Payback Time

[thewatchers]

PAYBACK TIME
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The daemon base was large, a massive obsidian skull carved from the base of a black, foreboding mountain within the Outlands and surrounded by a forest of dead trees. This was inevitable, as accompanying faculty could explain. As much as it could influence the human world, the Outland was heavily influenced and shaped by human thought and culture. Weaker daemons, such as those within the base, would find their personality, forms, and even desires inexorably shaped by the thoughts of humanity and what was perceived humans would expect and fear.

The focus of the two main assault groups would be the clearing of the main hall and the lower dungeons. The groups will be divided as follows:

Main Hall:
Ky
Mav
Kanata
Tyzias
Gunvolt
Bumblebee

Main Hall Support:
Toki
Kano

Dungeon:
Valvatorez
Goro Akechi
Ren
Minako
Naoki
Keith

Dungeon Support:
Ekkehardt
James

Control Room Supervisor:
Yang

To get through to the fortress proper, the students will have to make their way through the forest. This is an open log, even for those who didn’t sign up and will consist of clearing a path and fighting off living trees and mimics in the form of any number of objects that would otherwise be expected in forests such as rocks, brambles, bushes, and other foliage..

The Main Hall is lined with massive rooms full of daemons such as the banquet hall, treasure vault, and throne room where the daemon lord resides. The Daemon Lord is the target here, and he’ll be well-guarded. Beware! Many of the rooms are trapped with mimics taking the form of treasure chests, braziers, boxes, barrels, and just about any other item.

The Dungeons are where captured humans are kept and tortured. The objective is to free the humans and defeat the Jailer, a powerful Daemon who runs the chambers. Students should beware, doppelgangers are said to be commonly slipped in amongst prisoners to ferret out rebellion and will be hidden in with those who are to be rescued.

The Control Room is located in the Citadel, with a massive monitor visualizing the area with floor plans and video feeds. All students and faculty will be wearing small cameras that will record live footage, and will be wired with a communication earpiece that will let those in the Control Room communicate freely. Students working in the Control Room will be able to relay data and information, and use the powerful supercomputers to analyze items on the ground in near real-time.

code bases by tricklet

Comments

FOREST LOG - OTA

[thewatchers]

The forest leading to the Daemon Fortress is unlike any earth-dwellers have ever experienced. The trees themselves, although blasted, gray and dead are yet alive with a malevolent wrath beyond that of humanity. Even the stones and brush rise up to attack the students as they fight to clear a path into the fortress itself. Clearing the forest is where a brunt of the operation is taking place, should the raid fail the attack parties will need a path to retreat so a majority of Daybreak’s forces have been stationed here.

[infestedcouncilpresident]

Kohaku slowly walked through the forest as if in a dream, her eyes half closed. If anyone spoke too loud, she shot them a dirty look and told them to shut up. It was downright annoying to anyone around her. But on the other hand, every couple seconds she would point at a random rock, or fern, or tree branch, or old rusty shield, and say "Mimic."

She had her hearing at it's MOST sensitive. Everyone's voices were booming in her skull, but when they were quiet she could also hear the heartbeats of every living thing like distant drums. Mimics were living things, and no matter how carefully they disguised themselves, she could pick them out with ease.

Enough to put up with her snappish behavior, she hoped.

CTRL;

[yokeye]

OPEN BROADCAST
-- I saw this forest in a vision! Well, several visions, but the point is there are daemons and one of you is going to get stabbed straight through with a lightning sword! I don't know who, you were just a shadow! Oh! And someone else gets impaled with a tree branch, and then someone else has their heart ripped out by a tree! It was me in the visions for both of those events, but I'm not there, so obviously that part was wrong, and maybe all of it's wrong, but watch your hearts! Although you may not die because it was still beating somehow in the tree branch hand thing and maybe it's only like a metaphor! --

Re: CTRL;

[infestedcouncilpresident]

Gee, I sure hope you don't have any BAD news for us.

[hippocarnival]

[OTA | Forest]

"Okay, Odd-Eyes. This one's on you."

Youy pats his familiar, looking up at him with a slight smile while the dragon only growls low in his throat in return. Then Odd-Eyes lowers his head, sniffing before taking slow, steady steps into the forest with everyone else.

Despite being Yuya's familiar, Odd-Eyes will have an eye on other members of Daybreak as well. His large size and sturdiness lends him well to brunt-forcing against the trees and mimics, so he'll come to the aid of anyone struggling or in need of a big shield.

Yuya's never too far away, but without a lot of ways to defend himself he tries mostly to stay out of the way and be prepared to dodge. He has some magic, and a dagger borrowed from the requisitions, but he knows he's a too much of a liability to get into the thick of things.


[Closed to Nana]

Yuya ducks under another swinging branch, scrambling on his feet to create distance from the tree as he looks wildly at the others. Odd-Eyes is handling a lot of the brunt fight, so Yuya can focus on dodging--but the mimics and violent foliage feels denser the deeper they get in. He grips the hilt of the knife tighter, looking for Odd-Eyes--he's still close, but busy tussling with a mimic. He's strong, but all he really has his physical strength. And fire breath, but he has no special abilities besides.

Yuya knows the theory for summoning other familiars, but he's never done it before. He's seen Ren and Minako, though, working with more than one, and he realizes right now having that assistance could be good.

Yuya drops to his knees and pushes some leaves away from the dirt, leaving it clear. With the tip of his knife he starts to drag out the pattern of a summoning circle, just like he did when he was a kid. His brow furrows in concentration as he thinks quickly about what the center symbol needs to be. Something--light? Truth? They're fighting daemons, so maybe holy...

[playitagain]

Nana has stuck with Yuya since they arrived in the forest. She wouldn't leave his side, especially in a place like this. Especially, she thinks, with monsters like these rushing around. Her eyes are on Odd-Eyes, as she moves across the forest floor. Nana has a fast gait, but she also has the same purpose as ever; she tries to look terrifying.

She rushes to his side as he drops to his knees, standing guard behind him. Nana's eyes dart around for a moment -- she trusts Odd-Eyes to handle the one Mimic -- and notes the closest golem.

Both katanas are brandished in its direction. But her words are for Yuya, as she does. "Yuya," she asks, her tone a little more of a monotone -- and a little strained, given the fight -- than her usual, cheerful lilt. She looks like a tiger, ready to pounce, and a spring wound so tight it might burst. That same tension enters her voice."What are you doing? Odd-Eyes is already there..."

MAIN HALL - Ky, Mav, Kanata, Tyzias, Gunvolt, Toki, Kano

[thewatchers]

The Main Hall is a place of surprising opulence. Although the decor is decidedly malevolent, the daemons preferring artwork depicting humans in various stage of torture at their hands, the arrangements are nevertheless at least somewhat “tasteful” (to a definition of the word) and surprisingly clean. Treasure, spoils of plunder, no doubt, line many of the rooms as daemon patrols stalk the halls, alert to the incoming attack from the forest engagement. Should the daemons be engaged head-on, they will summon their allies, so some degree of stealth will be necessary, although if the odd patrol goes missing, that certainly wouldn’t be a problem.

[bejustorbedead]

Ky crinkles his nose at the artwork, not exactly fazed by the subject matter but finding it distasteful nonetheless. Sword in hand, dressed for battle, he addresses the group in a soft voice, just loud enough to be hear as he watches the patrol from their position.

"They'll be on alert, and as we've seen at the dance - they're hardy. If possible, we'll avoid the bulk of the patrols - take advantage of their movements and the intel our support will give, and save our energy for the leader. But if we must engage, do it fast and silence them before they can raise an alarm.

Understand?"

[shockingblue]

The entire hall was something of an unholy mix of disquieting gaudiness and horror. The amount of golden treasures that the daemons had accumulated was more wealth than GV had ever seen, with the boy wondering just how much they'd stolen and pillaged... especially with the choice of decor. They deserved every bit of what was coming to them. And this time, he was prepared to deal with their resistances.

The boy flicked with a couple of small switches on his pistol, then looked to Ky.

"Infiltration over open battle's a good plan in my book. Cut the head off first and we'll send the rest of them into disarray."

It was a common tactic used in QUILL operations, based on what he had studied of them and experienced personally. And when it worked, it tended to work spectacularly. Loss of chain of command either left forces in a panic or squabbling to establish a new one.

support staff; joint replies with Kano and Toki

[suddenlybees]

-—hello, hello, can you hear me? It's Kano! Toki's here too~ He took care of you guys while you were trekking through the forest, so make sure to thank him when you'll all back~! Me? I was busy with preparations, of course~ The fruits of my labor is this bowl of popcorn in front of me~ We can't fight on an empty stomach, after all!

[ Have you tuned him out yet... Don't turn your earpieces off!! Sorry all y'all are stuck with Kano and Toki on this one, possibly more distracting than they are help, but it'll just be up to you to use them— tell them what you need analyzed, whether it's objects or paths or the situation in general, and maybe you'll get something useful in response.

But don't say they don't help, because— ]

Oh, and Mav! I stuffed something into your pocket before you left, so make sure to take a look at it! It might be useful? I've got something I need you guys to do for me too~

DUNGEON - Valvatorez, Goro, Minako, Ren, Ekkehardt, James

[thewatchers]

The dungeons are easily identifiable by the pained screams of the captive humans held within. The sight within is certainly horrific, humans dressed in pitiful rags covered in cuts, scars and welts, malnourished and weak. The torment here seems to be entirely for the pleasure of the daemons, no information is extracted, no value is had. The implements of torture are decidedly medieval in design, with racks, shackles, whips, and other similar accoutrement plentifully stocked in the depths. That said, there are few corpses, the daemons do seem to care enough for their playthings that they keep them alive. Unfortunately, the bodies that are found are typically the very young or very old, their bodies unable to take the strain from the daemonic torments. Patrols are scarcer down here, and its distance from the Main Hall (and the furor from the attack) means that calls for reinforcement will go unanswered, meaning Daybreak can fall upon it like the fist of a wrathful god.

[arcadianvampire]

Valvatorez was no stranger at all to the world of daemonkind, even if for the past four hundred years he largely kept to the mortal realm. Not that he hadn't gone back plenty of times, but there were reasons why he preferred staying on Earth itself than wandering the Outlands... and not just because of his reputation as a betrayer to daemonkind itself.

As they entered into the dungeon, Valvatorez's face and eyes initially appeared impassive, almost uncaring to the screams and wails of the abused prisoners. He scarcely batted an eye as he saw the severity of the wounds inflicted upon them. Outwardly, by all accounts, the vampire appeared almost ambivalent to it all. The intensity in his eyes never appeared to change either; he appeared as focused as he did on the way in and with the march through the forest. It might almost appear eerie that he'd look so... callous about the matter.

But that's just what he looked like. In a quiet moment, when he was sure they weren't going to be attacked immediately, he turned and addressed his team. His voice, however, when he spoke, was quiet, but passionate. It seethed with a daemonic fury barely contained.

"Burn this sight into your minds, my students. This is what we fight. This is what daemons who lack pride and nobility will do to innocent lives. Even if I still was a Tyrant, I would find this utterly repugnant."

And that's when he was more uncaring toward human life. It wouldn't take much to imagine how he feels about it now... and given what motivated his change, to say it strikes at the very core of his being would be underselling it.

"If any of you still have any inkling to show mercy, turn around and leave now, because there will be none for the daemons here today. They will all breathe their last in this fetid gaol, and we will save these people. But remember these souls are depending on you. Do not be reckless with your anger. Use it with focus and discipline, and send each one of these bastards back to the pit they spawned from."

The vampire tersely drew his sword.

"Work together. Stay together. Don't split the group. Listen to the support team, and follow my orders. And I will be here to protect and support you all... but this is your show. Show these fools what the sword of justice is capable of. Are we clear?"

control room

[spelleton]

[ Ekkehardt keeps things short and simple, easy to understand. If he seems almost uncharacteristically terse, even for him, well

it's fine probably. ]

There are living prisoners collected in cages deeper inside. They're guarded by daemons who are more equipped to work together, so stay aware of your surroundings. You should encounter them soon.

Follow Professor Valvatorez when he issues orders. Don't go off on your own - you don't want to get lost here, or surrounded.

Any questions?

ota

[marmoron]

A. dungeon wandering
[It was only a matter of time before Keith ditched the group to look around the dungeons by himself -- Valvatorez and the advice coming through on the earpiece be damned. He's never been particularly good at obeying instructions and he's pretty sure he can take care of himself. Always has.

They're going to cover more ground if they split up anyway, and the more information they gather on the dungeon interior, the faster they can go about freeing all the prisoners. And from the sound of it? They need help and quickly.]

B. aftermath
[Once the dust has settled and the prisoners have all been freed, Keith can be found leaning against the wall rather than joining in on any festivities for a successful mission. He's muttering to himself under his breath.]

Should do something for the dead.

CONTROL ROOM - Yang, Toki, Kano, Ekkehardt, James

[thewatchers]

The main control room lies within the Citadel, a massive network of monitors and machinery. Reminiscent of NASA’s main control room, technicians and seers work in tandem to acquire accurate information from the cameras and scrying efforts to ensure the flow of information. Those manning the control room will play support to those in the field, using their analytic abilities and the technologies in the observation deck to aid their allies. All support staff have direct audio contact with their assigned team at all times.

OTA

[yokeye]

|| 01. ARRIVAL

[The control room is gigantic. Somehow he didn't think it would be this huge; or that there would be so many monitors and consoles with buttons and data screens. A few of the larger monitors near the walls seem to be holographic and transparent with displays of maps and trajectories and continually updating statistics of some sort. Banks of less futuristic computer screens display the visuals from the field operatives' cameras. There's too many blinking console lights, changing screen displays, and general commotion in the room for him to focus very well. He's going to monitor a team and guide them through a daemon fortress to take out the like king daemon guy. How? This is impossible. He's going to get people killed.]

I can't do this!

[Toki whispers it to himself and walks right back out of the room. Returning a few minutes later, he's still unprepared, but determined to prove himself somehow. Maybe. He freaked out a little in the hallway and made the questionable decision of taking more sedatives than prescribed. At least he'll speak slower for a while, and not panic for the first hour or so.]

Okay~! So ready for this. Where do you want me?


|| 02. DURING

[Toki recognizes the forest instantly. He's seen it enough times over the last few weeks. There's no frozen people or little girl with antlers, but this is definitely the dead trees. People are going to be hurt, he's absolutely certain of this. They needed to be warned appropriately.]

That was enough detail, right? Do they need more?

-

[Later, he's now focused on the team in the Main Hall. The audio comes in static-y sometimes. He switched his earpiece out twice, but it keeps happening. He's now going on the assumption it's Ky's fault, or Gunvolt's, and the equipment isn't malfunctioning. He can't stop paying attention for one minute or something's going to go wrong. Like now. It took him mere seconds to swap ear pieces, looking away from the monitor for less than that, and now there's bad decisions being made.]

-- Don't touch that! It's not what you think it is!... I'm reading the information on it right now! I know what I'm doing! You're supposed to listen to- NO, YOU SHUT UP! This is -- Oh wait! Shit! Sorry~! I'm looking at the wrong data!... It's fine, you can touch it!... Once! I only sent you in the wrong direction once!... You're still alive, aren't you!? --

[He's doing a good job here.]


|| 03. AFTERMATH

[He's under the assumption none of his team were seriously injured or dead, but Kano was dealing with them half the time too and he may have missed important information on their overall status by the end.]

Everything went fine, right!? This is good? It's over? What about the group in the forest!? I stopped paying attention to them after a while, but no one died!?

[His hands are shaking and there may be a bit too much panic in his voice. He held off as long as he could; but now the built up stress of the mission is hitting him all at once.]

[suddenlybees]

[ Like Toki, Kano has absolutely no business being here in the control room, having strolled in a little after the main group had left for the forest, bowl of popcorn tucked under his arm and yawning wide before he plops himself down in one of the chairs in the middle of the room and spins it so he can take a look at all the monitors in one, long, dizzying glance. ]

They're really going for it, huh~ Do your best, guys...

[ That's directed at the room at large, Kano getting up again and re-settling himself in one of the stations in the corner, feet up on the seat of the chair with his knees to his chest, snacks balanced on his knees, and monitors... being stared at, because haha, yeah, great choice for somebody to stay behind and relay information that he's supposed to somehow understand and draw out of here? Hm.

Do your best, Shuuya. ]

OTA

[spelleton]

[ Ekkehardt keeps focused to his job with the ease of someone used to taking and relaying information. He usually sticks to his own station, watching the team he's been assigned to supervise, but if anyone's struggling, he'll wander over to offer assistance.

Sometimes he can be found taking a break, but that's not very often. He seems to be able to keep going for very long periods of time without resting. ]

ota

[ohgoodgrief]

[Most of the people who've met Wen-li Yang have seen someone incredibly relaxed, bordering on lazy. He almost looks the part today, when he arrives. Except there's differences, too.

Like, for one, he's in uniform. A few of the technicians and crew -- ones that came with him -- actually salute, which he returns a little lazily. A few words are exchanged, with people who call him "Admiral Yang," instead of "Professor Yang." But then -- after making the rounds -- he goes to his station.

He sits down, one leg bent at the knee and raised, on the railing instead of his chair.]

Well... [Yang is supposed to give a speech. He considers, for a moment:] ...Let's make sure everyone comes back alive.

[...that's it.

But, he's easy to approach -- if anyone has a question or if they need help. He's keeping an eye on everything.]

Last-Minute Sign-Ups

[thewatchers]

Both Main Hall and dungeon can take up to 6 students, if you wish to join one you may sign up here and be added to the log. These slots are first-come-first-serve.

[gaiarage]

jumping in dungeon if yall don't mind!

[marmoron]

signing up to join the crew in the dungeons!

Re: Last-Minute Sign-Ups

[thebreakfastbug]

Signing up for Main Hall

Medical Field

[thewatchers]

The medical field is pitched about half a mile from the core of the forest. Any injured, exhausted, or, heaven forbid, slain students will be extracted by the faculty and brought here where they can be tended to. The area is protected with a sanctified magic barrier, so the area is safe from Daemonic incursion and would destroy any mimics or dopplegangers attempting to sneak in.

ota;

[inflictwounds]

[At first, Hieke hadn't...really wanted to go on this mission. It seemed a little awkward, a little risky, going along. Chances are slim he knows any of the daemons behind all of this, but...

He doesn't want to fall back in with this stuff. But this mission is dangerous, and what good would he be if he let someone out there suffer just because he was afraid?

Hieke manages to keep himself busy around the field that's been set up, trying to focus on keeping things organized and safe and that there's going to be no issues should any students - or faculty - arrive.

As soon as someone approaches he straightens up from whatever task he's doing, brows furrowing together.]

Come in, sit down, let me get a look at you -

[Even to people who don't seem to have any outward injuries. They can't afford to be too careful.]