Event #14: Locking Up the Sun and Moon

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Locking Up the Sun and Moon
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Keep it Clean

Part 1

All of the four guilds are hosting a spring cleaning weekend. There are plenty of things to do! Organizing tools, prepping ready-to-go adventure packages for future endeavors, throwing out old and used things that can't be repaired to give some examples. There's a lot of activity in the buildings and anyone who even glances at them will be pestered to join.

Everyone who participates in the event will get a free ready-to-go adventure package that they can take with them next time they're going questing. The package includes rations, barrier stones, enchanted ropes, emergency one-use travel crystals & as a set of segment-appropriate tools: ice axes & - picks made of crystals to pierce even tougher surfaces, gravity boots that keep someone down during any kind of wind, portable fans that keep someone nicely cool and a cape that turns into a full rain and thunder proof raincoat when the first drops fall.

All of it is, however, a coverup. On Friday, a message was sent to all otherworlders, telling them about the upcoming mission preparations being masqueraded as a spring cleaning event. They still haven't found whoever has been leaking information, so this is a way to keep them out of the loop. Further details of the mission will be given on Monday through the same method.

There's also a request to keep an eye on any of the guild staff in case they do something suspicious or ask too many questions.

Part 2

The message on Monday is cancelled. Instead, come Sunday evening all of the lights flicker and disappear from the city. Not long after most of the electricity in the city also gets cut off. Panic starts spreading in the city and locals start running around, bumping into each other in the darkness.

Some of the districts do have backup generators that they can use to maintain important devices. There are also movable generators that can be delivered to other locations as needed and otherworlders are asked to help move them more quickly.

Despite electricity being restored, the light sources still malfunction. Any lamps just stay dark, almost as if the lightbulbs have burned out. Yet changing them doesn't do anything. Even the tacky neon signs are out of order. The only sources of light are flashlights, candles and whatever magic and abilities can do at this point.

Because even the night sky seems to be entirely too dark.

When The Lights Go Out

Part 1

In the segments, the nights become even darker than before. The moon and the stars disappear from the sky, leaving behind only a blank black canvas. Creatures and plants with the ability to glow or otherwise provide light are the only things that can be seen in the distance.

Hours pass by and morning comes, but the sky is still pitch black. Even the sun has disappeared from the sky and it's impossible to tell the time of day. All of the creatures in the Segments are unpredictable due to this weird change - even aggressive.

Anyone with the ability to get to the skies will note that it's not that the objects of the sky have disappeared; it's like something is blocking them. It's a black veil that feels impossible to break and touching it will make someone suffer from burn damage (even if they'd be resistant to fire). The part of the body that touched the black veil will be stained with black curse energy that will start to spread across the body.

Following the black veil it looks like it's truly spread around the whole world. The dragons will inform anyone they find that there are mysterious black rods near the barriers that are sending energy towards the skies. They tried to get rid of them but they have the same effect as the black veil.

Part 2

Inside the city chaos worsens. Criminals start targeting locals and stores all over the places, robbing whatever they get their hands on. For some reason it seems that all of the criminals are able to see just fine. Anyone who is connected to the crime questboard will have received special contact lenses that will let them see normally in complete darkness.

To make matters worse the Nightwake Main Police Station is under attack as well. Criminals are escaping their jail cells and taking hostages. They range from petty thieves to serial killers. The police force is doing whatever they can to capture them again and protect the citizens. Many of the escapees won't go down without a fight, and some might force a lethal confrontation.

A group of the Nightshade gang is also headed to find the Doctor to release him, armed with weapons and bombs that contain poison. They are determined to free their 'Master' and bring him to safety.

Otherworlders are called to help with the situation. They're even offered all kinds of safety gear, including bulletproof vests and masks that protect from poison. Even all of the four guild leaders can be seen fighting criminals, both inside the police station and outside.

Part 3

Criminals aren't the only danger in the city during the darkness. Creatures of the night start appearing. A clan of vampires that has been hiding in the city's darkest corners take a step forward, targeting anyone for blood. These vampires look very much like humans, but it's all just a glamour and anyone who has the ability to see through them will see their true forms.

Vampires are humanoid creatures, but they're very monster-like otherwise. Their skin is pale and their eyes are blood red. In addition to their sharp fangs, they also have very long nails. Depending on how fed they are, their appearance will change. Those who have recently had blood will look 'healthy' and resemble humans more closely, while those starving look like they're about to wither away.

Being bit by a vampire doesn't necessarily turn anyone into one. However the risk gets higher the longer the vampire feeds on the person. Those left on the brink of death will turn into a vampire unless they die first. Those turned into vampires are likely to attack the first person they see due to hunger.

Vampires can't stand in the sun for long periods of time, otherwise they will burn. They also can't see their reflection on the mirror, which is also a way to identify one. All of the vampires also have superhuman strength and speed and can only be killed by either a stab to their heart or by decapitation.

Tied Up Solution

Part 1

The situation in Nightwake takes a positive turn as all the electricity and lights are fully restored by Wednesday. The skies, however, still continue to be pitch black.

Most of the criminals start retreating, attempting to flee back into their hideouts. Some, however, continue their crime sprees stubbornly and get more reckless without the cover of darkness. Some of them are even trying to destroy all of the streetlights to bring back their cover.

The worst of the chaos at the police station dies down by Thursday evening. There are still criminals on the run and the whole place is a mess, but the greatest dangers have been dealt with. What happened to the Doctor is still a mystery as the part of the building he was in collapsed during the fights. Until the debris has been cleared out they will assume the Doctor missing.

The guild leaders start figuring out a solution to what is happening with the sky, together with the Fairy Queen, the Dragon Lord, the Mermaid Queen and the Siren King.

Part 2

On Saturday the guild leaders contact all of the otherworlders. A solution to their problem has been found after investigation and analyzation. Everyone is asked to gather at the guilds as soon as possible.

Everyone is tasked to travel to one of the edges of the barrier, as marked on the map. They're the locations of the dark rods that are creating the black veil on the sky. The dragons will take anyone there quickly with their fast travel abilities.

There the otherworlders are tasked to work in pairs or groups and stand somewhere near the dark rod without touching it. They're provided with a special fairy ribbon that is tied around their hands.

Once everything is set up, the task is to channel both touch energy and magical energy into the ribbon. This will take time and concentration and all of the people connected to the ribbon have to achieve harmony. This may fail, but it can always be attempted again.

Only once the required energies are in the ribbon will it move and touch the dark rod, clearing a portion of the dark energy away from it. If someone's concentration fails at the last moment the spell will backfire and send them flying backwards. There's also a risk of getting a part of the corruption due to it.

After enough people have used the ribbon to clear the darkness from the rod it will turn white and break, leaving glittering particles in the air. A portion of the sky is freed from the veil. Once all of the rods are gone, the skies return to normal.

Those who have at any point gotten corrupted by the black veil or the dark rods will find that their corruption starts clearing in the sun- or moonlight. However, some may end up not healing properly, depending on how far the corruption has gone. They are invited to the Fairy Kingdom for some intense healing that will take 24 hours - and a lot of fairy dust.

Part 3

Once again the otherworlders are regarded as heroes. There would be a party, but the city is a huge mess after the chaos. However, they are promised a big feast once everything has been cleared out and made right again.

For now everyone receives a hefty prize of 10,000 Moon Coins and gift cards to either a nice spa weekend or a fancy restaurant.

OOC TIPS

Summary of the prompts [ Click to Expand ]

Keep it Clean
• Guilds are in the middle of spring cleaning
• The real reason for the cleaning is to secretly prepare for the next mission
• Characters are asked to keep an eye on anyone suspicious

• Light start suddenly flickering out
• Soon after all of the electricity gets shut off
• Locals panic and characters are asked to help distribute movable generators
• Even if electricity gets restored with generators, lights don't come back on
• Something is wrong with the sky

When The Lights Go Out
• The sun, the moon and the stars disappear from the sky
• There's a black veil made of cursed material blocking them
• The material will corrupt anyone who touches it
• The reason for the veil are black rods made of the same material

• Back in the city criminals start moving and causing chaos
• Criminals (and anyone connected to the criminal questboard) have contact lenses that let them see in the dark
• Nightwake Main Police Station is under attack
• Criminals of different danger range escape
• Nightshade is on the move to free the Doctor

• A clan of vampires emerges from the shadows
• They will target anyone they see for a meal
• The longer they feast on someone the higher the risk that they turn into a vampire
• Vampires can only be killed by either a stab to their heart or by decapitation

Tied Up Solution
• Electricity and lights are restored to the city by Wednesday (May 21st)
• Some criminals are trying to destroy light sources still
• Chaos at the Police Station calms down, but the Doctor is currently missing behind a wall of debri
• Guild leaders and the various leaders of other races start working on a solution

• On Saturday (May 24th) the guild leaders contact all of the otherworlders, asking them to gather at the guilds
• Everyone is tasked to travel to one of the edges of the barrier, as marked on a map
• Otherworlders are tasked to work in pairs or groups and stand somewhere near the dark rod
• Using a magical fairy ribbon tied to each of the group's hands, they will work together to destroy the dark rods bit by bit
• Losing concentration risks getting corrupted
• Sun-/Moonlight will cure the corruption, unless it has spread too far - in that case the Fairies will invite the person for some intense healing that will take 24 hours - and a lot of fairy dust

• Otherworlders are regarded as heroes
• ... but partying has to wait until the city is cleaned
• Everyone gets a prize of 10,000 Moon Coins and gift cards to either a nice spa weekend or a fancy restaurant

• Ask event related questions here

• Sign up for RNG on if your character catches a suspicious guild staff member.

• Please head to this thread to help us determine the Doctor's fate at the Police Station.

• Characters can avoid getting their electricity cut off, but lights will go out everywhere for a good while.

• Smut is not allowed on the event post, so if your thread is heading that way, please move it to a separate entry (like to your musebox or characters' journal).

• Remember to content and spoiler warn as necessary!

• Reminder to players that this month is Activity Check-in month and check-in ends on May 31st, at 23:59 PST.

code bases by tricklet

Comments

reiner braun | attack on titan | autumn

[hometown]

When the Lights Go Out

Reiner has lived in Amberfall for the better part of his time in Ellipsa. It's become a home to him. A place where he can live in peace. A place where he can enjoy life with the men he loves.

When it comes under attack, it's like poking a sleeping giant with a stick. Literally.

Reiner transforms just once, the fifteen-meter-tall Armored Titan looming over a large group of criminals, roaring at them with inhuman fury. They scatter, and Reiner transforms again, hunting them down with a mix of Autumn powers, taking them out one after another.

Catch him when he's resting in an area lit by flaming torches, his clothes dirty but his body eerily unharmed. He turns as soon as his seismic sense picks up on you approaching, smiling if he knows you and remaining stone cold if he doesn't.

Wildcard

( ooc: throw something else at me. plotting is here. will match prose or brackets )

[abnormalizes]

Evangeline catches sight of the Armored Titan from a distance, but by the time she actually makes it over to where Reiner is, the criminals are long gone.

"I'd ask if you needed any help, but it looks like you're covered?"

She's on fire, but clearly not in any pain or anything like that.

[hometown]

Reiner's smile remains in place as he nods, recognizing Evangeline's voice more than her fiery form.

"Yeah. It's easy to take people out when they're scared shitless."

A blunt way to say it. But then, he's in a bit of a Mood, what with these criminals crawling all over his district.

"So … you're on fire."

That's a thing that's happening.

[abnormalizes]

"Well, I have to see somehow."

And setting herself on fire was the first thing that came to mind?

"I could just shapeshift eyes from an animal that can see in the dark, but this way it's easier to guide other people who need help seeing, instead of just me being able to."

[hometown]

"I guess that makes sense."

Does it, though? Reiner is going with it either way!

"Do you have to worry about stuff you touch?"

[abnormalizes]

"Making fire harmless is a summer ability, so not really? I could give you a hug right now if you'd let me, and you might catch fire but it wouldn't damage your clothes or anything."

It'd be a problem if she was trying to rescue people and then set them on actual painful fire...

[hometown]

Reassured, Reiner pats the seat beside himself for Evangeline to come have a rest, if she wants.

"I've read about that ability, but I've never seen it in action," he says. "You took me by surprise."

[urtitan]

[When Frieda approaches Reiner, her steps may just elude his detection... but being light on one's feet is a spring power holder ability. More questionable, perhaps, is her drastic eye colour change from blue to red, along with the pallor of her skin, but just like him, she looks unharmed.]

I heard your titan. Are you alright?

[She sounds genuinely worried, but it's not for Reiner's physical wellbeing - her concern is for his mind. Nightwake has given them peace, and now, without warning, he has to fight again. She doesn't think that he's so easily shaken, let alone broken, by an uprising of the city's criminal elements, but the pitch black sky speaks of a concentrated effort to damage their sanctuary, and that threatens them all.]

[hometown]

[ Reiner's smile falters when he gets a better look at Frieda, taking in the changes to her coloring. Is that a Spring thing? Or is there something else at play? ]

I'm fine, [ he reassures. But his voice is no-nonsense, devoid of the relaxed air it has gained in peacetime. ] I used my Armor to scatter a group of them, then hunted them down outside of it. Any I might've missed are long gone.

[ Although he doubts he missed any. ]

[urtitan]

[He's steady and reliable as ever, and it comforts her, all the more when he used his titan with such caution. She never transformed in the city, fearful of causing a panic... but now, the situation is so bad that such concerns seems moot.]

You've done well.

[She can't help but want to praise him for his restraint, and her voice is warm.]

I've been healing the injured at the Amberfall Hospital - the central one has been rotating us healers around -, but I ran out of mana. Now, I have to wait... though I should probably put my titan powers to use in the meantime, like you.

[Once again, Reiner is fighting while she keeps her pacifist hands clean. Then again, don't those lines get blurred - at least on a technicality - when he merely intimidates and apprehends enemies while she get covered in the blood of the injured as she heals them? It's gotten more and more disorienting as her shift went on... she shouldn't stay with Reiner for too long, she reminds herself. If she entered that bloodlust craze again and attacked him, she'd find it hard to forgive herself - and even if Reiner could, she doubts that Eren would be as generous, all the less after the confrontation between them and Jean not too long ago.]

[hometown]

[ Despite the seriousness of the situation, Reiner smiles a little as Frieda praises him. He can't help it. He cares what she thinks of him, and he values each kind word she gives him. ]

That was the first time I've transformed in the city. I've avoided it all this time. [ And a part of him is very, very angry that the situation called for it. ] The real problem is that it's hell to maneuver without destroying something. All the narrow streets are great when you're trying to find a new coffee shop, but where do you put your feet?

[ The last sentence is a half-joke. But only half.

He looks Frieda in the eyes, studying her for a moment. ]

Are you okay? You're looking … different. Is it because of your mana?

[urtitan]

[She smiles in amusement at his complaint, but when he asks about her condition, she has to pause. How does she explain what happened? After a moment, she simply goes with the most straightforward answer.]

I was turned into a vampire.

[It sounds so ridiculous, even to herself - if she had a concept of what a chuunibyou is, she'd think that that's what she sounds like. But this is Ellipsa, and stranger things have happened, so she's quite sure that Reiner will believe her. She pushes herself to at least supply some more information of what her turning means.]

There's no known cure, but... I'm much faster and stronger than before. I'm still getting used to it.

[She feels like she should be more emotional - more scared, angry, frustrated -, but all she can really focus on is Reiner. The warmth of his skin, the sound of his heartbeat, the flow of his blood... all things she can perceive or at least intuit with far greater clarity than before, and the mental mapping mechanism that has Reiner marked as 'friend' (and 'subject', and 'sacrifice', and 'atoner', and 'good Eldian') in her mind adds a 'food' label to him.]

[hometown]

[ Reiner blinks. Blinks again. ]

A vampire.

[ Reiner has heard about them from books and folklore, but he didn't think they were real. Maybe that's foolish of him, considering Jean's run-in with werewolves, but still! Vampires somehow feel on a different level. ]

Like an actual vampire? With blood-drinking and everything?

[ Maybe he's being insensitive with his questions, but this is a lot to take in! ]

[rustyhonesty]

Jean also decides to take a brief rest. Aside from protecting Sunwaning, he's also been dropping in on the neighbouring districts. Both important to him, one way or another.

"Some day, huh?" Jean says with a tired smile as Reiner turns to look at him with a smile. Even now he still had cat-like eyes that he uses to see in the dark.

Most of Jean's wounds have healed due to his tattoo magic, but he did have a deeper wound on his arm, thanks to a recent fight. However, once he's sat down he starts healing it with his Avalon powers; his hand glowing above the wound as it starts closing.

"I saw you spook people with the armor. That was a good tactic."

[hometown]

Reiner shrugs modestly, watching as Jean begins healing himself. "It was the best use for it," he says. "The Armored can't fight in the city without risking destroying things."

And that's precisely the opposite of what Reiner wants to happen to Amberfall. He has other means of fighting here, and he intends to exhaust those before resorting to the Armored's brute power.

"That's handy," he says, nodding at the magic. "Where did you learn to do that?"

[rustyhonesty]

Jean nods at what Reiner says. Any of the titans would just cause unnecessary chaos and destruction in the city. That was true back home and it was true here. But as a scare tactic it works well.

The healing magic continues to do its work as Jean looks back at Reiner.

"It's something I got from Avalon. I regained it with a potion", Jean says, finishing the work and stretching his arm a little. "I figured healing magic would come in handy."

[hometown]

Reiner nods, watching as Jean stretches his now-healed arm. If Reiner didn't know better, he'd say there had never been a wound there at all. Any marks that might be present don't show up in the dancing firelight.

"That was a good call," he says. "Can you use it on other people, too?"

Reiner's healing is incredible, but it only works on himself, as they both know well.

[rustyhonesty]

"I can, yeah, and even on animals. I should also be able to cure minor illnesses."

At least in theory he could. At least with summer powers he was able to identify what made someone sick.

"I studied under a doctor for a year to get better with healing. Anatomy was something I focused on a lot, to get a better understand what I'm healing."

[hometown]

Reiner tilts his head a little. "So you can't just dump magic into a person and let their body sort it out?"

Look, he has no idea how it works. He can focus his regenerative powers, sure. But for the most part, they sort themselves out—especially if he's incapacitated.

[tenderheartedly]

"You're still so cool," Falco says as he comes up on Reiner after it all. It would've been hard not to notice his titan just a bit before. It's weird thinking how badly he'd tried to be his successor and well things just hadn't turned out that way at all.

[hometown]

Reiner's smile turns into a low chuckle, a little embarrassed by the praise. It's still strange that Falco knows him so well—another Reiner from another time. Still strange to think that this is the boy Gabi cares about so deeply.

"You've seen me do that before, huh?" he asks, patting the seat beside him. Inviting Falco to come take a break.

[tenderheartedly]

"Mhm," Falco nods, certainly a bit enthusiastically. And he'd wanted to be him so badly too. "It always makes me want to work harder."

He sat beside him without a second thought.

[hometown]

"I'm glad you had someone to inspire you," Reiner says. Even if it was him, and Reiner isn't sure if he deserved it. Not anymore.

"When we were Candidates, we didn't really have that," he explains. "The other Warriors were almost always away. Except for the Beast; his Titan wasn't suited for combat."

[tenderheartedly]

"Yeah..." Falco's brow furrows briefly, flickering on things he tries not to think about before he's pushing the thoughts away and squaring his shoulders a bit.

"You weren't always around but... talking to you made me work harder because I wanted to be able to make sure Gabi got to live a long happy life. I was the worst at everything." Gabi was amazing at everything they did, though, and she'd never really understood why he wanted to take away what she wanted.

"No one else seemed to understand why I tried so hard even though my brother was already chosen to be the next Beast."

[hometown]

The worst at everything… Reiner's brows furrow in sympathy. It doesn't surprise him that Falco knew his own limitations. Reiner knew his, too. Knew that everyone else was better than him. That's the sort of environment Candidates grew up in: hyper-competitive, with every little thing examined and scored.

It was only after leaving that environment that Reiner started to see how screwed up it was.

He leans slightly to the side, nudging Falco gently with his arm. "I was the worst at everything, too," he admits. "I wasn't the strongest, the fastest, the smartest… I remember running laps until I wore holes in my shoes, and I still lagged behind the others."