[Open] The Mark of the Herald

[thewatchers]

Mark of the Herald Part I
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Despite certain disruptive events and ominous visions in the preceding month, August is seemingly still free of any problems.

That’s quick to change, however. Starting from the third of the month, strange, circular marks begin to appear on human students around the school - and, indeed, humans around the world. Those affected begin to feel incurably drowsy, something that no magical or mundane solution can seem to cure or relieve; eventually, they’ll fall asleep entirely, whether they want to or not, and enter a state of magical stasis. Not even nonhumans are immune, though whether they’re marked seems to be much more erratic.

Those who remain awake or are otherwise spared by the mark are free to do as they wish - the Academy won’t ask them to do more than keep themselves safe. But where each marked person falls in slumber, a portal will form; a strange tear in reality, offering glimpses of a surreal, nightmarish plane that differs vastly from individual to individual. One thing is certain; the cause of a victim’s seemingly endless sleep and these portals are linked somehow, and the only way to find out exactly how is to go through...and the only ones capable of doing so are those who are still awake.

This log can be used as a catch-all for event-related threads. The information for this event is here.

Comments

[voidbug]

[Even though it might've seem like a futile gesture, there could have been some, or more, that did take notice of it. Several pairs of white eyes had been following Reira for awhile now. However if she ever does turn around, they disappear. Strange.]

[Less strange might been finally coming across a limp body that didn't look cracked or tattered yet. Still completely whole, but not moving.]

[It might be still alive?]

[soft_focus]

[Well it's definitely less empty feeling that's for sure.

Reira is no nurse however so for a moment she just stares. And then-]

Hey.

[sup]

[voidbug]

[They had been quite ready to just give up. There was no way out of this pit. They tried it all before. There was no--]

[A voice. How did they hear a voice?]

[The body still hadn't moved at all, which made it look about as lifeless as all the others. But then very subtly, their head slightly lifts up.]

[...Yeah, they're still here. Hi.]

[soft_focus]

Oh! It's you.

[How she can tell it's the one she's actually met before is a mystery. Maybe she can't at all. Oh well.] You probably shouldn't sleep here. There's lots of bones and things that look like you do, and someone might step on you by accident...

Do you need help?

[voidbug]

[How...]

[How did someone get in? There was no way to get in. There was no way to get out either.]

[They tried. They tried a lot. The tunnel goes really high up.]

[This is where they always end back up.]

[...Somehow all these thoughts are more, vivid than usual as well. It was their dream after all.]

[They can get up though. A little wobbly since they were laying down for so long. Also due to all the shells being in the way.]

[soft_focus]

[Reira doesn't know about any tunnels, or ways out, or anything that could probably matter. What she does know is she's here now, and she should probably help her friend up.

So she does.] Do you know this place? I guess if you were here before, you've gotten out before too right? It's not very comfortable here, so it's probably bad to stay.

[voidbug]

[...It's complicated.]

[They remember it, they remember these feelings like it had happened before, but it was no part of their memory in the waking world. It was only from seeing it here that it was coming back so vividly.]

[...So did this actually happen before? It's...possible.]

[They blankly stared at Reira for a moment and then looked up. Way up. Climbing. Climbing was the one way out. To the surface.]

[soft_focus]

[Looking....up.

Wow that's really high huh.] Mhnnn.

I don't think I've gone that high without help before. I don't think there's birds here though...

[voidbug]

[There is no birds here...]

[Sadly.]

[Have to do it the old fashion way.]

[Well, sort of. There's...floating rocks (actually they look more like fused, fossilized carapaces) to use? They make sort of a path, but, it still won't be easy to make it through. Don't fall.]

[soft_focus]

Hmmm.

...Maybe with Windy..? [She looks to her sprites, all but one disappearing into her bracelets.] ...Yeah. Windy could help. How do you normally climb?

[voidbug]

[...Windy? They tilt their head.]

[But to answer the question, it's the way one would expect with a set up like this. They made it to the first platform with little effort, but had to hop and climb the edge of the next floating one. Then got to the third one and waited, that might've been enough demonstration there.]

[soft_focus]

[Reira just gestures to the sole moth at her side. From there, she waits. Up goes the Knight...and so, Reira looks to Windy and nods. The moth disappears- but instead of becoming a bracelet, it floats inside the girl.

She's been practicing- she Wants to know what's happening, and she Wants to decide what to do. So Reira is quick to follow- in spurts of going from person to misty wind, a quick moving dustmote that lasts as long as it takes to give out a breath.]

[voidbug]

[Oh!! That's interesting.]

[The path (if one wanted to call it that) is pretty straight forward, since the objective is just to keep going vertically. So it really did not matter what method they took.]

[Although at this rate, Reira was probably going to outpace them.]

[...]

[Unless they could hitch a ride somehow.]

[soft_focus]

[Outpace, certainly! ...If. She didn't just wait on whatever spot the Knight was at. If the Knight takes especially long, she even lets her legs dangler off the edge, swinging them about in quiet idle boredom.

She's 'patient' like that.]

[voidbug]

[They were getting a bit slower the higher it went. Even though they have made it this far several times already, it did get a little harder each time. Tired.]

[--But hey, they finally climbed to where Reira was. Just in time for everything to grow darker again, like a fine haze. Hmm...]

[soft_focus]

[Hmmm. That. Certainly is odd. Reira beams as the Knight clambers up, but frowns as she looks around. The sprites briefly manifest at the side, their dim glow seeming a bit brighter through the haze.]

Ummnn...that's weird...

...Did it get darker? Is that normal? I thought it would get brighter if we went up...

[voidbug]

[It's not supposed to do that. Something doesn't want them to leave. They think they know what, but, hnn...]

[Just keep going. If they fall behind again it's probably because there was something they had to take care of first.]

[Probably.]

[soft_focus]

Hmmm.

[Well. She has an idea then.] I think you should go first. I'll use my sprites to make little lights, since they glow a bit...um...

Birds, you can go up with them. You're brightest, [they insist to the remaining moth-rabbit things, the yellow one giving a small yawn. They can't obviously possess the other, but since all of them have their own wings it's not exactly hard to hover around while the other jumps.] And then I can follow with!

[Hopefully. Hopefully.]

[voidbug]

[If they had eyelids, they would probably blink in bewilderment right about now. This...this could possibly work.]

[They nodded in agreement, offering to go first deeper into the darkness, which the light from the sprites were doing a good job to repel. Like a thick blanket of fog. They can get a bit further, but finally they could see what was hiding in that fog. Eyes that were staring right back, waiting to impede on their progress.]

[Reira should be careful. These 'look-alikes' can be a little unpredictable. Sometimes they can be harmless but other times, well...]

[Harmless is probably not what they're going to be. But perhaps the light will be enough to keep them away..?]

[soft_focus]

[Boy she sure hopes so. Reira does frown at these things, but otherwise keeps going, occasionally landing to stand with the Knight.]

Ummmm... ...Do you know who those can get stopped..?

[voidbug]

[Not really. They keep coming back. And there's a lot of them. But the light was keeping the shadows away, for now. That was the one thing they didn't have before.]

[Everything in this pit really wants them to stay here. Each time they try to escape one of those get in the way to bring them back down.]

[It didn't make a whole lot of sense. The shadows looked a like them. So...why were they like this??]

[soft_focus]

[This is...concerning. Extremely concerning.]

...Why do they want us to stay so bad..? [she asks after a bit, pausing on a platform and scooping one of the 'free' sprites. It's good to have the glow close, she thinks.]