tornheart | AWAKENING

Entry tags:

AWAKENING

Who: Everyone
When: Midnight, June 6th
Where: Green Valley Orchids
What: It is time.

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN

The subway stop near the orchards was not the type of place that most people liked to be when darkness fell. The orchards near the school were set up almost like a public park, which wasn’t so bad in and of itself, but it’s also the area where over half of the murders happened before the curfew was first put in place. It was a place people didn't go unless absolutely necessary and most had started taking alternate routes to avoid the stop. As one of the first subway stations built in the city, its architecture didn't really mesh with those that came after it. It had jagged corners where the smell of wet earth lingered, making it unpleasant even for those brave enough to continue to use it, and there had even been talk of closing it permanently once routes and nearby stations had been revamped to be better able to take care of the traffic.

Due to this, it only has the bare-bones of a shelter, fallen into disrepair as the curfew was enforced city-wide, and a couple of night guards, (probably already asleep due to the lack of activity they’re expecting), so characters arriving there will be mostly unnoticed. For a place that had such a bad history, most people rightfully avoid it.

For most of them it will be their first meeting with each other. There will be a bit of time to talk before their phones display a zero. Plenty of time to talk about what they suspect and what might just happen...and that horrible vision they had shared. Then there’s that countdown on their phones...ticking away the last few minutes.

ZERO UNTIL MIDNIGHT

The lights go out when the countdown ends. The lack of sound is, for lack of better word, worrying. Very soon, only the light of the phones serves as makeshift flashlights for the small group. But soon, even as words get displayed, a deep male voice echoes, which could be much more worrying.

FINALLY! Ahahahahah! Ahhh, damn does it feel nice to be able to speak and not
just write. Hey lambs, are you all ready?

Considering the choice of words, that might be Luci.

It's time. Can you feel your heartbeats increasing? Your mind about to explode? Questions swirling in your mind? Just make sure you don't go alone. Groups are
best, go all together and you'll never find the answers.

The voice laughs again.

Not that you have much of a choice at this point! Have fun, give them hell, and tell
them I sent you! I'll be taking care of that pesky guard problem for you.
...Let's go for a night stroll."

Communication ends just as abruptly as it started. No time to back down now, as the door where the guards are staying is quickly locked on its own before the subway system itself appears to be taken over by a virus that flashes on every available screen. With a click, the locked doors to the outside are swung open.

A voice in your mind warns you this might be the biggest mistake you'll be making in your entire life...and yet your heart feels like it's going to burst from your body from the joy you feel...

AWAKENING

It begins with a scream nearby. The same noise that they heard during the vision. The trees begin to turn grey as the sounds of hundred of creatures moving can be heard from all sides. The application opens, displaying them all in real time.

The group is surrounded.

By all logic, they should be running, but their legs feel bolted to the ground. They can't move.

The creatures begin to get closer. The trees start to rot nearby.

Breathing begins to increase. The sound of voices and memories quickly flashing before their eyes that might cause some to clutch at their head...exactly the same thing that the man had been doing back in the vision. If they look down at their hands, they will see them fading, see-through.

Yet for them, something is different. Just as the creatures are about to attack, they stop. A vision of the Velvet Room flashes before the eyes of those gathered as the two attendants silently nod. Then a return to reality as a light of color pierces the night from their hearts. A single voice can be heard, drowning out anything they might be hearing.

The time is now. I am thou, thou art I! Your mind is trapped, but I can set your soul free! My other self, will you die, or fight back?

Accept me for who I am! Forge this contract by letting go of your fears! Revolt against this world, and TEAR OUT YOUR HEART!

It laughs and fades, as time quickly returns to this world. There's only a few seconds to react before it all goes to hell. A faded hand to reach into your chest.

The choice is yours. Death...or Awakening.

THE BATTLE IN APPLE GROVE

It’s a feeling unlike they have ever felt. Never have their bodies been so alive. Their minds fill with lost memories, their bodies adapting into tools to defeat the creatures before them.

Defeat...destroy...unlock the skills of your heart and show them what it means
to cross you."

The voice is encouraging, almost. To those with navigator skills, the voice speaks up once more as well.

Lead them into battle. Hone their skills into true annihilation!"

It’s time to reclaim the night.

[OOC: For the purpose of this battle, the shadows all have 1HP and are strong against nothing. That means any attack will be able to kill them, weapons and guns included. For this log only, CHARACTERS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COMBINE SPELLS, as knowledge of this will be unlocked later on. There are about a HUNDRED shadows to be defeated, so there are as many needed for your characters to enjoy killing off. You are free to NPC them and to create situations and close calls.

An OOC PLANNING POST can be used to ask questions or to form teams.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Pre-Awakening

Akira is more than likely the youngest person to arrive, which makes him stand out quite a bit- there are only one or two either primary cycle aged children, after all, and he seems... remarkably calm. He probably just doesn't understand what's happening, right?

Still, even he is a little nervous, and very quiet, watching everyone else as they gather while periodically looking down at his phone. "Are those things going to show up again...?" he asks.

Awakening

TEAR OUT YOUR HEART!

Akira's eyes are brimming with tears as they're all surrounded, the panic of everyone else getting to him as much as anything. Maybe he shouldn't have come, maybe he should have listened and stayed home but- but...

Something about this is... wrong. But familiar. But also very wrong.

The boy screams as he pulls his heart from his chest, but once his Persona appears it suddenly stops, and Pharos blinks at the scene around him.

He reaches up, touching the wet drops on his face in confusion. He remembers now... he's had these once before. Tears, aren't they? But this is different. It was for a different reason before now-- though maybe that's something he should worry about later.

Pharos turns to look at his Persona - Ronove, a skeletal being with a staff, wings made of coffins, and a very odd hat- and looks more puzzled than anything. "...I shouldn't have a Persona," he says simply.

(He is completely ignoring the Shadows.)

Navigation

It takes a little bit for Pharos to actually get on track and doing his job, considering he really shouldn't be able to fight Shadows being one himself and all. Also he shouldn't at all, and his clothes have changed for some reason. He's back in the black and white striped pajamas he always wore, sandals on his feet, but now there are translucent wings attached to the back of his outfit that seem to serve no purpose at all.

Ronove picks up the boy, holding him above the battlefield as he shifts through the navigation, taking in the information. What are you doing? he asks in the middle of battle, if someone looks like they're very lost with how to use their new powers.

Jaune's still adjusting. He's fought monsters before, but not like this. Although he has to admit, even he's a little surprised by the similarities here. He's pretty sure that aside from the flesh melting these Shadows aren't too different from the Grimm of Vale. He's used a sword before, though this one isn't exactly like the one in his memories. It doesn't seem to be a problem though, the sword feeling somehow more familiar than even the Arc family relic he used to wield.

More importantly though, he doesn't seem to be relying on any of his persona's magical abilities--relying on pure slashes and strikes of the physical nature. Just as he cuts down another of them he stumbles a bit when he hears the voice in his head. "Huh? What do you mean?" It's a moment of calm, though he can see other Shadows quickly approaching.

Your Persona can help, that's what it's there for, Pharos explains calmly through the psychic transmission- he's still being held by Ronove, after all, You can feel the power in you, can't you? Try it.

At his side and behind him is an imposing knight on a semi-skeletal steed. Jaune hadn't given it much thought, beyond realizing while the horse kind of looked like a grimm in some respects it was, in fact, not trying to kill him actively as the shadows were. The armor is also distinctive, no one puts armor on a grimm, and it matches the rider. He can't see the knight's face, for it is hidden behind shadow and a stylized helmet--that kind of reminds Jaune of a rabbit for some reason with the way its shaped.

Eligor. Right, this was his persona and he can only assume he knows that name because of their connection. And, now that he feels that, he feels the other powers she can grant him.

Jaune turns towards an oncoming shadow, drawing on that power he casts Kouha. There's a flash of light that pierces the shadow and it goes down.

Good. There's a nod of approval from the boy watching over the battlefield, quietly pressing the screens lighting up in front of him. He sort of has been able to just feel things from Shadows before, but this is interesting. Even though he really shouldn't have it. They're not very strong. There are just a lot.

Well at least he can do that right. He might not have figured out his Semblance, but apparently here that doesn't matter much. This...persona is working with him so maybe that's why it comes easier than anything he tried back home.

"Yeah, I noticed. But it could still be a problem..." While he's figured out the spell, for lack of a better word, he's always been more of a physical fighter. He adjusts his grip on the sword in his hand and cleaves through another of the monsters. He wasn't sure how similar these things were to his memories of the Grimm. Would more come to take their place? Were their stronger ones lurking in the distance? He didn't remember seeing any of that in the vision before they came--but all the same he can't help but worry and make these comparisons. "Even weak, their numbers could overwhelm us if we're not careful."

Pharos considers the situation, eyes scanning the screens. Do you think so? he says, sounding doubtful over the connection but relenting, I suppose this might help...

He presses another part of his screen, quietly speaking aloud this time. "Ronove." The Persona lifts the arm with its staff, still balancing the small boy in the other, casting a spell. One of the Shadows stops attacking Jaune, seeming to be confused and begins attacking the other Shadows as well. It won't last long, but...

Jaune wasn't sure what he had been expecting...but it wasn't that. He has so many questions now, but the battlefield isn't the place for them. Just another thing to ask about later, if he starts thinking about all of his questions now his brain might leave as easily as his heart had.

He doesn't want to think about that either, actually.

The point is, he isn't going to waste this opportunity. First he takes care of the Shadows within range of his sword and then starts casting that light spell again--hey if he has an ability that can hit them at a range, he's going to use it.

Pharos tries Marin Karin again but it fails this time- which he expected, honestly. The 'brainwashed' shadow manages to take out a few of its fellows before it's destroyed, but it's not like the two of them alone can really thin the herd. There really are a lot, the boy muses, not seeming too concerned.

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Navigation -- because we're both ignorant of persona so this should be fun 8Db

\o/

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