hadriel_logs | Event Log: Dead Ringers

Who: Everyone participating in the event!
What: The event log for the Dead Ringers event!
Where: All around the city
When: January 16th-January 25th
Warnings: Evil doubles, so we can assume manipulation, violence, murder, and maybe some nasty words

Everything seems normal on the morning of the 16th - actually, everything seems normal about the city for the entirety of this event. Nothing is strange, nothing is obviously wrong. Well, except that the population has mysteriously doubled, and the new residents each look exactly like one of the old residents. So weird! Definitely not ominous at all.

At least until your new double gets down to business. After all, their only goal is to ruin your life, and that can take any form. Smashing your favorite coffee cup? Telling your worst enemy they're right? Kissing someone else in front of your girlfriend? Brutally murdering you and then hiding your body in a closet so they can more effectively destroy your life? The possibilities are truly endless, and the only way to protect yourself is to kill your double first. They're not really open to negotiation, after all - but they sure might pretend to be in order to trick you.

So watch your back, and try to make sure that really is your best friend and not an evil clone masquerading as them. Boy, that would be awkward. If you can stick it out until January 25th, good for you! But if you didn't manage to and your double survives until the end - well, just as a final 'fuck you', there's a chance you'll come back to life and remember every awful thing your double did. Hey, at least that'll make it easier to fix, right?

► This log covers January 16th-January 25th.
► 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 your evil clone happens to take you out, please let us know here, and remember that you will not revive until the event is over.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Nick's eyes narrow as she calls him a droid, but he doesn't rise to the bait. Shadow, on the other hand, is far more impulsive. The hedgehog is far faster than the old synth, and he doesn't even get a hand out to stop his companion before he's at her, forcing the Imperial officer against the wall, his hands at her neck.]

Shadow.

[Though he takes a step forward and calls the hedgehog's name, he makes no other moves to stop him. Nick knows better than to fend off a rage-fueled Shadow; he's feeling that ire himself as it is, that hunger for vengeance rising the longer he has to look at the bodies of his friends and this murdering facsimile standing over them. They deserve better -- they deserve justice.

But he waits, playing support for the moment. He may be silent on the outside, his face of stone, but a storm builds within.]

[The double snarls, eyes wide with sudden pain. Bones crunch. She makes a noise, a yell swallowed down out of stubbornness. Never show weakness to your opponent. Never let them see you hurt. Her arm shakes, fingers twitching wildly. Nerve damage. Bones crushed to dust. It's just like being in the Academy again.

The double leans forward, Shadow's hands around her throat, and smiles at him, toothy and wild.]

Glory to the Empire.

(deleted comment)

[Before Nick can get another word in, there's a sickening crack, and the double goes limp -- she's gone before she hits the floor, leaving only him and Shadow.

He doesn't have to see the hedgehog's face to know what might be going through his mind, how he's feeling. Nick remembers how he took Kain's death, something he'd had to do in self-defense. This wasn't exactly the same -- this wasn't the real Maketh overcome by demons. She may have had the face of a friend, but this was just some copy, something pretending to be her... pretending to be human. Nick knows all about that.

He hobbles to Shadow's side slowly, reaching out to put a hand on his shoulder in gentle reassurance.]

[Nick doesn't take Shadow's deflection personally; he knows that it's not easy to kill for some people, even when you come from a world as messed up as his. Each one weighs on a person in a different way. Some shrug it off because they have to; some leave it behind without a second thought, caring only about themselves.

And then there are those who carry that weight with them always, shouldering burdens they shouldn't have to. Nick calls out to him, his voice firm.]

Shadow.

[A pause, and then, softer:]

We don't have to wait inside, but I'd feel better if we at least stuck around until they disappear... if you don't mind waiting with me.

[It's a turnabout of a request Shadow once made of him, and while it may also be for the hedgehog's benefit, Nick can't deny he wants to keep an eye on the place until their bodies vanish, taken away by Hope to be resurrected. There's no telling who might come wandering in and see the corpses... or what they might do if they're looking to start more trouble.]

[Nick joins him at the door, though rather than remain standing, he takes a seat on the steps leading in setting his cane behind him as he fetches his cigarettes from his coat. He doesn't need them, being a machine -- he's incapable of the actual feeling one might get from the nicotine -- but they're a part of the image, of presenting himself as who he wants to be. It's in that way that they are a comfort in troubling times.

The silence hangs between them for a minute or two. Nick doesn't bother look behind him; there's nothing he can do for Maketh or Henry. He'll have to take command of the Guard again, try to see if there's something to be done to curb the damage of the copies. He'll focus on the here and now for the second, though. One problem at a time.]

Thanks for coming out here with me, Shadow.

[Nick glances Shadow's way, his expression somber.]

Let's hope 'never.' It's no secret I'm well past my warranty date, but you'd be surprised how hard it is to kill something that isn't alive in the first place.

[Nick might not know about Shadow and the job he's on for Hope, but he hears that sigh.]

Hey, I don't want to make any promises I can't keep. That's one reason I didn't come out here alone, though. Didn't want to get in over my head and end up going to pieces.

[He lets out a quiet sigh of his own. He knows, Shadow. He knows.]

For all I knew, she might've booby-trapped the place. I'd honestly thought I'd be the one putting her down, but in case things went wrong... I'm glad you were here to watch my back.

[It could have been, indeed.

Nick is silent after that, his mind on what he needs to do next. Check on Rey, check on the rest of the Guard. He'll be glad to know they're not the only two left, but with Maketh and Henry out of commission until Hope brings them back, that means he's in charge. A year and some change in Hadriel has worn on him more than a decade or two in the Commonwealth. He wasn't made for this kind of work... though for all he knows about the Institute and why he was put together, maybe he was.

He glances over his shoulder again after several minutes, and sighs in minor relief at the missing bodies, smoke billowing from his nose. He plants his cane on the floor, using it to help him to his feet.]

Guess it's back to work.

Event Log: Dead Ringers

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