player plot: the horror of sarrux's pass

[aberratic]

WHO: Caius, Gwen, Hermione, Jayce, Ness, Siorus, Stephen, Vanya (sumptus, elegiaque, reparo, pathlit, aberratic, wildered, portalling, wearyallalone)
WHAT: The Horrors Cometh
WHEN: Beginning of Harvestmere (October)
WHERE: Sarrux's Pass, outside Wycome
NOTES: OOC post here. TWs for body horror, NPC death, ghost town/apocalypse vibes, children in upsetting situations, and general horror stuff.

Characters

CAIUS

GWENAËLLE

HERMIONE

JAYCE

NESS

SIORUS

STEPHEN

VANYA

The residents of Sarrux's Pass, a small village tucked into the mountains of the Free Marches, have long held that their settlement used to be a bustling trade city where dwarves were as plentiful as humans and they had constant contact between the surface and the Deep Roads. These were assumed by the surrounding cities to be nothing more than fanciful legends for decades, but any long-time resident swore it was the truth, lost to time and "monsters in the deep."

Residents were finally vindicated a few months ago when an earthquake caused a landslide in the surrounding mountains, revealing a long-lost outlet from the Deep Roads. At first, residents of the pass were apprehensive, all too aware of the dangers posed by such an opening, but the longer they went without Darkspawn spilling from the entrance, the more eager they became to investigate.

Eventually, the bravest among them began to enter the Roads, in search of ore and artifacts. They were vindicated again, finding both, and Sarrux's Pass quickly became a magnet for treasure hunters, Lords of Fortune, historians, archaeologists, and anyone in search of a quick buck. Even in the face of the Venatori invasion of the Marches, the promise of fame and riches drew handfuls of people seeking their fortunes to the Pass. News from the area was steady, and filled with discoveries and success stories—as well as the brawls, backstabbing, and even the occasional murder that comes with any good gold rush town.

It's been a few months since the reveal of the Deep Roads entrance. News from Sarrux's Pass has slowed to a trickle, then a drip, and now, in the past weeks, nothing. The last message to make it out of the village three weeks ago said simply: "We weren't just right about the dwarves." The parchment was stained with an unidentifiable liquid—not water, not blood—which smelled of the sea.

Riftwatch has been tasked with investigating the village, with three goals: find out what happened to the residents, recover whatever valuables they can from the Deep Roads, and, if necessary, close the entrance again. There may be Venatori in the area, or Darkspawn, or territorial prospectors—without contact with the village, there's no way of knowing what Riftwatch may discover. © tessisamess

Comments

[aberratic]

She should have expected this, perhaps—but no one she's reached out to like this before has failed to recognize her. Vanya's mind shoves her back on reflex, but there's nowhere for Ness to go, and her spike of panic at his rebuff drives into his mind like a nail.

The mutated villager slams its misshapen fists brutally against her arms. Something cracks, and she wails wordless agony into Vanya's mind. The pain of whatever broke forces her to drop her arms from their protective position in front of her face, leaving her vulnerable, and she curls to the side, head ducked against her chest.

Her thoughts are a jumble of terror and pleading and dread, with the distinct sense that she's been here, at the mercy of some terrible alien monster, before.

[wearyallalone]

They're at cross-purposes, in serious ways: Vanya doesn't come from a world where he expects a voice in his head that sounds like an ally to be anything other than a trap. A trick. But he still has command of his own body, which is something. That far-back feeling is, perhaps, easier to identify as fear when it faintly echoes what Ness is screaming at top volume. But he ignores it. Do it scared is another thing that has been burned into him by decades of training and habit. Whatever is happening in his mind, his limbs still obey his intentions.

It feels like an eternity in the dilated time of combat, but it's only a heartbeat or two. Whether the scream in his mind is in fact his ally, Vanya can see that Ness is vulnerable and he's moving to close the gap. The mutated villager, so focused on an unguarded target, doesn't catch the surprisingly swift advance before Vanya's shield is bashing them broad-side, throwing them off their footing.

Given how desperately outnumbered the Riftwatch party is, there's no hesitation. Anyone who didn't come with them from Kirkwall isn't someone Vanya thinks they can save at this point. When he lunges to take an opening, it's to put Ness's assailant down in a way they won't get up from again.

[aberratic]

The next blow, much as she fears it (whimpers, pleading I'm not a blood mage, I swear, I promise, please, I don't want to die into Vanya's mind, trying to convince him) never comes. It takes her a long moment to uncurl, to raise her head and look to Vanya with tear-stained cheeks. He stands over the body of the villager, and she blinks up at him, inhuman eyes still somehow owlish and miserable.

I can't open my mouth, is as tremulous projected into his mind as it might have been spoken aloud. The seam of her lips sticks as she flexes her jaw and emphasizes her point—maybe it could be cut open, but who knows what that would do. A sound comes from behind Vanya and Ness glances to Gwenaëlle, concerned, but another glance back to Vanya and she stills, eyes stuck on his weapon.

A few feet away, the crown on Kittrick's head has shimmered back into the Fade, but the brothers still fight. The monsters around them, mindlessly enraged, fight each other as much as anyone in Riftwatch.

[wearyallalone]

Detached and calm, he has the thought that this will certainly feature in some nightmares if he survives all this. But it's a fleeting thought that he lets go before it has time to properly register.

Instead of trying to cut her mouth apart immediately — it could easily do more harm than good, and he'd have to get out his dagger which would mean sheathing his sword — he gestures toward Gwenaëlle. "If you're not too hurt to move, we have to get away from that pit and somewhere more defensible. I'll give you the best cover I can as we run, but to do that you're going to have to take most of her weight. If you can't, I'll have to carry her and just pray we don't take any hits that are too well-aimed."

It's shouted rather than thought, though whether that's out of stubbornness or ignorance that he can answer her in his mind as well is anyone's guess. The chaos means they aren't particular targets, but it also means they won't have long before the next aggressor gets close enough to take a swing. Whatever they do next, it needs to be quick.

[aberratic]

Confident now that she's not about to be under threat from a friend, Ness pushes herself to her feet, taking stock of her injuries with careful movements while she crosses over to Gwenaëlle. She's tender, bruised—but her arms still work, she can bend at the elbow. There's every likelihood she'll be exacerbating her injuries by asking her arms to do this, it hurts to move, even if she can—

but she can.

I'll do it, she promises, straight into his head, and kneels down next to Gwenaëlle, slipping gently into her mind. The gaps are getting easier to see, easier to move through without ripples.

Captain, I'm going to lift you up. Please don't throw up on me.

Gingerly, teeth grit against the pain in her own arms, she pulls Gwenaëlle's arm over her shoulder and stands. Sweat beads on her forehead, but her grip holds firm and her legs bear up under her, supporting them both without shaking. She looks to Vanya, inhuman eyes unreadable, and pours herself back into his thoughts.

Ready.