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.
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caelumstaff) wrote in 
Phase 2!!
Up until this point, though, he's mainly dealt with irritating but ultimately harmless behavior. He is absolutely not expecting to be genuinely attacked--if not for Mehrak's warning beeps, Kaveh, even with his battle experience, likely would've been knocked out cold. Fortunately, Mehrak's grabbing capabilities slow the pan enough for Kaveh to turn and throw his arms up; it'll be a nasty bruise, but it's better than a concussion, probably.
It's too much all at once, though--by the time he spots the knife, it's already in her back. It's a horrifying sight, and immediately, all thoughts of his own well-being flee; he abandons his own shadow to rush over to her, flinging his arm out.]
Mehrak, deal with them! [What a toolbox can do against some shadows is anyone's guess, but at least it floats over with an angry look on its face?? Anyway, more importantly, to her, panicky--] Hold on, we'll get some help--
no subject
It was so distracting, in fact, that she forgot entirely that she'd been attacked too. Yes, with... well, something. A knife? She can't really tell, as the sensation is so dull, and it's not as though she can turn her head to get a look at it. But through her companion's obvious panic, she gets the idea that it looks grim. ]
Oh, does it look so serious? I can hardly feel it... hehe.
[ Is she laughing at a time like this? Well, yes. She intends to help calm him down, but there's certainly room for her quiet nonchalance to come off eerie, instead. There's no twist of pain in her features — no, her smile actually looks wry, as though this whole situation is a little ironically funny to her.
With the shadows preoccupied with the case, that does give them a little bit of breathing room: ]
You needn't be afraid, my dear. [ She says, a little firmer this time. She even reaches out to grace his arm that he'd flung out with her cold touch, tugging him closer and down into the cover of the counters. ] I am alright, I assure you.
no subject
[Fuck fuck fuck he has no idea who to call. Tighnari and Cyno, of course, are the first people that come to mind, but neither of them are doctors he has no idea where they are. She says she can hardly feel it, but surely that's shock from the sudden trauma? He's certainly no expert, but he's pretty sure that's how that works.
If she'll let him, he'll try to keep a loose arm around her, as if to keep her steady and shield her from any other sudden attacks--a glance over his shoulder confirms that both shadows have gotten distracted by Mehrak, at least for a moment. He's not sure how long it will last, but it'll have to do.] Come on, let's get you out of here before they notice.
[Her safety is the first priority--he won't let her get attacked a second time, but he's too worried about her injury to try and subdue the shadows himself, so fleeing to safety is the next best option.]
no subject
If that is what you wish... then I will follow you.
[ She lets him wrap his arm around her, going willingly with his plans to flee. He'll find that as he comes closer to her, it's not just her hands that are cold — her whole body emanates a ghastly chill. For balance, she wraps her arm gently around his waist in turn, helping them move along swiftly towards the exit as his contraption keeps the shadows busy. ]
But after we escape, allow me a moment, if you would...
[ Maybe if she says she needs a second for a break after the movement, allegedly under the guise of pain, it'll give her a chance to stop him before he goes turning the hotel upside down for a healer? She doesn't think he'll listen to an explanation at present, anyway, so she'll try to finesse time to give one once they've made it out. ]
no subject
Still, his reaction doesn't change even when he does notice the lack of chill and the icy touch. It registers, yes, but for now, he remains fully focused on escape. Anything else can come later.]
Yes, of course.
[With that settled, he maneuvers them both out of there as quickly as he can. Mehrak is just a fancy toolbox, so it can't exactly stop the shadows from following once they notice they're gone, but he figures they can deal with that later. For now, he just tries to find them somewhere safe.]
no subject
We should be able to take a reprieve here...
[ She murmurs, quite calm despite having allegedly walked all this way with a knife through her back. Inwardly, she feels down as she always does, being made to face the undead state of her own body. But she reminds herself that no matter how she may feel about it, she need not express it. As long as she acts around it, it shouldn't affect her real self too badly. Her eyes cast back to the direction they came in briefly, before returning her gaze to him, bowing her head in a polite bow. She even gives him a small smile. ]
I do humbly appreciate your concern for me, my dear. But you will soon find that a healer will be... unnecessary. [ Her word choice is a bit blunt — almost wry, as she tugs her long braid out of the way of the knife protruding from her back. ] Not a drop of blood has spilled from me, now has it?
no subject
Finally, with her gestures and her explanation, he looks at her back, seeing for himself that she isn't bleeding.]
Ah. [Well. It's startling, a little, but it isn't as though he's unaccustomed to non-humans in various forms. Maybe he'd be frightened or uncomfortable under different circumstances, or if they hadn't already spent such a pleasant time in the greenhouse together, but as it stands, she's still precisely who she was before. Just, y'know. Slightly to the left.]
Are you-- [...] --in pain? I don't know how to pull this out without hurting you.
[It's not as though he isn't curious, of course--but his priorities haven't changed. First and foremost, he needs to make sure she's okay, even if that means something different than what he thought a moment ago.]
no subject
You needn't worry, my dear. I am not in pain. And it will not hurt... that, I can promise you.
[ Getting in to the details would make her feel a bit of shame... so she hopes these words will be acceptable and believable enough. Her smile doesn't seem strained in the least, even if it does come off strangely artificial — so it does appear that she's telling the truth about not being hurt. Should he move to extract the knife, he'll find that it will slide out with little resistance, and that the skin underneath will remain unmarred, as if never pierced by the blade to begin with. ]
no subject
He'll accept her explanation, at least; with a slightly reluctant nod, he moves to rest a hand on her back, telegraphing his movements while he's mostly out of her line of sight.]
...Alright, if you're sure.
[Carefully, very carefully, he starts to pull the knife out--even when she doesn't flinch and there's no blood to be seen, he remains patient and cautious. His hands are unwaveringly steady, and he doesn't flinch or jerk away, simply committing to his task until the knife is all the way out.
It is, admittedly, bizarre and mildly discomforting to see her completely uninjured skin--if not for the knife in his hand, he would wonder if he'd imagined the whole incident. He doesn't comment, though. He looks for a moment, then pulls away and steps back with a sigh.]
Well, I'm glad you're truly unharmed. That attack was no joke--I didn't think they could get that violent.
[HE DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS]
no subject
Yes... I was unaware of this, also.
[ She murmurs, voice quiet — and now that the knife business and the escaping business are taken care of, she's able to comfortably resume keeping her hands folded in front of her proper. She turns to face him again, ]
But I have you to thank, for helping me as you did — despite my... circumstances. [ She's not sure how else to refer to the state of her body, having notmuch experience with needing to talk about it in such an up front way with others. Her head dips all the same in a formal show of her gratitude. ] My apologies for the inconvenience.
no subject
Don't worry about it. It's what anyone would do.
[It's really not, and truthfully, he knows that--but he says it like it's undeniable fact anyway. It's what anyone should do, and that's close enough.] ...It might be best to wait our shadows out. They'll have to leave at some point.
[He doesn't really want to challenge them while they're still in a room full of sharp objects, even though it annoys him to think of the mess his is probably making while it's unsupervised. He's the only one of the four of them that can bleed, after all.]