isleofavalon | November open log

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November open log

🧙 WHO: Emet-Selch and anyone!
⚔️️ WHAT: Having lost yet another close bond, this alchemist is running quests and collecting dangerous ingredients to distract himself
🕒 WHEN: Throughout November
🗺️ WHERE: (See individual prompts)
⚠️ WARNINGS: The Obsession(TM) quest may or may not verge towards sexual content depending on preference. There are also spoilers for FFXIV Shadowbringers 5.0 in the fourth prompt.

1. Lettuce Help You 🗡️ (Knight) or 🛡️ (Arcane Mage)

On the outskirts of the city, Emet-Selch is trailed by several bobbing heads of flappy lettuce as he forages for herbs and other alchemy reagents. The oddly-shaped creatures gently rise and fall with the thermal currents, creating something of a comical sight as he crouches in the grass to inspect some flowering plants. His familiar is accompanying him as well, keeping a more alert eye out. Should anyone armed approach, she will straighten, bare her teeth, and growl softly.

Emet-Selch glances over, wary, when he notices someone coming close. If you're a known face, his frown eases and he will nod. If you are unfamiliar, he will remain wary and ask, "Can I help you?"

...The more observant or rash types will notice several molted leaves in his basket from the creatures. He only has them because they've fallen off naturally from the creatures, but someone could easily leap to the conclusion that he's a poacher. Especially with the gunblade strapped to his back.

2. Be Nimble, Be Quick

How to obtain basilisk venom from a creature which can paralyse with one stare? Emet-Selch ponders this very conundrum as he steps carefully through the Forest of the Felled, searching for the flower to create the antidote to its stare. Most serpentine creatures are venomous in his experience. Venomous or with ample coils to throttle their prey with. They were created that way. Their use in a poison goes without saying, but what positive applications could it be used for?

Lost in thought, he fails to notice a vine loop on the forest floor. As soon as he steps into it, the noose tightens around his ankle and yanks him down.

"Argh!" He hits the ground with a painful thud. Above him looms a giant slime, ready to drown him in its gelatinous body.

"Oh, by all the gods," he curses quietly, trying to kick the thing back. Unsuccessfully.

3. Toxic 🛡️ (Arcane Mage) (MIGHT BE NSFW)

Emet-Selch makes sure he is thoroughly prepared to meet the Gancanagh before he sets out. Gloves, mask, sleeping potion - the works. He has no idea whether the warnings given in the shady request are exaggerated or not, but he would not have survived for as long as he (nearly) did by being reckless.

Getting to the spot is a trial all on its own but he manages that without too much fuss. Crouching well away from the thing, he carefully observes its movements from afar.

Perhaps if I toss the sleeping draught at its head? While he's dithering however, he notices someone else approach. Maybe towards him, or maybe towards the Gancanagh itself, not realising that he's there. How he reacts will depend on what happens next.

4. Amaurot (Extreme) (Sleep paralysis demon)

Fire rains from a dark and seething sky. The air reeks and tastes of smoke, ash, and charred flesh. Around you, towering buildings of some unidentifiable stone crumble to a horde of terminus beasts who pursue fleeing figures and slaughter them mercilessly. The largest ones fire beams of harsh light from their maws, slicing entire towers from end to end. Another explodes after grossly inflating itself and blows out the domed ceiling of a theatre.

Far below the once-elegant walkways, the sea roils thick and red. One would think the smell to come from all the death around them, but in fact the seas themselves are boiling blood. The sun looms too close and its heat is oppressive; the air is stagnant and offers no reprieve. The deep cracks in the earth seem to have no end.

The planet is dying.

A short distance away, a figure dressed in the same dark grey robes as all the rest stands resolute against the carnage. A red mask (left) covers the upper half of his face. Even as his brethren flee from the beasts, he faces the oncoming calamity: clenched fists trembling yet the line of his mouth determined to somehow make things right.

All of a sudden there is a thunderous crack. He swivels, eyes growing wide with alarm behind his mask as he thrusts out his hand towards you. "Watch out!"

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Even more?! Like what or whom?! We're the only ones left here!

[He's feeling volatile, caught up between stress, anger, grief, and his efforts to keep himself calm and focused. Nonetheless he takes a step forward towards the large figure of Zodiark.]

Us too, then?

[He's not of the self-sacrificing sort, but maybe that'll wake them up. He sees no other way at this point, given that Emet-Selch didn't snap out of the dream at his earlier admonishments and pinching himself hasn't been helping either.]

[ That makes her smile, and she nods. ]

Any time in the middle of the week is fine, for weekends are busier. More people tend to buy flowers and celebrate over the end of the week, after all. When would be convenient for you, Master Emet-Selch?

[ He clenches his fists, trembling from helpless anger. Not enough... Never enough... Were they right? Was it wrong to ask so much of their people? Every time he replays this scene he asks himself if there was aught different he could do. But every time he arrives at the same answer:

No. No, he would not have done anything differently, because they weren't given a choice. ]

What would you do...? [ His voice comes out hoarse at first. He clears his throat and asks again. ] What would you do if your world was ending, and you knew of no other way to halt it save for summoning a god? You would do it, wouldn't you? You would sacrifice what was needed to avert the end...?

[ He looks to Hijikata now, with the look of a desperate man seeking validation. ]

Was I wrong, then...?

The evening, then? Business is slow early in the week. I can shut early.

[(Continued from here!) "What would you do"... Hijikata pauses. Is Emet-Selch becoming more aware that this is a dream, a memory? Or is he just asking this way because Hijikata isn't the one calling the shots in the present assembly? Either way, a long moment passes before he responds in a low voice.]

I don't know.

[He's never had to make a choice this heavy and horrible, but he's had to make unpleasant choices. Was it right to enter the service of a shogunate that only serves the interests of the Amanto and weaponises them against the human rebels? It was the only way for them to still live as samurai. Was it right to harshly reject the woman he loved? Accepting her might have subjected her to violence and bloodshed no innocent person deserves to face.]

Sometimes there is no good choice. If we don't sacrifice ourselves now we'll have nowhere left to live, right? And if we do sacrifice ourselves there'll be almost no one left to live on the world we saved.

[ Something that sounds like a sob tears its way out of his throat. He clenches his teeth, head bowing as though weighed down by the number of lives they had given. ]

That is what we thought as well... But as long as life remains, there is hope. What else could we have done? What else...

[ He draws a long, shuddering breath. ]

I tire of this nightmare. Let me wake or not at all...

I'd like that. I hope you will not mind Mitsu accompanying? He likes to watch and learn, too.

[ The fox peeks up from trying to flirt with Nyx and chirps in agreement! ]

You did all you could.

[He has never seen Emet-Selch even remotely as crushed as now, and once again he wishes he knew how to console people better. Commander Kondou would at least put a reassuring hand on the other man's shoulder, but Hijikata feels like his own uncertainty would carry through if he tried it.]

Can you wake up, now? If not...

[Once more he looks up at the large form of Zodiark. If there's no other way he really has to hope that death will wake them both up.]

You needn't ask permission for your pet every time, [ he says with a sigh. ] Yes, they can watch.

[ Nyx appears wholly disinterested in the flirting but isn't rebuffing the other creatures outright. She slinks back to Emet-Selch's ankles and stares at one of the lower bobbing lettuces. ]

[ The scene almost seems to continue on without them. Zodiark continues to loom above them as the rest of the Convocation discuss in low, sombre tones how to proceed. They are matters quite beyond Hijikata's ken however.

Emet-Selch doesn't respond. He tips his head up and stares blankly at their created god. The angle means his voluminous hood slips down, revealing stark white hair that looks as though it has been carelessly brushed back. It falls just past his ears. ]

What point is there in waking if I simply return to another nightmare...? I could stay here and dream of countless ways to change the past... I could stop Hydaelyn from sundering the world... I could even persuade Azem to come back...

[ A single tear slips out from beneath his mask and rolls down his cheek. ]

Hythlodaeus...

[ Hijikata may have to forcibly end this nightmare for him. ]

[Hijikata's struggle to keep himself together in this desolate situation is getting harder and harder. His entire body feels heavy and increasingly cold. Emet-Selch's anguished musings and unexpectedly white hair register in his mind, but he doesn't react to them. It's clear that the other man can't wake up, otherwise he long would have.

He starts stepping forward to where the other sacrifices stood, painfully worried if he'll really find those he knew from Avalon alive and well on the other side, and reaches back with an open hand to invite Emet-Selch along.]

Come. Let's get you back to Hythlodaeus. He's waiting for you, and it won't be another nightmare. I promise. You can't just keep dreaming of the past here. You've got to look forward; it's the only way.

[He knows it's painful, all the more after a disaster of this unbelievable scope, but he's had to force himself to push onwards many times on his smaller, more regularly human scale. If Emet-Selch won't follow him, or if Zodiark won't accept their sacrifice, then what options does he even have left? Does he have to pull his fellow death mage down into the boiling sea with him (if it's still boiling now)? Suddenly going the way of the other sacrifices seems almost attractive in comparison.]

Hythlodaeus is...alive...?

[ The dream says no. His head says yes. He puts a hand to his forehead, wavering as past and present collide. If he doesn't remember then what is the point? If no-one remembers what happened to them then history will repeat. And repeat. And repeat--

But he takes Hijikata's hand and lets the other man lead. The seas beneath no longer boil, no, and the earth is no longer being rent by ear-splitting cracks, although the scars of calamity still visibly mar the face of the planet. Nothing good awaits anyone down there. ]

Where is he...? Where...

[ He sounds lost. ]

Edited 2022-01-31 22:43 (UTC)

On Avalon. He's on Avalon. Can you remember it? I'm from there, too.

[Not natively, but whatever! He searches for any gleam of remembrance in Emet-Selch's eyes. No matter how long he looks at him, he appears so different with his hair all white and longer than Hijikata is used to... how come it apparently turned mostly dark later on?]

You two are together there, and happy.

[At least he's pretty sure that a couple must be happy in their union if the murder of one will result in an art trail of vengeance spread across the city by the other's hand.]

I came here to wake you up, so please..!

[They're already where the others stood before, so by whichever means they get to wake up, he'll take it. He didn't swing his sword even once in this nightmare, but he feels more exhausted than after a long, fierce battle.]

[ A question Hijikata can ask the man when they wake. IF they wake. Although given Emet-Selch's visible struggle, Hijikata's words are managing to reach him somehow. If this weren't an old memory then it would be easier to believe that it was a nightmare. ]

Is he...? I... But he should be...

[ He glances about, searching for something he can't see, then settles on Hijikata. ]

If this is a dream then why can't I wake up?

It's a nightmare induced by sleep paralysis demons. They attacked our camp in the forest. I guess they trap people in their dreams.

[He hesitantly puts a hand on his sword hilt.]

If you really can't push through, then I may have to kill us both.

[Or perhaps only Emet-Selch, given that it's his dream, but he doesn't want to tell him that. This poor man has gone through enough; Hijikata wants to give him assurance that he'll stick with him until they both come back out on the other side.]

Just kill me and be done with it... I cannot... My duty--

[ The weight of years yet to come weighs heavy on his shoulders. His gaze finds itself inexorably drawn back to Zodiark. In summoning their saviour, they have also bound themselves to Him. ]

Let me return to the star and see him...

Alright.

[This feels so bitter. His voice is heavy, like it's lodged in his throat. He doesn't want to do it, but he draws his sword.]

I'm sorry. I hope you'll wake up quickly.

[A decapitation would cause him the least pain, probably, but it's also the standard method of execution in Edo, and Hijikata simply doesn't want to deliver what would feel like a punishment to Emet-Selch, who sacrificed everything. So he shoves the blade through his heart, twisting it quickly to hopefully damage it more thoroughly and shut the other man's body down faster.

When he pulls it back he catches Emet-Selch and lowers him to the ground, firmly grasping his hand. He won't let go until he's gone-- back to Avalon, ideally, and, if he may hope for that after doing this to him, not without him.]

[ Though he semi-expects it, dying still hurts. There's no sound save for a choked off gurgle as the blade twists, assuring his death. His knees give way but Hijikata catches him, holding his hand as everything fades. He wants to tell them that the care is unnecessary. He wants to tell them that it's more kindness than he deserves.

But in the end, he passes with nary a word spoken. Hijikata did his work well. Emet-Selch wakes up with a violent start, breathing hard and clutching his chest. ]

[The awakening is rough and sudden for Hijikata too, though at least it's painless on his end. He sits up as well, sighs in relief at finding himself back on Avalon, and immediately lights up a cigarette. The camp is a lot more quiet than it was when he arrived to help; it seems like Emet-Selch's nightmare was among the most persistent ones. Only two or three clustered small groups of cognitive mages are still working on victims trapped in their bad dreams, meanwhile other people are being consoled and comforted by their friends.]

Are you hurt?

[He knows he only killed him in the dream, but still, he might be feeling phantom pain or something! Somehow now that they're back in the waking world Hijikata would feel awkward offering Emet-Selch physical support, much as he still feels for him and everything he went through, back in his world and again in the horrible dreams just now.]

...No.

[ He continues lying where he is, though his hand eases off his chest. The palpitations of his heart begin to settle. How many times has he died violent deaths, suffered executions, all for a cause that never did bear fruit? He had thought the experiences would teach him something but it merely entrenched the belief that death was a cruelty he ought to rescue mortal man from.

Gazing at the stars brings no relief. Only a reminder that they are not his own. ]

I suppose I should thank you...

Not for that.

[Sure, he did his best, but ultimately he only caused Emet-Selch even more pain - be it by killing him, or by killing him so late. If he'd taken him out right at the start, couldn't he have spared him all the rest? But he couldn't have known that in advance.]

Did Hythlodaeus come here with you? We should try to find him.

[Just so he can see that he's really alive and well... and if he isn't here perhaps Emet-Selch can call him. Hijikata is still so shaken up, he wishes he could simply draw the memories of the nightmare's events from the other man's mind and lock them up somewhere, but that'd be an invasion of privacy for sure.]

He...

[ --Did not. Or at least, he cannot immediately see a head of lavender hair anywhere in the vicinity. But he's sure his friend is around. They would not have left him alone for long. ]

...I can call him. You need not hover over me so. I'll be fine.

[ Eventually. ]

[Hijikata nods. The feeling of safety is gradually sinking in. The sleep paralysis demons are gone; there's no danger anymore. And yet...

It'll be no use to voice any further concerns about the nightmare's events, he assumes. Emet-Selch may share factual information with him, but surely he'll guard his feelings closely. Hijikata can't blame him - he isn't much different, really, though his time on Prismatica and Avalon has helped him learn to open up to others more. He'll give his fellow death mage space for a phone call or whatever else he wants to do.

Still, he's seen another side of him tonight, that of a white-haired, deeply desperate man who's seen the end of his world and more sacrifices and losses than can be easily grasped. It fuels Hijikata's admiration for how he carries himself with such strength despite the crushing memories, but it also makes him hope that fate has kinder things in store for Emet-Selch from here on out.]

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Page 3 of 3

November open log

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Continued from above!

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WHAT IS TIME

An illusion... how is it Valentine's Day already...

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