hadriel_logs | Event log: Who What Where Wendigo

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Event log: Who What Where Wendigo

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!

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[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?

[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.

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.]

[He's still recognizably Josh - he's not so far gone that he's turned completely into a monster. Not yet, anyway. But he's thinner, his hair falling out, his teeth turning pointed, his body changing. It's impossible not to see it. He doesn't look quite human anymore, even if he's still himself, for now.

With Chris so still, it takes Josh a long moment to even realize where he is. The door opened, Josh knows that, but - beyond that, it's harder. His vision isn't working quite right. He can catch movement easily enough, but discerning things that don't move is harder, it takes concentration and frustration and time.

But he does see Chris, after awhile, his eyes seeming to focus with a great effort. It's the first time he's really seen someone since they locked him in here. God, he's hungry.]

Hey.

[On one hand, Josh doesn't look as bad as he could; Chris isn't sure what he'd been expecting, but probably the worst. On the other this is the first time since that night on the mountain that he's seen a wendigo, even if it's still Josh and he hasn't full transformed, and the sight is terrifying on an incredibly deep level.

But when Josh gives a greeting instead of making any sort of threatening motion, Chris takes a deep breath and pushes the fear aside for the moment. This might actually work. It has to work.]

H-Hey.

[...What does he say? He feels like he should be making some sort of joke or reference or something to make light of the whole turning into a monster thing, but he can't bring himself to do so and it's probably for the best anyway since who knows how Josh would take it.

Okay. Stay focused. The faster they make their way to Hope's Temple, the better their chances of actually getting there.]

Okay, so, just... J-Just stick with me, bro.

Yeah. Sure.

[He's watching Chris very, very carefully, with an inhuman sort of stillness. Josh doesn't make any quick movements, not yet, but he's alert and intent and perhaps unknowingly dangerous. He is still in control of himself, mostly. In control enough to know that Chris isn't food, or at least that he shouldn't be.

But then, is that really true? Chris is his friend, and Chris is a person, but not a person like him. Josh is something else, he knows that much. Maybe it's a wendigo, maybe everything that everyone said was true all long. Those sorts of existential thoughts don't gain much purchase in Josh's mind right now, though, his attention flickering to every hint of movement, his impulses tied to his hunger and his anger.

They trapped him in here. They chose to do that. He needs to get out.]

Lead the way, cochise.

Right.

[He's watching Josh just as carefully, trying to read tone and body language that should be familiar but are being warped by the transformation, yet not totally enough so that he can just judge based on what he knows of wendigos.

But the words are still Josh, and that's as much as he can hope for. It's enough to go on, for now.]

Okay.

[He takes a step back, cautiously, watching Josh to make sure the movement doesn't spark a hunting instinct or something, then begins to lead the way toward the front door and out of the house.]

[He doesn't leap at Chris, though some part of him wants to. Some instinct deep inside of Josh knows that as hungry as he is, Chris is - frankly - made of meat. And would that be so bad?

Yes is what another part of Josh says, and for now, at least, that's the part that's in control. That control may be hanging by a thread, but for now it's there, and it doesn't matter if Chris moves like prey, or if it's his fault Josh has been trapped in a room for days. He's still a friend, a person, and eating him would be wrong.

He follows Chris, head turning to track the walls as they pass. He's spent enough time in this house, but it all looks different right now. Dimmer, stranger.

He doesn't say anything, but his attention flickers back to Chris regularly, because Chris is moving. He's supposed to follow, and he does, but part of him wants to hunt.]

[Okay, so far so good. But they're barely out of the house, and it's some distance to Hope's Temple.

He doesn't know whether to distract Josh by talking, or just stay quiet and let him concentrate on not going full wendigo on him; it's kind of a toss up at this point which is the better option. But the silence is eerie, and just leaves Chris with nothing to do but lead the way and wait for a possible attack, so talking it is.]

How uh... How are you feeling?

[A+ question, Chris. Off to a good start.]

[He looks at Chris, and something that resembles a sardonic smile makes its way onto his face. It's an expression Josh would wear, but he's not quite Josh anymore, and so it looks strange, uncomfortable.]

Oh, you know. Hungry. Craving human flesh.

[It's sort of a joke, but not a very good one.]

Kinda pissed about getting locked in a room.

[Wow, yeah, that isn't terrifying at all.]

I-I think I'd be pretty pissed too, but you know. Not a lot of good options.

[Considering that whole 'craving human flesh' thing.]

B-But at least we can take care of the being hungry part, right?

[Not necessarily in the manner he told Josh, but if Hope's telling the truth and they can get Josh cured then getting him something to eat will be pretty simple. And not involve anyone dying.

They just have to get there.]

Hope's place is uh... It's past the stores.

Sure.

[There's lots of ways to take care of his hunger, and he's thinking of quite a few different ones right now. Not the kind of thing Chris would approve of, though, he's sure, and not anything he's reconciled to. This is better. There'll be food, and Josh will feel better, and his unease and anger will settle.

Maybe.]

How's Em? You locked her up too, right? At least it wasn't just me.

[Misery loves company. He wonders if she's as hungry as him. He wonders where she is right now.]

[The more Josh talks the more Chris thinks this might work; sure, he looks a bit terrifying and everything seems off--not that that's weird, since he's turning into a monster--but he sounds like Josh. Complete sentences, attitude, all the things monsters don't generally have.

He isn't letting his guard down, but he is allowing some attention to shift away from watching Josh to making sure nothing else springs out at them as they go.]

Yeah. She's um... Same boat as you right now.

B-But we're still looking for ways to fix this, bro. So hopefully it won't be for long.

[Hopefully really not long, if this works. If they make it to the Temple, all he has to do is convince Josh to stay the ten minutes or whatever Hope said it could take. He can do this. It's all going to work out.]

[It takes quite a bit of concentration to get those full sentences out, but at least Chris appreciates them. Josh is still watching him a little too close, as the only living, moving thing around, and his own movements are jerky and unnatural, but he walks a little more freely once they're outside.

Maybe Chris will take him to food. Maybe not. Either way, he's outside, and there's no way in hell he's going back into that room. Besides, there's plenty of food to be found out here. He could leave right now, if he wanted to.

He doesn't, just yet.]

Not sure I need fixing.

[That earns a concerned glance back at Josh again, not sure what that response means but not liking it.]

Dude, I'm not sure how you think this isn't a problem.

[Sure, 'fixing' Josh would be a sensitive topic and he understands that, but he would've been pretty sure that even Josh would agree that turning into a cannibal monster is probably something that should be remedied.

Unless he still doesn't believe what's going on, which is possible, or that he's too far gone to understand, which is also possible. He really hopes it's neither, though.]

Come on. You always think I'm a problem.

[He bares his teeth, just a little too inhuman to be anything like a typical gesture Josh would make. He's hungry, he's always hungry, and now he's angry too. At another time he might understand that it's not fair to be angry about this, that Chris is trying his best, that Chris has been a pretty good friend to him, all things considered.

But the fact is, Josh knows that these days he is more of a problem than a friend. And that pisses him off, and god, he's starving.

He stops walking, watching Chris like a hawk instead.]

[He wants to respond with the kind of quip he'd normally throw at Josh, something like 'only when you're being a problem on purpose', but alarm bells are going off in his head and he stops himself; he freezes in place entirely for a moment, then slowly turns to look at Josh again.

Okay. Okay, stay calm, let the situation diffuse a bit so Josh can focus on overriding the wendigo spirit again... If he's even trying to.

He better be trying to, or Chris has the feeling this is going to go from bad to worse.]

That's so not true.

[He says it quietly, evenly, and he means it. Yeah, Josh is definitely difficult sometimes--and even more so lately--but they're friends. He's known about Josh's issues for a long time, and if all he thought about Josh were that he's a problem Chris would've cut out a long time ago.]

[He's trying. It just seems less and less important, and maybe if Josh were thinking more clearly he'd realize that's an effect of the spirit too, sapping his will to fight its pull. But he's not thinking clearly at all, he's hungry and pissed off and it's not Chris' fault - but it kind of is, too.

He moves a little, restless. He wants to be gone. He wants to be hunting, and the thought of that is seductive even while part of him is aware it shouldn't be, he should resist it.]

Sure. I'm a problem right now.

[It's getting harder to string words together as the wendigo takes him over, so Josh can't find a way to form the concepts he might otherwise - resentment, anger at always being the problem, at the way they all act around him these days. And it's his own fault, maybe, but it doesn't feel like it is, and right now he can't even express that. All he can do is think about tearing into something warm and bloody and finally not being hungry anymore.]

The wendigo's a problem.

[He responds without hesitation, and briefly wonders if the spirit lurking in Josh's body can actually hear and understand him. But that's less important than if Josh can, because it's Josh he needs to get through to if they're going to have any chance of getting the temple. It's Josh he needs to get through to if he's going to avoid being violently killed by a cannibal spirit in a half-turned person.

He remembers for a moment, entirely unwantedly, how easy it was for the wendigo to sever the stranger's head. One strike, barely even looking at its target; Josh is only partially transformed and surely not quite as strong or fast, but that just means it would be slower and messier and--

This isn't helping. Stay focused; his heart is pounding rapidly as he tries to stay calm, watching Josh's reaction.]

[His hands clench, unconsciously. It would be so easy to reach out and tear into Chris, and it's harder and harder to remember why he shouldn't, now that he's out of that small room and hungrier than ever.]

Sure.

[Josh's response is remote, almost a growl instead of any kind of speech. He's lost the thread of the conversation, focusing instead on the instincts that are growing more difficult to resist. He just remembers that something about it was pissing him off, that he doesn't think Chris is being truthful. But does it really matter?

He stands very still, suddenly, tracking Chris' movement, less human than before. If Chris moves - well, he's not sure he remembers why he shouldn't do anything.]

[What should he do?

It's obvious Josh is quickly fading out; it doesn't take knowing him for years for Chris to notice the change in posture, the almost inhuman tone to his voice, the distant response itself. He knows that what he chooses to do here is going to be the most important.

Every instinct he has says not to move. Don't do anything, hold as still as possible, go quiet, and wait for Josh to get distracted and wander off. He'd seen Sam do the same thing, in the Lodge, facing down the wendigo that used to be Hannah...

But he can't just do that. He can't just let Josh disappear into the city to finish turning into one of those things, just like Hannah had; he can't just abandon Josh again. If it turns out to be the wrong decision, at least he didn't give up on his friend this time.

He braces himself mentally, tries to project a sense of calm and reassurance, and speaks again.]

Josh, stay with me, okay?

[Then he does move, finally, raising a hand tentatively toward Josh.]

[The words, or maybe just the tone, are reassuring - but the movement is enough to set Josh off. He's so hungry, so weirdly restless, like he needs to move and run and hunt. He lashes out, fingers curled into claws, but there's enough human left in Josh that he can stop himself - just barely - from actually injuring Chris.

He wants to, though, and that's bad. That's alarming and frightening and he didn't really realize until now. It's too much, and he's still hungry, and Josh's decline was slow enough that it almost seemed natural from inside his head, but it really doesn't now.

He needs to go. He needs to go before he really hurts someone, and he needs to go because he's hungry and he can't eat his friends, and he needs to go because they locked him in a room. He's angry and vicious and inhuman and also, still, somehow concerned about what he's become and what he could do to these people who have already given him a second chance.

So he runs, instead. He's faster, stronger, the buildings and roads of the city are easily navigated and full of prey and just - not here. He doesn't look back at Chris, thoughts slipping easily into a creature's mindset, nothing like the human he once was.]

[When Josh swipes at him he flinches back, eyes wide, though he would've never been able to avoid injury if Josh had really meant to hurt him. But he doesn't, and that gives Chris just a tiny flash of hope that maybe Josh can get control again.

But then he's gone, running through the city, and Chris only considers chasing him for a fraction of a moment. Even if it weren't an utterly dangerous idea, he'd never catch up to him.]

Fuck.

[This is not how he'd hoped this would go. He doesn't think anyone at the house will be angry with him, but that isn't the issue; the issue is that now Josh is out in the city somewhere, and finding and trying to get him to the Temple is now exponentially more difficult. Not only that, but there's also now one more partially-transformed wendigo loose in the city.]

Fucking... Damnit.

[He's just standing in the middle of the street, trying to figure out what to do, but nothing's coming to him. Just that he'd seriously screwed up, and he's hugely lucky he isn't dead.

Okay. Standing here isn't going to accomplish anything. He needs to get back to the house, and then come up with a new plan; get back to the house. That's the first step.

So with a last look in the direction Josh had disappeared, Chris turns to return home and really hopes he hasn't failed Josh yet again.]

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Event log: Who What Where Wendigo

8D

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