Event Log: Bad End

[hadrielmods]

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the Bad End event
Where: All over the city!
When: August 23rd-September 5th
Warnings: Bad futures, awkward conversations, smashed mirrors

You wake up to find a mirror at your bedside - a pretty nice one, too, a silver hand mirror perfect for fixing your hair in. Only when you try to do that, it's not your gorgeous reflection that you see. It's something else - a terrible future, just about as bad as anything you could imagine for yourself.

Maybe you see your loved ones dead on the ground, and you know it's your fault. Maybe you see the goal you've been working so hard for pulled out of your reach forever. Maybe you see someone you've hurt in the past ruining your life. Maybe you see your hot girlfriend leaving you to shack up with your worst enemy. Whatever you see, it really sucks, and you know that it's possible. This future could happen if you make the wrong choices, give in to your worst impulses.

Break the mirror if you want, but you'll see the same vision in any reflective surface in the city. You can't break them all, but you can sure try. And what will you do when you see your best friend's vision - and it features you betraying them?

Seek reassurance, give reassurance, lash out, vow to yourself that you'll never let it turn out that way, sink into the depths of sorrow because you feel like the future you see is inevitable. Whatever you do, it won't take away those visions - not until the event is over.

► This log covers August 23rd-September 5th.
► Feel free to make your own logs, as well
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you can't handle the idea of your dark future, or maybe you just accidentally slip and fall on a mirror shard, let us know here.

Comments

Malkus Iverwelling - OTA

[doctoral_bird]

[ Gosh, was it that time already? When Malkus woke to see a pair eyes that are were not his staring at him through the glass lens of his mask, he had a hunch. A tiny inkling that today was going to be emotional. But this wasn't fair...

The doctor sat on the side of the road nearest wherever he'd been staying for the night. His mirror was still in his hand. The pitch black face of an abomination stared at him, with milky white eyes and jagged teeth. Teeth that seemed too similar to the doctor's own. He'd known they had grown sharper, but they seemed so very horrendous in the mouth of this chitinous nightmare. It was unmistakably him. He'd always worried that the malignancy wrapping his arms would spread.

Across from him, on one of the ornate glass walls of a shop, played a scene where a monster of Malkus' height and general shape ran through a cave lined with layer upon layer of white fibrous tissue. The thing was without clothes, but covered entirely in the same dark segmented carapace. Almost like a slender, emaciated beetle. The talons on his hands had grown long and menacing, looking like daggers now. There was a grisly scene, showing the broken doctor chasing a number of frightened people through the caverns as the pale tendrils spread further underground. He wasn't the only monster in the reflection, as a pack of similar creatures followed the trail of pestilent destruction. He never watched to see if they caught their prey, but a bloody scene unfolded for anyone willing to steal a glance at the man's future.

Malkus didn't take such a personal attack very well. He had every right to be outraged at this clear manipulation. But instead the doctor just sat outside, crying into his mask; sobs barely muffled by the hard cloth of his beak. He let himself fall completely into the sadness that he knew they wanted. Malkus wasn't that strong, sometimes. He set the mirror beside him, buried his head in his arms and knees, and wept. ]

[einselective]

[As far as the parasites' games go, this isn't the worst they've inflicted on the populace. But it doesn't make life easy either, and she skitters between shops, casting her gaze to the street instead of to the reflections flickering in the windows -- snow-dusted ruins that look like the buildings were snapped in half by some violent earth-shaking force, distant mountains sheared abruptly. The light is dim, from a fading brownish-red sun covered in black spots. And Marian herself... nothing but a blackened, almost charred-looking skeleton, equally covered in ice and snow.

It's not surprising to hear someone affected enough to be upset by whatever the mirror is showing them. Marian isn't sure what the overall theme is yet, but no doubt Fear and Sorrow both had their hands in whatever was going on now. She's about to pass by without a word and leave them to their private sorrows, but there's an odd curiosity, enough that she lifts her head far enough to see... ]

Malkus?

[Oh no. While 'endearing' isn't exactly the word she'd use for his usual somewhat bumbling ineptitude, Marian doesn't like seeing him like this. The parasites at work again.

Unfortunately consoling people isn't really something she's good at, despite sympathetic intentions.]

Just... try to ignore it.

[doctoral_bird]

Everything...

[ His voice was empty. It was difficult to get words out in between the hiccups and other embarrassing crying-related sounds. And to make matters even more humiliating, Marian was there to witness it! Oh her grand impression of the doctor must be tarnished at this point. It was almost enough to make the man sob even more. But he pulled himself together enough to at least be able to hear her over his tears. ]

Everything I have worked for. Every one I had tried to help.

[ Malkus didn't raise his head to see her. Thankfully his view of her reflection was obscured for the time being. ]

I try to see past it but I can't.

[ His voice did that sad little squeaking thing one made when they tried to force words out of their esophagus. It was the cherry on this sad little sundae. ]

[einselective]

[Marian has no idea how to deal with a crying person. Even at her most upset it's not really her inclination. Maybe an explanation would help?]

It's another attempt at emotional manipulation, just like many of the other events the parasites have orchestrated. You just have to remember that.

[And, admittedly, that's exactly why she's been so angry about them for so long now.]

[doctoral_bird]

[ As an inkling of reasoning returned to the doctor, he began to realize that it really was Marian here. He hadn't spoken to her very much, but was able to get a rough approximation of her personality during those few times. So it was odd, he thought, that she'd want to remain here to talk him down from this. It wasn't that he thought she was rude! But...

Well he wasn't sure what she actually thought of him. ]

It hurts. That is the point, though. Isn't it. The parasites are enjoying this.

[ He pulled his hat off and set it over the mirror at his side. ]

How can anyone claim to sympathize with someone who would do this? This is no dreamscape. I'm not a... a milk man, this time.

[ The smallest trace of humor peeked up at that last line. It was horrifying and disorienting, but he still thought about how foolish that uniform was. ]

[einselective]

[Marian bolted herself in the lab for that surreal week once she clued in to what was going on. So she's not quite sure about that milkman remark, but it's always a bit of a relief to hear others being on the same page as her thoughts, especially after some network conversations had gone so, so badly.]

I don't know. I don't understand it. It shouldn't matter to any of us what happens to the parasites. But they're good at taking our forms, cajoling others... that's how it's done, I suppose.

It still sounds utterly absurd that anything would feed on emotion. But Fear, Rage, Sorrow... maybe even others, depending on the visions... I'm sure they're all getting a feast out of this. So you have to do your best to shut them out.

[Of course this is easy to say and harder to do... she's failing terribly on most fronts. But that doesn't mean she can't insist it of others.]

[doctoral_bird]

It reminds me of history texts. From far lands, where gods were said to take the forms of men. Animals sometimes. Sounds more demonic than anything. I need to numb myself, I understand. Focus on my work. Or finding work.

[ Even if it didn't look like it, Malkus was trying! He tried to beat down those overwhelming emotions, but seeing his fears come to life was too much. He finally brought his head up to look at Marian. Unfortunately it might be possible to see a bit of reflection in those circular lenses that protected his eyes.

He was going to continue on, but another wave overcame him and he swung his attention back down. As he did, he caught something in the reflection of the windows ahead of him. It was quick, and he barely even had time to rationalize it as he tried to force down another heaving sob. ]

Doc-tor?

[einselective]

Exactly. This isn't the worst that they've put us though, so there's still ways to get things done this time...

[Oh no, damn it. Marian's gaze shifts down and to the side as soon as that first hint of her own reflection appears in the eye coverings of Malkus' mask, the hint of an eyesocket being enough to trigger a full-on shiver.]

Yes?

[She replies, definitely staring at the ground 100% now.]

[doctoral_bird]

If I- [ He shook his head and clenched his fists, trying to snap out of it. Enough of the tears! Malkus very slowly peered up until just the bottom edge of the window was visible to him. He couldn't make out any detail besides seeing the shadow of something where Marian would be standing. She was definitely in the reflection's strange vision, then. ]

If I look. What will I see?

[ He'd have wanted the chance to explain his own monstrosity, if he were in her shoes. There was nothing saying she'd be a monster like Malkus, but he didn't really understand how it worked. Judging from her reactions, it was something she did not like to see either. Well, obviously. ]

[jocoeur]

( getting out of the house had seemed like the best option for the day, at least that weird mirror wasn't anywhere around him. although akira learned quickly that this trickery wasn't just for cosmetic purposes, catching glimpses of things in the various surfaces that he passed.

closing his eyes he tried to concentrate on anything but what was happening around him, shutting out the images enough to hear... hear...

sobbing?

it didn't take long to locate malkus, and across the street... what probably had him in tears. akira didn't shy away from the sight, watching silently for awhile... before taking a seat beside the good, albeit perhaps monstrous doctor.

and said nothing, for as long as malkus needed to cry. and should he finally look up to see akira, there would be a gentle, understanding smile waiting for his masked face to emerge from his arms. )

[doctoral_bird]

[ Malkus could feel the presence of a friend. It was an inexplicable feeling, especially since the doctor's 'friends' in his world weren't exactly the type for silent contemplation. As evidenced by their savagery playing out on the glass... The doctor tried to reel back his emotions, but could only get as far as regaining his ability to speak. When he did, the words came out in a croaking manner, like a bird trying to find words. ]

Losing my civility. My soul.

[ Malkus looked over at Akira for a brief moment before looking at his gloved arms. ]

I was worried it would spread.

[jocoeur]

( since he had first met malkus, the doctor's appearance had been far from ordinary. but seeing it play out like that, how someone as gentle-seeming as this man could become anything but...

what could he say?
looking up to the cave's ceiling, instead of re-watching the horror story across the street, he wondered how to approach the subject delicately... )

Does that— have anything to do with those pestilences and plagues you were talking about? ( and a pause, before he dares to ask— ) Is there anything you can do to stop it?

[doctoral_bird]

[ Malkus didn't dare look up to the reflection again, but he motioned to it idly. ]

The blight is to blame for it all. We called it the Sigh, as it sounded like such after a town's demise. It always made that sound. A rolling hiss.

[ The doctor's seen a number of small villages overcome with the decay. It was so aggressive, even running did little if spores had already taken root in you. He'd always wondered how the plague doctors could survive in that land. ]

I wasn't always like this. It took years. Barely noticed at first.

[ He held his arms up, holding them out to demonstrate how abnormally long they've grown while the rest of him remained the same. ]

There's a darkness in the fungus. Whatever it truly is. If it doesn't kill you outright, I suppose it has other ways of claiming you. A byproduct of roaming the fields, I suppose.

[jocoeur]

( from the way malkus explain it, he could imagine it perfectly, even the sound it made. remaining still, akira looked over only as the doc held his arms up and out, pressing his teeth against a corner of his lip while he listened. )

There was no shelter from it? Were you... ( and using malkus' own words he had to ask— ) roaming the fields too, then? ( and for what reason, if the results looked like this... )

[doctoral_bird]

[ Malkus quickly realized his role was not as apparent to everyone as it was to his world. Of course, it was something he knew whenever someone would exhibit curiosity towards his mask. Explaining it got easier with each friend he informed of his wretched profession. ]

It spreads layers of web upon everything the spores touch. Suppose you should get comfortable for this tale. Originally only a select few cities were sealed enough to keep it out, but even that failed after some time.

[ His voice remained dull and empty as he recalled some of the larger cities falling. ]

Over the decade, my colleagues and I turned from controlling the damage to salvaging the dead villages and towns for resources. Survivors dug to settle within the land itself, in tunnels and caves.

[jocoeur]

( spores, layers of web... that just about summed up what akira had been seeing. he gave malkus the chance to speak, looking down at the ground with a gaze that was a million miles away. )

You and your colleagues— ( had malkus been human once, too? ) you all ventured out into something like that, knowing what might happen to you?

( that sounded like a terrible idea.
one that needed someone brave enough to do it. )

Has... that already happened to anyone you know? ( 'that' as in, the whole losing your civility and soul thing, since that sounded a bit rough. and how far along could such an infection be, if it could spread? )

[doctoral_bird]

Wellll.

[ Malkus entered a big shrug and held his hands up. ]

We knew we would die, inevitably. Well I suppose there was the risk, anyway. Certainly didn't intend to die. It wasn't some suicide mission or anything! We were just the only ones who were familiar with the new demented landscape.

[ He was also one of the many who'd been exiled to this new landscape, but that was particularly less admirable than if he sounded like he'd volunteered. ]

Not that I know of, but I admit that the others in my flock had grown less... civilized, I guess you can say. A bit barbaric in their duties. The original intent was for us to gather up much supplies for the settlers, and in exchange we would be allowed back into the safe areas.

To be truly honest, I had my doubts that it would be so easy for us.

[bythewaves]

Malkus?

[ Maglor looks terrible himself, but one doesn't spend most of one's life performing without developing very good skills at pretending to be feeling something one is not. Like being perfectly fine. ]

My friend, what do you see?

[doctoral_bird]

[ Malkus had to take some more time to finish his current sobbing. The pain wracked his throat and made his body feel as if it were coiling up. Eventually he reached his arm out to point at the reflective windows across the road. He wouldnt dare look at them. The doctor's already seen quite enough. ]

It's me.

[ His voice was hushed and low, with that usual wobbling airy tone totally absent. ]

What waits for me when I return home. I'd known but seeing it is... so much worse.

[bythewaves]

Oh my friend.

[ Maglor mourns, and does not turn to look. He has shadows of his own, and he won't pry at another's pain. Instead he reaches to hold Malkus' hands, if he allows it, offering the comfort of a friendly touch. ]

Is it something certain?

[doctoral_bird]

[ Malkus kept one hand out, palm up for Maglor's condolence. As much as the doctor avoided contact where he was from, to prevent any chance of contamination, it was a different story in Hadriel. The doctor took a deep breath. It was almost painful to breathe with his emotion caught up in his throat. ]

As far as I know, I am afraid it might be. The ailment that taints my limbs spreads. What is left is an abomination roaming the wastes. Mindless and violent.

[ He felt disconnected from it as he described his future. It could have been shock, or it could have been that Malkus tried to describe it as though it were happening to somebody else. ]

My entire flock succumbs to a corrupt decay.

[bythewaves]

And is there no healing?

[ Maglor's hand closes around his with no hesitation - Malkus might notice, however, that the right, especially, moves a little stiffly, and there are scars on both his palms, as if burnt ]

Oh my friend. I pray it does not come to pass.

[doctoral_bird]

It is a corruption rooted too deeply within me, after years of exposure. Wh-...

[ As the man's hand curled around Malkus', he could feel the abnormality through the leather of his glove. After living for so long with these things, they've essentially become a second skin hiding his claws beneath. The doctor lifted his gaze enough to see the damage.

Malkus gently pulled his friend's hand closer, to get a better look. An analytical, physician's look. He didn't question it just yet. Maglor should have the opportunity to explain it for himself. ]

[bythewaves]

I am sorry. I am no healer or I would try. But Elrond is here - if there is anyone who can heal you, it would be Elrond of Imladris. Would you let him see?

[ He lets Malkus take his hands without fuss. At the moment the injury is worse than normal, for Maglor has been using pain to distract himself, and the scars are an easy choice. But both palms are covered in burn scars, the right visibly worse than the left. Criss-crossed with contractures as if he once held a flame in his hand. But in the center of the right, the lines run straight, forming the facets of a great gem. ]

[doctoral_bird]

[ Malkus sighed. He'd never encountered a decay like the kind that hardened and almost seemed to strengthen his forearms before. He'd long since given up on reversing it, but Maglor wanted to help! For his friend, he'd give it a chance. ]

I will try. Elrond of Imladris... Are they of elven nature, as well? Perhaps healing of such fae nature could have some impact. Now. As for this...

[ The doctor turned Maglor's hand over and nodded his head towards the scarring. ]

Have you run into some trouble? These do not look like wounds sustained from smashing a mirror, like the other residents have gotten.