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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[Hijikata's heart is hammering in his chest after this near-death experience. This truly is worse than any battlefield he's stood on, even worse than the calamity that befell Prismatica which he experienced through an incident with time rifts back on that crystal world, because while that was about equally horrible in terms of death, destruction and noxious air at least it wasn't so grossly hot!! Everything here seems to be cooking, boiling or burning.]

Your chief?! How do I identify-- wait, no! This is a nightmare!! It's not really happening! You've got to wake up! Don't you recognise me? I don't belong here, right? It's because it's a dream!

[He ducks as a monstrous creature soars past above them. This is bad!! What's going to happen if they both die here?! Will that have repercussions in the real world?]

[ He voices a despairing laugh, shaking his head. ]

A nightmare? I wish it was. How could it have come upon us so quickly--?

[ Breathing shallowly, he coves his mouth and nose as another building topples, falling across a walkway which had some robed figures fleeing across it. He watches despondently as their screams echo across the way. ]

Just go. I promise you, our new god will save us all. Have faith in us--

[ His voice breaks. He cuts himself off on what sounds suspiciously like a sob. He turns away though before anything damning can be seen.

In a whisper: ]

You coward, Azem.

Your new god?

[He really doubts that anyone or anything can save this place anymore, but what else can he do? He has a feeling that grabbing and shaking Emet-Selch and forcibly trying to make him wake up won't be a productive course of action, so he actually turns and takes off running across the cracked, barren, crumbling ground, trying to find anyone who isn't headlessly running away. If he does spot the other man's commander he'll urge him to head back with him. Whatever that summoning entails, it seems to be the only tiny seed of hope they have left.

If he dies first he can only hope that that'll wake him up. Perhaps he can ask the cognitive mages for another method, because Emet-Selch seems too deeply immersed in this nightmare to easily be snapped out of it.]

[ Emet-Selch's chief of bureau is nowhere to be found. All is chaos and terror, and even if Hijikata manages to get coherent answers out of Emet-Selch's dream shades, all that can be found at the Bureau of the Architect is a swathe of dead bodies - including one hauntingly familiar face: Hythlodaeus.

--But the Ascian is not where he was first encountered when Hijikata returns. As is the nature of dreams, it is difficult to recall the exact path one takes between one location to another, but one goes from the crumbling city of Amaurot to a platform of dark, violet crystal high, high above the surface of the planet. There, a monstrous beast lies dead. Several more robed figures stand near its head, looking battered and worn. Evidently they have just finished fighting the thing. All can be seen to wear various uniquely shaped red masks, just as Emet-Selch does, when they turn to look at Hijikata. ]

...You could not find him? [ Emet-Selch asks. He sounds...resigned. ]

[Hijikata is surprised to still be alive after practically parcouring through the crumbling hellscape. His only advantage is that he is, at the very least, used to battles, violence and dead bodies, so the grim sights everywhere don't leave him paralysed with fear. The sight of some of the larger beasts, however, makes him wish he could wake up on his own and escape their view, that's how nightmarish they are.

He really couldn't recall how he eventually made it onto the platform, but he's not in the mood to question it either. Even in death the fallen creature, which almost looks more like a terrifying wagon than a living being to him, scares him... there's something about it that makes him feel like mortal eyes should never look upon it. He tears his gaze away from it to meet Emet-Selch's.]

No.

[While he's still catching his breath he scans the assembled group of people.]

Sorry, but who are you guys? What about the ritual; could you conduct it?

[Or did the best try to prevent it and they had to exert themselves in a fight against it until now? He feels out of the loop.]

Not yet.

[ The other red masks turn to discuss amongst one another. Snippets of conversation ("Have the survivors assembled?", "Is the concept ready?") filter through over the muted roar of the cataclysm malms and malms below.

Emet-Selch steps closer so that he can speak quietly to Hijikata. ]

You should leave now.

[ Even behind the mask he looks...resigned. Behind Hijikata, others begin to appear, walking down the crystal platform towards Emet-Selch and his kin. But not only anonymous robed figures, no - there are people from Avalon too: Midoriya, Bakugou, Mukuro, Darin, and anyone else Emet-Selch has grown to appreciate in his time on the island.

They don't respond to being addressed. Instead they assemble in a group at the other Ascians' direction. ]

Leave? But...

[That's when he notices the other outworlders walk past them in the crowd. When he recognises Darin's shock of blue hair and Mukuro's voluminous pigtails he dashes after them.]

Junko! Darin! Wait!

[They don't even turn around to look at him, and his attempt at physically holding them back is met with slight resistance as they pry his hands off their shoulders.]

Guys..!!

[He turns back to Emet-Selch.]

What's the ritual going to do?! Why are you telling me to leave, but not them? Where should I even go?! Everything's burned!

[ For a moment, his shoulders slump. It is the posture of a defeated man. But he squares himself up and straightens, attempting to regain some of the dignified composure as befits one of his apparent standing. ]

A concept on far greater scale than any attempted thus far. We attempt to summon the will of the star itself: Zodiark.

If everyone else is staying, then I'm staying too. A policeman doesn't leave civilians in danger.

[Sorry, Emet-Selch, he truly is stubborn...]

What can I do to help with the summoning?

[He has a bad feeling about it, but what else can they do? It's an apocalypse, and if this is the last resort, then he'll support it!]

[ He doesn't look happy about the offer. Tired, resigned, but not happy. There is something...wrong with this whole scenario that leads him to grasp Hijikata's arm and squeeze tight. ]

Do not, [ he says softly. ] Please. You know not what you ask.

[Emet-Selch's struggle to keep himself together is honestly more alarming than all the destruction - at least Hijikata can remind himself over and over again that the scenario is just a nightmare, but seeing the usually assured and authoritative man so resigned and defeated is plain disconcerting (not that he can blame him, given that to him this isn't an abhorrent dream but events that are unfolding in real time).]

Is there any alternative? This summoning is our last chance, isn't it? Whatever it takes, you're doing it, so I will too!

[Never mind that he's totally out of his depth, still has no idea what exactly is going on and who or what Zodiark is, never having seen the will of a star before - in the worst case perhaps dying will really wake them both up from this, much as he'd prefer to avoid that experience. In any case his determination to stay is firm, given the presence of their friends in the assembled crowd.]

[ He shakes his head roughly and tries to push Hijikata back. ]

No. No, I have already lost so many--

[ He cuts himself off, looking confused for a moment as past and present memory collide. But he shrugs it off as part of the dream and steels his voice. ]

This is a sacrifice you need not make.

[Hijikata frowns deeply at that outburst of pain. Just how much loss did Emet-Selch have to endure? It's a given that this apocalypse must have erased countless lives, but somehow it seems to go deeper than even that. He pauses for a moment before responding in a calmer voice than before.]

There's nowhere I could go. There's no safe space, right? But don't worry. I'll still be here when this is over, I promise you that.

[He feels confident in that assurance. Whatever happens next, they'll be back together on Avalon when they wake up... right? The dream feels so real, doubts are starting to gnaw at the edges of Hijikata's mind. He needs to keep it together, though, hard as it may be.]

Let's proceed.

[ Emet-Selch clenches his fists. Something about this just does not sit right. One of the other figures in a red mask calls out to him, asking if he is ready - they cannot wait any longer - and he glances towards them agitatedly before turning back to the assembled crowd.

He remembers someone walking away from him to join them. Someone familiar. ]

I cannot. I cannot let you die. Enough sacrifices. Enough!

[ He clutches his head now, face twisted in anguish. Even as stars continue to fall from the heavens and dash themselves against the planet below, he is torn. ]

[Emet-Selch's obvious internal torment makes Hijikata's resolution waver. Normally he really wouldn't budge from this spot, but... this is a dream. It's only a dream. Will it really do harm if he fulfills the other man's wish? He still doesn't know where in the dying world he could possibly find refuge from whatever new additional calamity the ritual may bring down on it, but if it gives Emet-Selch some peace...]

...

Alright. Alright, I'll stay back.

[This feels wrong. He barely understands the implications of either decision, but it is as he said: a policeman doesn't leave civilians in danger. He takes a few steps back from the ritual site with great hesitation, looking back at Mukuro and Darin and the others.]

[ It doesn't really seem to appease him, but there is no good decision to make here. Emet-Selch spares him one last, anguished look before walking over to join his brethren. ]

We humbly thank you all! [ One of the other red-masked figures shouts. ] For offering your lives to halt this calamity. Know that this is not the end. It cannot, will not, be the end.

[ A shorter figure in white robes steps forward, wearing the same red mask as his compeers. One would be forgiven for thinking him a child, but his voice is most certainly that of an adult. ]

Attend me, my friends, [ the white-robed one says quietly to the others. ] We shall meet again underneath a blue sky. We will.

[ For a few moments, all is oppressively silent. Then the white-robed one smiles and raises his hands to the vast darkness of space. The other twelve arrange themselves silently around him. ]

Render unto me your aether so that I may become Zodiark, saviour of our people and our star!

[ Blindingly bright light envelops them. One by one, those others gathered - their white-masked people and those from Avalon - disappear in motes of light. Each soul grows the brilliance of the summoning until all are vanished save for the twelve in red masks and--

A dark fiend. ]

[Hijikata was already apprehensive, but he feels a full-body chill at the words of Emet-Selch's companion. 'For offering your lives"... that isn't what he thought was going to happen!! He wants to lunge forward with his sword and his magic (if his magic even works here), yell and shout and disrupt the ritual, but somehow it feels like he's frozen in place, unable get the crowd's attention or even raise his voice. Perhaps it's the dream's way of making sure he witnesses this event, now that he has become part of it.

When the demonic creature appears in the wake of the sacrificed souls it seems to spell no hope of confidence whatsoever. This is the god that's supposed to save this world?! Hijikata can feel his blood run even colder. Somehow he finds his voice again.]

No... you blew it. You blew it!

[ The Convocation's gazes remain fixed on Zodiark. A heavy wash of aether ripples outwards, washing over the men and women gathered as the fiend stands tall, gazing down towards the dying planet. When He speaks, His deep, rasping voice bears only the thinnest resemblance to the one who gave their heart to become Him. ]

Now shall I bestir the aether of the firmament and restore balance...

[ Spreading wide His arms, Zodiark lets out an ear-splitting roar. The effect - if one is able to watch it - is almost immediate: chaos stills, the stars cease to fall, and the world below hangs quiet. Though there is no obvious visible effect, it seems clear that their doom has been averted. ]

[Hijikata, who was about to really let loose, scream and shout in upset and frustration, goes abruptly silent when he notices the change like everybody else.]

...

Okay, I guess you didn't blow it.

[Inappropriately flippant as his statement sounds, internally he's despairing. They saved this world, but at what cost?! Countless people died horrible deaths, not to mention the global damage wrought on the environment. Will it even be able to recover? What's more, Darin and Mukuro and others he recognised from Avalon were in that crowd..!!

Breathe, Toshirou. It's only a dream. But something tells him without the slightest uncertainty that this did happen - far away, on Emet-Selch's homeworld. Much as he tries to tell himself that it's only a manifestation of unfulfilled fears and worries, it all felt much too real for that - the heat, the stench, the rumbling and cracking and shaking of the dying world that may just barely have been preserved now. He feels numb and simply stands there for a moment, unable to process what happened on an emotional level.]

[ The star saved at great cost. The remaining members of the Thirteen look...disoriented. Some clutching their heads or shaking them in bewilderment. Something...something has changed. But eventually they all square themselves, standing with grim purpose.

Emet-Selch stares at the ravaged planet beneath them. ]

It wasn't enough to merely halt our end. We need...more?

[ More lives? More sacrifice? Just to have life flourish once more? It is difficult to read expression when a mask obscures the upper half of one's face, but he sounds anguished. ]

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.]

[ 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...?

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November open log

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if can't see image, search for the Endwalker box art

It worked!! 👍

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