am is hardly a secret.

[velluminous]

I would not blame you if you meant to keep it one.

[ but she's comfortable with this; as comfortable as she was with "thief". a wizard and a warlock often go hand in hand... whether as patron to the latter, or as an aspiration to the former. she imagines a great many wizards have, in some way, become pacted in their lifetimes. what is the Weave if not the ultimate pact? ]

What, precisely, have you been Eldritch Blasting?

[icyspicy]

Ah. The hotel was invaded by ninjas when I first got here.

[ You know. Just the usual. ]

[velluminous]

I'm sorry?

[icyspicy]

Ninjas. Masked assassins. They appeared in droves and picked fights with nearly anyone.

[velluminous]

[ with sheer exhaustion, she lowers her face into her hands. she seems especially small like this, without the relentlessness of her personality to buoy her up. ]

Nonsense. This place is utter nonsense. What am I doing here? Is there really "wish" at end of all this?

[icyspicy]

I won’t argue with you on the nonsense front.

[ He leans back a little, settling his weight on his hands, hair spilling back as he tilts his head to gaze at some indeterminate part of the ceiling. ]

But surely there must be some worth in the journey to the wish.

[velluminous]

[ there are constellations painted upon the ceiling. familiar ones. a Waterdhavian night sky. ]

Of course there is.

[icyspicy]

[ Oh. There's something comforting to be found up there in the familiar array of stars, and Winter's expression blooms into something soft and genuine and happy. He turns to look at her with it. ]

That's probably a silly sentiment to level at a wizard, isn't it? Of course you'd agree.

[velluminous]

[ his face...

she gazes at him from the side, something wistful in her own expression when he turns. ]

Of course. Even if for no other reason than to prove that it is there, and learn what it takes to gain access to it.

[icyspicy]

Then it's good that you're here.

[velluminous]

[ something to focus on that isn't just the fury. ]

You're smart boy. You can figure out why I am here.

[icyspicy]

Oh, I can make an educated guess, certainly. But I believe you’re supposed to be resting right now, aren’t you?

[velluminous]

Am I not?

[icyspicy]

Why don't we amend that to sleeping.

[velluminous]

[ so often, she's the one "hinting" people out of her company. strange to have it turned around on her. maybe she should feel relief at the thought of being left alone... but she doesn't. ]

I see.

[ she needs her shadows back. she would feel more herself with them there. less... fragile. less desperate for a sense of connection to Waterdeep that doesn't loathe or deride her very presence, as Winter encapsulates. is that fair of her? she doesn't know. ]

Then... I suppose you ought be on your way, Mister Winter.

[icyspicy]

I wasn’t planning on going anywhere.

[ Simply. He’s made no move to get up, after all. ]

I offered to keep you company, didn’t I?

[velluminous]

[ what

she's visibly thrown ]

You want to sit with me while I sleep?

[icyspicy]

Yes? I can read a book, or admire your constellations some more.

[velluminous]

[ that's an intimacy rarely afforded even to her suitors, for as brief as each one was. and that old wizard paranoia lives in her, too; it isn't just the accomplished greats like Elminster and Mordenkainen. she thinks: he wants to read my books. he wants to learn my secrets. uncover something he can use back in Waterdeep.

she thinks: but he has been so forthcoming...

she has to kill that part of herself. the trusting part. ]

I do not think that is good idea... [ but, to dress it up kinder than, "I don't trust you", she softens it with gentle self-deprecation: ] I am poor enough host when I am awake.