Crash Log #1 & Will-o'-Wisp Mini-Event

[spoofer]

Characters: Second wave of Xistentia arrivals, greeters/rescuers
Summary: The second wave of characters arrive in Xistentia unexpectedly early... only to face an unexpected threat. D.E.S.T.I.N.Y.'s multiversal attack is disrupting the energy flow, causing a very unusual stampede— of will-o'-wisps, that lure travelers off their path with thoughts. It's up to the residents of Xistentia to help the newcomers!
Date(s): Mid-June 2017
Warnings/Notes: Coercive magic, collisions, moderate injury, dystopian themes

Wisp Mini-Event & Crash #2

Wish you were here. Love comes in waves

A WARNING FROM DAEMONS

Early in the morning, the glow of light to the East, where F.A.T.E.S. resides, begins to turn red in warning. Seconds later, all of the daemons begin to project the same message to their owners. The alarm continues to repeat until the characters acknowledge.

F.A.T.E.S. WARNING SYSTEM
Threat Assessment: Mild
Phenomenon Type: Native Creature Behavior
Predicted Duration: 24 hours

Due to the cosmic energy disruptions by D.E.S.T.I.N.Y., will-o'-wisps are engaging in unusual migratory activity. Residents are advised to remain in the city, or be on-guard against a low level of psychic influence. Wisps feed by creating visual, auditory, and olfactory illusions based on the viewer's needs and temptation. Individuals in compromised emotional states are more susceptible.

The migration will be complete in 24 hours.

It seems straightforward enough. But as dusk begins to fall, the distant sounds of crashing and outcry come from the beach once again. It's familiar-- the first wave of Xistentia residents arrived the exact same way only 2 weeks ago. They're going to need your help.

CRASH LAND INTO ME

For the second wave of Xistentia arrivals, the day is not nearly as ordinary.

Exit one dimension, enter the next. It was chaos: pressure against your ears, light bending in an impossible, unimaginable way. The very molecules of your body vibrating against one another. If you have windows, the view outside makes no sense. Even if not, your hands, your face, your feet seem like an uncertain thing. It's the feel of reality itself tearing apart, reshaping, reconnecting, thread by thread.

And suddenly, there's a beach— or ocean, whichever you land in. Smoke. Fire. Salt water churning up, fizzing around. It's dark— you've arrived at nightfall.

Maybe you crash, in a ship wrecking into sand. Maybe you merely stumble out of a portal, a ragged wormhole in space. Or maybe you fall off the back of an incredible steed, some creature that carried you into this place. Either way, there's pandemonium around you. Incredibly, severe injuries are far and few between— nobody's screaming about the dead. But you might have to help pull someone free of wreckage, or move quickly to salvage burning belongings from the landing craft. Maybe it's the crafts themselves, that you're trying to salvage.

Likely, you don't know them, these other strangers who arrived here^[1]. Maybe you don't trust them— you just came out of a dying world, after all. But you all have one thing in common: you're here now.

When you get a second to breathe, the danger doesn't end... because that's when the wisps come.



At first, they're just a stream of pretty lights. Like fireflies, except that their illumination holds steady as they float through empty air. It's helpful for those of us who don't have night vision. However, as the minutes wear on, the terror and stress of the day starts to change to longing. And then the illusions begin. Voices of lost loved ones calling out, or flickers of familiar figures in the distance. The scent of burgers or cinnamon cake floating through the trees.

Maybe the ones you lost aren't lost after all. Maybe there's dessert out there. Isn't it tempting to follow? But watch your step-- there are ditches, fast-flowing rivers, and sleeping trolls you might run across. The wisps are impervious to these dangers, but you likely are not.

SAVE THEIR SOULS

As rescuers venture into the forests, the wisps' illusions change to accommodate the wishes and fears of the new intruders. Each person sees their own illusion, blind to the experiences of others. However, to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Resistance from the psychic intrusion is far easier when you know what you're dealing with. Still, that doesn't mean that persuading a traumatized apocalypse survivor is easy. They've been through a lot, and if you're claiming that they're seeing things that aren't there, who's to say you aren't imaginary, yourself?



And the trolls get cranky when their sleep is disturbed.

By morning, however, the wisps have cleared and the other creatures of Xistentia are off on their business. Maybe that's when you choose to come out and help, to find new refugees sleeping in trees, thickets, beach-wrecked fuselage, and other places they had found sanctuary for the night.

WELCOME TO THE CITY

The second wave of arrivals comes into a city that is very different from the one that the first refugees did. Sure, there are still animals and overgrown trees intruding in many buildings and streets— but the center looks very civilized now. Eight full city blocks where the hedges are groomed and the building facades are clean and orderly.


There are a number of fully operational businesses, including restaurants and a tailor. Agriculture is taking off gradually, albeit in a disorganized fashion, thanks to the fact most of the people involved are amateurs. Street lights, the beacons that sense character interactions, are fully operational throughout the day-- likewise, most of the city's functions work just fine now, including indoor lights, plumbing, electricity, etc. Cable isn't great, though. Depending on how badly your encounter with the Wisps was, you may also get acquainted with the hospital. It still looks shabby and moss-eaten, but its glowing recovery enhancement beds work very well. Better bring someone with you, though!

Current Sentient Population
of Xistentia:
222

We now have Instagram!

There's a lot to explore, if you're into that. The two most prominent landmarks are the Central Citadel that overlooks the sea to the West, and the Temple on the Eastern edge of the forest. The former has a bar and lounge, and an oddly self-replenishing availability of liquor, as well as a variety of defunct audotitoriums, bedrooms and technology laboratories. The latter contains strange stone artefacts that blur the line between magic and technology, but are largely unresponsive to touch. The only exception is one sleek screen, black and shiny as volcano glass: an amenities request interface. Tell F.A.T.E.S. what you need.

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

hells yeah

Footnotes

1. Some of these can be nameless, plot-device NPCs to facilitate interactions! But even in this case, please avoid gore in describing their current state of being. Anyone dead or catastrophically injured will have disappeared by the time your characters make it to Xistentia. There are no corpses or dying here.
   
   
2. But like OOCly ask permission ofc.

Comments

Jace Wayland | Shadowhunters | OTA (note: Shadowhunters 2a spoilers in prompt & threads)

[estrayer]

A. CRASH LANDING

[ He was supposed to be in a demon's lair. Or whatever passed for that, anyway. He had expected to come out of the portal and into a fight, which explained why there was a glowing seraph blade in his hand.

Instead, there's a beach full of other people, some falling into the sand, and others in the water all around. Wide-eyed and confused, Jace nevertheless acts on instinct. He rolls clear of his own portal. The blade vanishes, and he pockets the hilt while dropping by the side of the first person he sees who's faceplanted in the sand. ]

Are you okay? Give me your hand.

[ He says, while reaching for their arm. He is not where he's supposed to be and none of this is what he expected. It doesn't matter right now; most of these people look like civilians and some of them might be hurt. He'll get that under control first. If the demon he's after is here, he'll find it. ]

B. WISPS

[ By the time the lights appear, Jace's witchlight is already glowing in his hand, and his nightvision -
imperfect though it is - is lighting his way. At first, he doesn't realize what's happening. He's in the forest walking away from the beach, and he thinks nothing of the lights. It's nighttime; he dismisses them, thinking they're fireflies. Or some alien version of fireflies.

Until that voice hits him. ]

You are my greatest achievement, Jace.

[ He stops moving. That can't be real. It can't. Valentine was under lock and key before he came here.
He couldn't have escaped. There's no way he could have followed Jace, it's just impossible. Like almost everything else he'd ever achieved over the years. But no, this had to be different. It needs to be. It's - ]

Jace Wayland. This unit will guide you to the city.

[ He wheels around. There's a brown falcon, hovering at head height and staring at him. He stares back,
his heart thudding in his chest, because he knows that bird. The last time he saw it, it was lifeless on the floor, after his father - after Valentine - had killed it in front of him. This isn't happening. He must have hit his head, or there's some kind of magic going on. He's hallucinating. ]

This isn't real.

This unit will guide you to the city. Do not follow the lights.

[ Unit? Shaking his head, Jace backs away. He turns, blindly, uncaring, and then in front of him, Valentine stands, as if they'd never been separated at all. He's even holding the Mortal Cup,
which Jace knows has to be a lie. This is not real. It's not, it can't be. He blinks, hard, willing his Sight to let him see through the illusion. It works, to a point. He can almost see the lights behind the image. Then Valentine speaks, and he slams back into solid focus. ]

It's time for you to work. The sword was only the beginning.

Shut your mouth. I'm not going anywhere with you.

[ Except that he is, very slowly. The hallucination leads him ever deeper into the forest, while the very real,
and very concerned falcon daemon calls for him to stay. ]

C. CITY

[ He isn't over the falcon yet. The forest with its wisps and it's trolls and, god, whatever else was in there, may be behind him, but one of the most disturbing parts of it is still tagging along. The bird flies along behind him,
and every time he stops, it tries to perch on his shoulder. It never seems to lose that urge no matter how many times he pushes it off. ]

This unit will guide you to your apartment.

[ Jace's jaw clenches. ]

I know. I heard you the first fifteen times. I need you to take me to D.E.S.T.I.N.Y, can you wrap your circuits around that? I'm not staying.

[ He already has regrets about entering that portal. If his world is really about to die, this is not where he wants to be. It's too clean, too nice. Too unbecoming of the front lines between life and the apocalypse. The daemon is giving the same tired explanation of what they're supposed to do here, when Jace cuts it off. ]

I don't have time for that. Just show me the city. Not the apartment complex.

[ And so he explores, finding stores and businesses and a hell of a lot of encroaching plant life, but nothing even as challenging as the wisps. This isn't the demon he'd come looking for. If you imagine that would make him happy,
think again; Jace's mood worsens the longer the day goes on. Find him anywhere around the city; the later it is,
the more irritable he'll be. ]

D. WILDCARD

[ Create your own adventure! I'm halfbloodly on plurk if anyone wants to plot. ]

( ii. )

[creatio]

[ It's harder than she'd like to shake off the projection of her mother. Clary doesn't know why it's so strong, why she can smell her perfume trailing through the forest. She wonders if it's simply because she hasn't seen her in a few months - her time in Eudio was the longest she'd ever spent away and yet she'd stayed safe in the knowledge that she'd get to go home eventually. That Joceyln was safe, they'd found her and she was protected again, that Clary would see her soon.

Here, it's a little harder to keep ahold of that certainty. What if she doesn't get home? What if she never sees her mother again?

It's that thought that rests at the forefront of her mind when she sees - no, not Valentine, it can't be. She reminds herself that these things are not real. When she focuses, the lights behind him are a little clearer. Another projection. What is clearly not a projection - and instead solid and real behind the wisp - is Jace. Clary could almost weep in relief, even as she's stumbling over roots and stone to get to him. ]

Jace!

[ She reaches for him, refusing to look at the projection at her side. Her hands are warm when they press into his arm, slowing him, trying to ease him into a stop. ] Jace, look at me. It isn't real. It's leading you to danger. [ She'd almost fallen to her death, she knows. ] Don't look at it.

[estrayer]

[ At first, her voice is distant. Valentine's is much more clear, tugging at him, urging him on, making him argue. ]

I said no. I'm bringing you back.

[ Then there's the hand on his arm, warm and at odds with everything he feels around Valentine. Confused, Jace turns towards it, and his vision seems to mist over. He blinks his way through it, focusing on the voice, and Clary's face emerges.

Clary.

Wait, what the hell is...? ]

You shouldn't be here.

[ His head feels clouded. He tries to work through the fog, to concentrate both on what he's thinking and on what she's saying. ]

Valentine is here. I don't know how he escaped, but we can't let him escape. Come on.

[ He looks back around, but in that instant, there's no Valentine to see. He only emerges slowly, as if the image isn't quite real. Jace blinks, no longer trusting his own eyes, and then with an effort, he looks through the Sight. Now all he sees are wisps of light. His gaze hardens. ]

This is wrong.

[creatio]

[ Were it any other time and Clary would throw her hands up in agitation. Jace knows how to rile her up, and even if he doesn't mean to when he's telling her what to do, it always hits home.

She shouldn't be here, sure. Neither should he. ]

He's not.

[ She doesn't want to look at the projection, doesn't want to give it anymore power. Still smarting from thinking her mother was here, Valentine would only make her reckless and furious. She's not about to let herself be trapped like that. And so she focuses on the boy before her. ] He's not. It's a trick. It's like they know the thing to make us follow them and they're trying to lead us astray. It's just a trick.

[ She hasn't let go of him yet, and doesn't even as she sees understanding and realisation dawn over his features. ]

I know, I know. But we have to get to the city. That's what Pikad told me.

[ Still looking at him, eyes wide and worried. ]

Are you okay? Are you hurt?

[estrayer]

I'm fine.

[ Jace says, the answer automatic and a little frustrated. He's not fine. The image is still pulling at his vision, wanting him to trust it. He doesn't, not now. Clary is a solid figure in comparison. She's the one grounding him in reality.

That's frustrating, too, though in an entirely different way. He meets her eyes, and she's never seemed more real. After a moment he lets out a breath, and puts his hand on his shoulder. ]

I'm fine. [ This time he sounds like he means it. ] The city sounds good. Do you know what it's called? What's a Pikad?

[ He sends an uncertain glance at the yellow thing beside her. Presumably that's what she means, but it's a reference he doesn't get. He moves consciously towards Clary, ignoring the haunting sounds of Valentine's voice in his ear. ]

[creatio]

It's a Pikachu.

( She eyes him up, something incredulous and so very normal in her expression. ) How do you know what Star Wars is but have no idea about Pokémon? ( She keeps her gaze locked in on his, worry still fizzing around in her veins. Clary's fingers circle around his wrist in a desperate attempt to ground both him and herself. )

It told me about the wisps, but I didn't listen. When we get to a place with electricity I am totally going to tell you all about my escapades with a giant hole, okay?

( She takes a step back, trying to lead him away from the forest. )

You'll laugh, it'll be a great time.

[estrayer]

Star Wars is a classic.

[ Says Jace, in the kind of tone that suggests Pokemon is not. The real truth of the matter is that he didn't exactly spend his childhood playing video games. He's still eyeing her daemon. ]

That thing looks like a diseased rabbit. I had a bird somewhere.

[ Right on cue, the falcon swoops down to land on his shoulder. Jace shrugs it off, not quite ready for that level of intimacy just yet. He is at least focusing on it, though. The more he walks with Clary, the easier it is to walk away from Valentine. Jace looks at the bird. ]

The city. Can you show us the way?

I can. Please follow me.

[ It takes off again, flying high above their heads, and presumably leading them towards the city. Jace glances at Clary. ]

So, you fell in a hole? Are you okay?

[creatio]

( She's about to protest, defend her daemon and its choice of appearance, but it dies on her tongue when his arrives. Clary stares, and continues to stare even as it flies away. She's suddenly so very angry, furious that this place has done this to him. Between the apparitions and now this --.

Her hands ball into fists at her side. She wants to hit something, suddenly annoyed Valentine isn't around for her to take her ire out on. )

What?

( She looks back at him, expression softening into something more concerned, more careful. )

Oh. Yeah. I had my stele so I'm all scratch free now. I was just more annoyed than anything else. I don't like being tricked.

( Emotional manipulation, the easiest way to rile her up. )

[estrayer]

[ Jace studiously avoids that expression. It's like a knife in his heart to see Clary looking at him that way. He knows exactly what it's about, and he not only doesn't want to deal with that, but it makes him remember when it was okay for them to look at each other like that. He needs neither of these things, so he looks away, deliberately following the falcon. ]

Yeah, well. Join the club. I should've known it wasn't real.

[ If it hadn't been Valentine, it wouldn't have worked. ]

The Clave won't let him go now they have him. We need to keep on task. This is so much more than I was expecting.