deercountry | (closed) the captain called all hands and swore

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(closed) the captain called all hands and swore

Who: John and friends. This is the CLOSED log.
What: A boat trip.
When: 7/05
Where: Out on the sea.

Warnings: blood, violence, murder of helpless victims, drowning, grief, body horror, eldritch bug monsters.

[ It's time for BOATGATE, a player plot full of murder, corruption, and vengeance. This log is closed to John's close CR. Here is a timeline.

PART 1 - BOAT FIGHT
1.1 - The Preparations - John invites his friends out sailing.
1.2 - The Trip - They have a briefly pleasant time.
1.3 - The Raid - John asks his kids to capture some NPC pirates.
1.4 - The Sacrifice - John asks his kids to execute the pirates. This goes wrong quickly.
1.5 - The Sinking - Mariana rebels and the ship goes down. Waves, Beasts, chaos.

PART 2 - BEACH FIGHT
2.1 - Washing Up - Characters make it to shore, react to the chaos, and decide to fight or flee.
2.2 - Fight Fight Fight - Several new combatants enter the scene.
2.3 - The Immediate Aftermath - Survivors limp home.

Participants, feel free to mingle and tag around below. Everyone else, please see the OPEN log for PART 3 - CONSEQUENCES. ]

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[ Add your character here, for handwaving purposes! Just give us a line about what action they'd take and how they'd fare in each stage. ]

PART 1 - BOAT FIGHT

1.1 - The Preparations - John invites all the participants out sailing, or you can say the invite reached them through someone else in the group. He'd give the reasons described at the bottom of the ooc post.
1.2 - The Trip - John is in apparently good spirits, but there's a tension underlying it. Sea shanties, jokes, the usual.
1.3 - The Raid - John encourages Anna to attract the attention of pirates and lets the kids get worked up about a coming battle. The pirates board The Lonely Island and are handily defeated. John will heal all wounds in his crew.
1.4 - The Sacrifice - John has the whole pirate crew rounded up and gives the order to kill them. For science. When fighting breaks out, he will immobilize Deku until the ritual is complete. His Omen threatens to manifest.
1.5 - The Sinking - Mariana smashes the boat. He will try to keep it afloat with necromancy, but this comes at the cost of defending his crew: he is so busy trying to wrangle his fight with Mariana that he does not help Gideon when she falls in and drowns. His Omen still threatens to manifest.

PART 2 - BEACH FIGHT

2.1 - Washing Up - John can get a ride to shore or make his own way. He will try to h/c the kids and get rebuffed.
2.2 - Fight Fight Fight - John's Omen manifests and she is very bad! John will not kill anyone directly, but Lenore will try. She will fly into a berserker state and go after anyone she perceives as a threat, including Augustine, Paul, L, etc. John will try to rein her in without success. He will give Augustine the order to kill indiscriminately to simplify things, which is how Kaine gets murdered for being rude.
2.3 - The Immediate Aftermath - John, badly corrupted, makes his way home.

[ They make it back to the beach. Most of them, anyway.

It isn't pretty. ]

[ The survivors scatter. ]

[ Things have been quiet, for a little while. So it's on a completely unremarkable afternoon that God approaches you, holding a tray of tea— or a beer, or a book— and begins with: ]

It's been a while since we took a field trip.

[ Never mind that the last one was to Hell, and he didn't come. ]

[ The weather is bad. It's hot, muggy, and threatening to thunder. The ocean is as choppy and violent as they've ever seen it, and the locals on the docks seem to think an outing now is foolishness: the Reckoning is coming, they explain, like they're just waiting for a storm to break.

John ignores it all. It's with a fierce, unsettling cheer that he leads the preparations, skeletons constantly clamoring and swarming across the deck. Maybe he rounds back to the kids long enough to egg everyone into sea shanties. Maybe you catch the tense, inscrutable energy between him and Augustine. Or maybe he steps up to your side on the prow, to look out into the whipping wind. ]

[ With Captain Amarande at the helm and the kids riled up for an adventure, it isn't hard to lure in something worth fighting. The only pirates willing to sail through Reckoning's month are the most desperate, the hungriest, the most warped by seawater and Corruption. The ship flies tattered sails and the crew are horrible all over, marked by scales and suckers and the frantic gleam of half-Beasts.

So John really doesn't think anyone will protest the chance to burn off some steam. ]

They want a fight, we'll give 'em one.

[ He smiles, but it's in that hard way he's adopted lately: it is more a baring of teeth, a laugh over open fury. He turns to each of his combatants in turn, like a pep talk, like a blessing. ]

Let's clean up a bit while we're out here, yeah? Corral 'em all here on deck and we'll have a friendly chat.

[ The enemy ship creaks closer, closer. The warped pirates jeer and shout. The Lonely Island is about to be boarded. ]

It's go time, kids.

[ To the surprise of probably no one, it gets worse.

The pirates have been gathered on deck. Many of them are worse for wear, but all are alive, even if John had to provide a friendly reminder of "I said chat, let's not be too rough with them" along the way. It's a crew of about a dozen, some armed with enhanced weapons— coldblood cutlasses, a few vileblood daggers, nasty stuff— and they put up a solid fight. It could've gone worse.

God walks the deck and rewards his children with an approving touch to the shoulder, a clap on the back. Wounds knit shut in his presence as though they were never there. Everything has gone very quiet and still, now: the loudest sound is the slapping of waves against the ship, the snarling of a few gagged pirates, and the creak of their abandoned vessel. ]

Well! Fantastic job all around, I love to see it. We can finally get back to the point, here... And these fellows will help us with it.

[ He turns to survey his crew— Anna playing captain, Augustine dogging his steps like a wary shadow; Palamedes owlish and Ortus grave; Kaworu looks back at him with trust, Willow with the air of someone expecting a trainwreck. It's his combatants he really turns to, in this moment: Gideon, Paul, Harrow, Faith, Chara, Midoriya. ]

For a year now— can you believe it?— I've been trying to puzzle out this ocean. Some of you kids have seen the River... the place where all our dead go. The River is mine. [ This he says very easily, the same way you'd claim a house or a room or a name. ] This place, though? Total mystery. I can almost see to the currents in the depths... I can almost see where it joins the River, and the rest of everything out beyond. I am constantly a hair away from getting it.

This is the frontier that really matters, here. This is the brink. I can steal us a glimpse of our place in this universe... the people we've left behind... [ And so what if there's something familiar in the way he says it: a wistful note that Augustine must know down to his tired bones, that might make Harrow recall an old poem. ] But, like most things, it'll take sacrifice.

[ Not one of those pirates looks human, anymore. Nothing of value is being lost. ]

Apologies to the squeamish, but death has always been our power. Go ahead and do the honors.

[ So, that went poorly.

For all the noble protests, the pirates still collapse like puppets with their strings cut. The necromancers present will feel the hit of available thanergy like a gasp of pure oxygen, like all the lights coming on: then it is transfigured into something else altogether, as the blood of the victims bleeds upwards into the air. It coalesces into a long, thick spear of muddy red.

The needle of blood drops into the ocean like a missile. God drives a spike of power downward and elsewhere and into Mariana.

For a moment, in the last gasp before the wave hits, the world is darkened under stormclouds. God's eyes glow an unholy burning white. There is nothing human in his face at all.

Then it all really goes to shit.

The ocean comes alive with a roaring fury. The ship rocks in great surging waves; lines snap, and the pirates' vessel comes loose to be dragged away by the wind; rain hits in a sudden, torrential downpour. The water is frigid in one moment and scalding in the next. It feels like something big, something powerful, is screaming.

There is Omen smoke boiling around John, shuddering off his body like steam, coming in great greasy billows. Among all of this, he says: ]

No, come on. I just want to talk.

[ It is at this point that God totally comes undone.

His face has twisted into a snarl, and with it, something has changed; there is a newly hollow look to him, his skull too visible beneath the skin. His mouth is too wide, the hinges of his jaw whitely visible. His fingers are too long and segmented, the skin flaking away like so much ash to show what is beneath.

He is a skeletal thing, all bone and glossy iridescent chitin, rainbow-on-black like an oilslick. His flesh is constantly dissolving away like ash, and what's visible underneath is horribly honeycombed, impossible, difficult to look at. The depths of his body glitter with Darkblood like old nebulas. When the wings finally peel wetly off his back, they shiver with a low and horrible hum.

And there are two of him, one worse than the other. Because his Omen— eight feet of bone and chitin and eddying Darkblood, the world's worst skeleton meets the world's worst bee— unfolds herself into existence from the smoke at his feet, and she takes to the air. She holds herself a few paces to the side of him and behind, like a cavalier.

Those without necromancy will find them unpleasant to look upon. Those with necromancy will feel the skittering, raw-nerve terror of beholding a Herald.

And God says to his Omen, in a buzzing voice that clicks in all the wrong places: ]

Babe, can we not do this right now.

[ The fight is exhilarating.

Gideon and her friends (her House) are a machine, a flurry of motion and power and moves that are, scientifically speaking, cool as fuck. It doesn't quite feel like a dream come true, exactly, because Gideon never dreamed of sticking her sword in Corrupted pirates. But she thinks there's a little girl who used to live on the Ninth who would have liked this a lot.

She finishes the fight standing tall, and when her father places a hand on her shoulder to heal her -- to maybe, just maybe, congratulate her -- she straightens up a little more. He says our place, and for once, Gideon counts herself among the group.

He says sacrifice, and Gideon's blood runs cold.

This isn't how it happens. Gideon knows that Cohort heroes secure thanergy blooms for their necromancers, but that's part of a battle. There is no battle here. There is only the cold, brutal weight of execution.

Gideon grips her sword. Gideon falters. ]

What? Hold on.

[ Gideon, at the end of the day, has always been a disappointment. ]

Edited 2022-06-29 20:06 (UTC)

[—But despite his not-so-head-start in the quest to get ashore, having tipped unceremoniously overboard before the dang thing sank, Palamedes washes ashore more or less with everybody else. He is more water than Warden by weight at this point, accompanied by Rio who is desperately nudging him to move faster away from the danger zone (tm), and most pathetically - holding just one half of his pair of glasses, which he has to hold up to wink through to see fucking anything at all.

It is like this, then, that he spots a miserable headache at a distance looming behind God, and boy howdy, does he not want to see that shit at all. The very sight scrapes horridly against the inside of his skull and he recoils a few more paces in the other direction, clutching the one lens down at his side like maybe not seeing her clearly will be better.

(It is not better.)

He says, to no one,] Ew.

[And continues his stomp up the beach to get the hell out of there.]

PART 1 - BOAT FIGHT

1.1 - The Preparations - Tolerated for being good at his job and throwing fewer punches than his other half, Palamedes arrives looking like he is already exhausted by the whole affair, because the sea is bad actually and this is a bad idea. He is terse but not moody.
1.2 - The Trip - Palamedes is not going to sing any shanties because he has self-awareness about his singing ability and also, mmph, no thanks @ moving while on this boat. He will pick a spot out of the way and not leave it, but for most people at least, he is willing to have a conversation. He is mercifully not testing his tolerance for seasickness this time.
1.3 - The Raid - He'll sit this one out as he is a piece of dry pasta with glasses, lmao...
1.4 - The Sacrifice - Ethically and like with human decency he objects, but he continues to just stand there in what he wishes were shock instead of dull un-surprise, until the trouble really starts and Ortus tips him overboard as a gesture of goodwill.
1.5 - The Sinking - he's in the ocean somewhere with omen rio, good luck everybody ✌️

PART 2 - BEACH FIGHT

2.1 - Washing Up - As soon as Rio swims him back to shore he is grabbing Viktor and skedaddling, peace out. Text him when you are done Making Choices, buds.
2.2 - Fight Fight Fight - n/a
2.3 - The Immediate Aftermath - n/a

[For those reluctant to participate in the sacrifice (or otherwise OOC wanting to opt their characters out) Paul will be using the Voice, a form of non-magical mind control, to prevent them from interfering in the actions of those who are participating in the killing.

The Voice will feel like an immediate compulsion to obey the order Paul gives that will last as long as is narratively convenient for each character affected, but will definitely stop before the ship is sunk - Paul is not trying to drown anyone.

The order that Paul will give, verbally, is "Stop." His intent will be encoded via the mechanism the Voice works with, so that those affected will understand it to mean that he is asking them to 1. not move from where they are standing 2. not interfere. This will not mean to stop breathing, blinking, or being aware of what is going on around them.]

PART 1 - BOAT FIGHT

1.1 - The Preparations - Despite how this will be the first real time she's spoken to Teacher since she began tugging at his threads, she agrees to join. Her loved ones have long since made it out of the water, so that gambit won't work, but she'll agree to an expedition to learn more about the nature of Sleepers. Besides, a ship can't get far without its captain.
1.2 - The Trip - It's time for another rousing, a cappella chorus of the Wellerman. And she's not gonna stop until everybody's singing.
1.3 - The Raid - Slowly getting caught back up in the way it feels to be the Dread Captain Amaranth (and overcompensating for the time she spent as a victim of the Lonely), Anna gives into Teacher's goading to bring a crew of pirates aboard and rough them up a little. It'll be fun for the kids, too, and a good way to make sure that the pirates know who owns these seas.
1.4 - The Sacrifice - Voiced by Paul. Horrified into silence as her body stops obeying her.
1.5 - The Sinking - Rescued by Dekubus because she's 1) extremely dense and will sink with the boat; 2) swinging between apoplexy and catatonia fast enough to metaphorically generate her own magnetic field.

PART 2 - BEACH FIGHT

2.1 - Washing Up - Lands safely on the beach, drawing her sword to try to handle the threat that's made itself known to all of them.
2.2 - Fight Fight Fight - Anna fights until Kainé dies.
2.3 - The Immediate Aftermath - Stricken with grief and bleeding for vengeance, she returns home and vows to drag everyone who sent her into this Hell back down with her.

[the weather is worse directly surrounding teacher, as far as anna is concerned. she feels gravity surrounding him, dread hanging as heat haze. but when one finds oneself walking into the heart of danger, keep walking. she looks over the rail at the way the ocean churns, and as teacher approaches her, she finally pulls her head away from the sight below. the chance of her being able to match his cheerful energy is very low, but not impossible.]

Don't look down. [it's a casual warning, and one that she knows won't affect his mood in the slightest.] It's been a while, Teach. I was starting to think you'd forgotten about all of this.

PART 1 - BOAT FIGHT

1.1 - The Preparations - Chara will show up as one of Jemperor's students and as a friend and ally of Paul's. They'll be polite but insufferable as they usually are. Your tolerance may vary.
1.2 - The Trip - Under absolutely no circumstances will they sing. They might speak like a pirate in front of Deku, but with absolutely no change to their nondescript but vaguely american accent and tone of voice. They'll be actively very curious about John Jemperor's goal and will
1.3 - The Raid - Chara will utterly demolish any pirate in their path. The only thing stopping them from killing them was that they were ordered to bring them onto the boat alive, but they will sever a few limbs at least.
1.4 - The Sacrifice - Chara will raise their hand like they're in class and ask if Jemperor Jod Jaius wants them all dead at the same time or just in general. After that point of clarification they will immediately stab their own captured pirates in the heart one by one. If anyone tries to stop them, they will fight over this. If anyone doesn't fight them but clearly doesn't want to do it, they will gently offer to kill their pirates for them.
1.5 - The Sinking - Chara is getting rescued by Deku. Surely he will not regret this. Chara thinks Marina is a bit of a dick for this :/

PART 2 - BEACH FIGHT

2.1 - Washing Up - Chara will show up and be as fine as they ever are. They'll be quick to speak on Paul and Jod's defence, saying that everyone else is being wildly immature for assuming that they could stick to their precious ethical principles about killing.
2.2 - Fight Fight Fight - Chara will fight in Paul and John's defence, and due to Oscar showing up uninvited, they will seek to make an example of him and kill him. Just to make it clear that they have no qualms about killing anyone else if they continue to get in the way. This will backfire when an enraged Willow decides to kick the shit out of them. They will get their ass kicked a lot but it'll end inconclusively after they stab her and they'll both run away quickly.
2.3 - The Immediate Aftermath - Heavily corrupted and drowning in nihilism, they will escape to rest and recuperate before continuing their murderous rampage against NPCs and Sleepers who get in their way alike. After roping their partner into it of course.

Edited 2022-06-30 00:19 (UTC)

[Palamedes is pretty sure his presence is only tolerated on this boat by their dear Captain Whatever His Name Is, and in the wake of... various conversations, he's elected to embrace being only tolerated. Here on the boat, this means keeping to himself, more or less, and not trying to interfere with any shanties or team building or whatever is going on.

Also, he is a little seasick. Unlike the last time, he isn't standing full in the face of sea winds and waves timing how long his stomach can take it. No, this time he's settled into a corner and just slid miserably down to the deck, to sit there and not look at the bobbing horizon. Nope. Eugh.

But this whole thing is a bad idea, he's pretty sure, so he makes an effort to check in-- with his buds, anyway. Whether that is a grim wave from his corner or actually on his feet and kinda green, But Dealing, he makes a wholehearted attempt to catch up with everyone and ask the same question:]

Are you doing alright, so far?

[There's a split second of confusion before Chara raises their hand, a touch concerned.]

Do they need to die at the same time for the ritual?

[Of course, any moral objections died with the fallen child, if they were ever there to begin with. In the same way that a necromancer's power is death, Chara's purpose and power has always been as a weapon.

A weapon wielded against humanity, a weapon wielded against monsters, a weapon to be used and wielded like a scythe reaping the souls of the damned, to push the world over the edge and into the abyss. They have no qualms about this.

Chara's grip on their shortsword tightens as they hold the blade to the edge of the pirate's throat. He had a life prior to coming here, a history, loved ones perhaps. Now? Now, he's just free EXP. They all are. Nothing but meat to the grinder that is the accumulation of power.

Their enemy is the ocean itself. Of course it would require the sacrifice of some worthless human lives.]

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Page 1 of 12

(closed) the captain called all hands and swore

0 - SUMMARY

John Jemperor Gaius

1.1 - The Preparations

1.2 - The Trip

1.3 - The Raid

1.4 - The Sacrifice

1.5 - The Sinking

2.1 - Washing Up

2.2 - Fight Fight Fight

2.3 - The Immediate Aftermath

Invites.

Boat Bonding.

The Pirates Arrive.

The Kill Order.

God vs. Mariana

MEET THE BUG WIFE, cw: body horror, monster bugs

no subject

just a [live warden reaction]

local warden

The Voice - Placeholder

anna, for short

no subject

the demon that comes when people call its name

general check-in with best bud seasick stickbug, ota

no subject