Event log: Who What Where Wendigo

[hadrielmods]

Who: Everyone participating in the wendigo event!
What: The accidental-cannibalism-turned-horrifying-monster event that is the Who What Where Wendigo event!
Where: All around the city
When: Feb 14th-March 1st
Warnings: Cannibalism, body horror, evil monsters lurking around.

Don't forget to check up on the Wendigo Guide that Ami posted!

On February 14th, Rage and Fear decide to give Hope a little bit of help taking care of the residents of Hadriel - they'll provide some food for awhile. How nice! Except, of course, that there's an extra ingredient in this food. A can of beef stew? Yeah... that might not be beef. But hey, it still tastes pretty good! Unfortunately, some spirits slipped through the Door last time it opened, and they're ready to possess anyone who participates in cannibalism - even if they don't know it.

Anyone who eats the provided meat will be possessed by a wendigo spirit. Over the course of twelve days, they will transform into a monster that feels little but rage and hunger. While at first it can be explained away easily enough (people are super annoying, and isn't everyone a little hungry most of the time?), by February 18th, wendigo transformations are impossible to ignore. A few days after, on February 22nd, the anger and cravings of the wendigo spirit will overcome all other emotions, and possessed characters may begin hunting.

The physical and mental transformation will be complete by February 26th. The possessed characters will have lost themselves completely at that point. While physical healing (done by a character with Hope's blessing or another healing ability) can turn back the physical and some mental effects, they will remain possessed until death or until Hope removes the wendigo spirit - which can only be done on the altar of Hope's temple. So have fun dragging your angry, possessed friends there!

On March 1st, Rage does Hope a solid (because she feels sort of bad) and kills all remaining wendigos. Upon revival, the spirit will be gone and the character will be fully recovered. Hopefully no one holds what they did while possessed against them!

► This log covers February 14th-March 1st.
► 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!
► Please report any character deaths right here!

Comments

Josh Washington | Open

[pighead]

[a: february 16th]

[It's not strange for Josh to be feeling kind of shitty. He's been feeling kind of shitty for a few weeks now - or a few months. Or maybe since that night on the mountain when his sisters disappeared. Anyway, a general shitty state is not abnormal for him, and especially not now, when his mind is clearing, when he can feel guilty about things he did.

But this is a different kind of shitty. He's irritable, he's hungry, he's weirdly sore, he's distractible - it's not the usual kind of shitty, the kind he's used to, the kind that he feels at the beginning of a slow downward spiral. The hunger is definitely new, anyway, usually he loses his appetite. But he can't quite seem to eat enough, or maybe it's just that he can't find what he wants.

He's in a store, going through the food supplies, looking at and discarding cans of vegetables, soup, pasta.]

Is this really all there is? Come on. This is shit.

[b: february 21st]

[It almost doesn't feel strange anymore. It almost feels normal. The physical changes are something to get used to, but it's like second nature, like something that isn't so very important compared to the hunger Josh feels, the anger he can't control. He can't see quite right anymore, there's something wrong with his eyes and his hands and most parts of him, but what matters is how hungry he is, and how it's everyone else's fault.

He has moments of lucidity, moments where he knows something is horribly wrong, but those moments are slipping away under the onslaught of that gnawing hunger. He pounds at the door of his room - locked since they figured out what was going on - and calls out.]

Hey. Hey! Come on, let me out, guys. I'm fucking starving in here.

[He can still speak, at least. That's something, though his voice is cracked and rough and strange. But it's still a human voice, for now.]

[c: february 26th]

[Whatever lucidity Josh once has is gone, and he's no longer trapped, either. He's loose in the city with the others of his kind, hunting and stalking and hiding. The monsters in the caves aren't enough to sate a wendigo's hunger, though they can certainly try. In the end, though, it's flesh that he craves. That it craves, because this isn't a human anymore, and it certainly isn't Joshua Washington.

It stalks the streets, looking for motion, for the movement that signals prey. One sight is all it takes, because the hunger is a driving force that can't be ignored.

The wendigo, canny and careful, stalks the movement. It doesn't matter what sort of creature this is, so long that it can calm his hunger, his anger, for a moment or two.]

21st

[cowardley]

[ Ashley has never been entirely comfortable in the house, but it's gotten to the point where it's now terrifying to be in it for any length of time. She still sleeps (if watching the ceiling and straining your ears for any sound of trouble counts as sleep) in her room, but now she blocks the door every single night.

She's no longer afraid Josh is going to straight up murder her in some insane scheme, but rather that he's going to murder her because he's turning into a fucking literal, real life monster.

She stops outside his door when he calls. She knows better than to let him out, but it somehow hurts to hear him this way. ]

You know we can't, Josh.

[pighead]

[He can hear her out there - he can still do that, even if it's harder and harder to see properly. The joke is that Josh didn't even really believe Chris about the wendigos, he didn't think something like that could be real. And now this.

He pounds at the door again when he hears her.]

Ash, come on. You can't just leave me in here.

[If he can just convince her to open the door -]

I'm not gonna do anything.

[cowardley]

[ She startles when he pounds at the door again, her nerves fragile. ]

Josh. [ She wants to let him out, but she knows better. He's changing, and he'll say anything to get out of that room. ] You'll thank us for this, I... I know you will.

[ But she feels awful. ]

[pighead]

I'm not feeling too grateful.

[He scratches at the door now, with fingernails made longer as the changes get more and more severe, trailing his hand down the material of the door.]

I'm really hungry, though. Got any food out there?

[God, he's starving. If he could just get through the door - he knows there's stuff to eat out there. He knows it.]

[cowardley]

[ The sound of his nails dragging down the door sends shivers racing down her back. She can only imagine what he looks like on the other side, how the changes have started to affect him physically. ]

I can make you some grilled cheese? [ It's not a hamburger, or a nice leg of person, but it's what they've got and it's what can fit under the thin space between the door and the floor. ]

16th.

[bekommen]

[Nick is always a little on the irritable side, that's nothing unusual, and neither is a periodic trip to the shops to stock up on supplies. Granted, the food here isn't the best, but - well, beggars and choosers and all that. She pokes her head out from behind a nearby shelf when she hears a complaining voice that she vaguely recognizes.]

The real question, though, is "Is it shittier than usual?"

[pighead]

[He nods to her, a reasonably friendly hello considering the aimless annoyance he feels right now.]

Sure seems like it is.

[But in fact, it's not really any different than normal. It's just that whatever Josh is looking for - he's not sure what - is nowhere to be found, and he's hungry.]

But whatever. I guess we've gotta make do.

[bekommen]

That's the name of the game - making do.

[She frowns at a box of ... something, she isn't sure what exactly.]

You'd think these assholes might try making it a little easier on us to make do.

[pighead]

But then they wouldn't get to laugh while we flail around miserably, right?

[There's an edge to his words that might not normally be there. Josh's temper has been on thin ground recently, and he doesn't really know why, but he can think of plenty of reasons.

None of them are 'because he's slowly turning into a wendigo', though.]

I could go for a nice juicy steak right now. Maybe they could open a steakhouse for us.

[bekommen]

Maybe if we all just hold hands and hope for it hard enough.

[She clasps her hands together mockingly, then rolls her eyes.]

21st-ish, however works best

[thechoiceisyours]

[Okay. It's now or never.

After Hope's post, and finding out there really is some possibility for a cure, Chris has been determined to figure out how to get Josh and Emily there. The only problem is that's so much easier said than done.

The last few days have been a mess of scrapped plans, as one idea after another has been rejected, and ultimately they're out of options and time. Wait any longer and there's going to be no hope at all of there being enough human left in their friends to pull this off.

It's already a huge risk, but they've got to take it. Or he's got to take it, anyway, which is why it's just him standing in front of Josh's door, trying to muster up the courage needed to go through with this. It's worth it, worth the risk, worth everything if there's a chance of saving Josh, and he's already let him down once.

When Josh suddenly shouts through the door, it startles him--he's even more on edge than usual with all of this going on--but it also gives him an idea, and after a moment he responds.]

H-Hey, Josh. I um... I-I'll take you somewhere to get food, j-just... You gotta follow me, okay bro?

[God, this has to work, at least enough to get Josh to the Temple.]

perfect!

[pighead]

Food?

[Josh is losing himself, slowly but surely, and on some level he's aware of that. But there's nothing he can do to stop it, nothing he can do to stay sane and human and there. What's driving Josh now is the hunger that gnaws at him, and Chris has found the right button to push. At least for now.

He steps back from the door, hand unfolding from its fist and sliding across the door, nails scratching at it. They've gotten longer. He didn't notice.]

I'm pretty hungry, man. Promise you're gonna get me something to eat?

[He still sounds like himself, mostly. Scratchier and more hesitant as it takes him longer to find the words, but not gone yet.]

8D

[thechoiceisyours]

[Okay. Okay, so far so good.]

Y-Yeah. Look, uh... Hope's offered to like... G-get us some more food since Fear and Rage fucked it all up, b-but to get it we have to go to his Temple.

[That sounds reasonable, right? It'd sound better if he could stop tripping over every word; it doesn't usually bother him but it's a dead giveaway he's not sure of what he's saying, and it's an awful thing to think but he really hopes Josh is just wendigo enough not to remember and pick up on those sorts of details.]

Y-You ready?

[pighead]

[There's something off about what Chris is saying, something that doesn't quite ring true, but Josh can't put his finger on it, can't concentrate well enough to figure out what it is. Chris is his friend, most of the time, so shouldn't Chris be trusted? He's not sure about that, but what internal debate there is is settled by the gnawing hunger.

If there's food at the Temple, great. If there isn't, Josh knows there's food out there on the other side of the door somewhere. He has to get out. And Chris seems to want to help.

He steps back from the door, so it can open.]

Yeah. I'm ready.

[thechoiceisyours]

Okay. I'm gonna open the door.

[He can do this. It's going to be okay. This is going to work.

He really wishes he could convince himself of it, but all he can really do is just mentally repeat the words as he moves the makeshift barricade, takes a deep breath, and opens the door.

At first he doesn't even realize he's frozen in place on instinct after doing so, but then decides it's probably not a bad idea to stay still until he can tell if Josh really is planning to cooperate or not.]

26 (idk /shrugs)

[unfollowing]

[Two predators will be more effective than one against this prey that is frustratingly smart.

The thought -- if it can be called that -- flashes lightning-fast through her mind, going from her brain to the tips of her fingers and toes at once and moving her to action. Why this one, out of all her brethren in the city, is the one that sparks this brilliant thought, is a mystery, but she does not care. All that matters is satisfying the hunger.

She goes where he goes, approaching him ever more with every swift and silent step, until she is some small distance off to his side. Then, she makes a small growl, moving her head in what, if she were who she used to be, might be a nod. As it is, she does it as if to say together, overpower, feast. Her body language conveys that she is not looking to compete. Perhaps to a human, she would look threatening right now. But from hunter to hunter, the message should be clear.]

yes good

[pighead]

[He has not looked for help, for any companions. He knows there are others in the city, wandering and attacking and fighting the creatures there. The people, the ones he wants so very much to gently tears to pieces, savoring each bite. He's had no real luck so far, and the hunger gnaws at his belly.

So when she offers assistance - not help, exactly, but alliance - he understands that this is the best thing for both of them, the best way to be sure they're fed. He doesn't want to fight - not her, anyway, though there are others he would be more than happy to test himself against.

He's still for a moment, then returns the gesture, something like a nod. Perhaps two will do better than one.]

[unfollowing]

[Of course he agrees. It's such an obvious thing, to hunt together in order to catch prey faster. This place is full of meat, if only they could pin some of it down to devour. Such tricky things, these bipedal creatures, but how fun the chase is because of that.

She starts moving now, climbing up a wall to gain a better vantage point. Bright lights indicating movement flicker in just about every direction, tiny and distant. Some are clustered together, little packs unto themselves. She is still while she decides which way to go, and as soon as she does, she gives a short, screeching cry. Their destination is the caves off in the distance, their trajectory taking them through spots where the prey that really, truly calls to their feral instincts are hiding.

Perhaps she is the stronger of the two, but the way he moves speaks to her of cunning above the norm. With prey this tricky, she prefers to let him lead now, to lure them out or corner them when they arrive at their first one, so she can then attack and kill them with no opposition.

They'll eat their fill this way, allied together. She knows it in her bones.]

[pighead]

[He lets her choose their path, some instinctive part of him still knowing it's better not to argue. They can take their pick of prey, or at least that's what it feels like, with so many living things wandering around. Easy pickings, if they're careful. The creatures they hunt can be clever, but they're slow and not always strong.

And if they fail, there's always the caves. There are enough creatures in there to sate their hunger for a time, even if it's not what he would prefer to eat.

He takes the lead as she falls back, slipping through the streets with easy movements, stalking prey. Just one, right now, but it seems there are always more around. Better to be careful, or they'll end up with more than they bargained for.

There's a dead end up ahead. If they can frighten it - scare it into the alley, or lure it - they'll be set.]

[unfollowing]

[They are of the same mind with regard to this one target. He has led them in the chase, and now they are in the perfect position to catch it. She slinks away, seeking deep shadows in a corner of the dead end. The chase invigorates her, but there's a certain satisfaction to watching these creatures walk to their own death, to being the one whose voice brings them in.

Settling into the shadows, she mimics a young human boy's cries for help. She knows, without knowing how, that her ally can be trusted to close off their prey's only exit once it has wandered into the area.

The creature's movements light up her vision, growing bigger as it draws near. She keeps up the game, wailing, crying out, a perfect lie to set their trap with. The hunger twists inside her. Soon they will feast.]

16th.

[hollowly]

( no one particularly likes feeling shitty, regardless of whether it's par for the course or not. generally speaking, things have been feeling off for a couple of days now, and even though sam can't quite put his finger on the problem, the fact that he's finding himself a lot hungrier than usual is something that he's been paying attention to.

there's got to be a reason for it, after all. there's always a reason for everything.

never mind the fact that he's already gone through what he'd taken of the offered stash from the stores, and has been thinking that he should have taken more -- but there can never be an account for how hungry one might be at any given time, and of course he hadn't expected to essentially revert to the ravenous teenager he had been in his earlier years, even if the hunger has a different feel to it. like there's something he's missing.

a can of soup rolls across his field of vision and he follows the direction it had come from, finding josh rifling through what's left on the shelves and, subsequently, dismissing it. )

It's better than nothing, though, isn't it? Better than scavenging?

[pighead]

[He looks up from his irritating perusal of the food offerings, looking at the stranger - and he is one, Josh is pretty sure he hasn't met this guy before. He can't be totally sure, he has a hard time keeping track of that sort of thing sometimes and things have been difficult recently, but he's fairly sure they're not acquaintances.

He considers the question.]

I guess. I mean, not a whole lot better, but it's something.

[He picks up another can, turns it around to look at the label. Canned beets. Josh frowns and considers throwing the can right through the glass window next to him. He refrains.]

It's all pretty disgusting, though. What? You like this stuff?

[hollowly]

( it has to be hard, to not remember immediately if you've met someone before or not – but sam keeps his expression neutral, as friendly and open as he can, because there's something about this kid that seems a little off, something that could be set off at the drop of a hat.

but he can't really blame him for wanting to throw a can of beets through a plate-glass window. for as much of a health nut as he happens to be, he can't say he cares for them very much. so, he shrugs, offering up a small laugh just for the sake of it. )

Well, I can't say I have a whole lot of love for beets, but – ( he peers off to the side, picks up a can of green beans. ) These can't be so bad.

[pighead]

[Faces are hard right now. It's sort of hard to focus on anyone when they're not moving, but Josh just sort of has to figure that's another symptom of his declining mental health. Surely it wouldn't be anything else.

He looks at the green beans. He has nothing but disapproval for those beans.]

No way, bro. That shit'll shrink your dick.

[100 percent scientific fact, right there.]