isleofavalon | Feel it right behind you, a grinning monster out to kill

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Feel it right behind you, a grinning monster out to kill

🧙 WHO: Darin Altway and You!
⚔️️ WHAT: Caster has cursed Darin and now he's using Familiar Fusion and going berserk
🕒 WHEN: Right after Caster's declaration against Archer and the aftermath a few days later!
🗺️ WHERE: Camelot and Darin's Forge
⚠️ WARNINGS: Potential Violence/Blood/Gore/Mild Body Horror

[He doesn't know how long it's been since he passed out. He remembers Caster's message. He remembers meeting her at the edge of Broceliande Woods. He remembers...]

[Pain.]

[He comes to in a sweat. Not from pain or nightmares or anything of that nature, but because the forest around him is currently ablaze. He tries to jump to his feet but his senses are off. Skewed. Something was very wrong and he could feel it. It felt like oil seeping into him, slowly gripping the very cockles of his heart.]

[Rationale gives way to panic and he's stumbling away from the treeline. He had to get back to Camelot. He had to get back for...some reason. Something inside of him screamed that he had to.]

[But his footsteps slowly grind to a halt as he crests that final hill. As Caster's dark curses finally find their hold and grip his very being, altering every bit of his perception and reasoning.]

[The witch's curse was a powerful one. In her grief, she hexed Darin to see his greatest fear. And to act on the rage that he spent his life tamping out; the one fire in his soul he refused to stoke.]

[He falls to his knees, staring at a ruined Camelot. Everything he'd come to know, the happiness he was so desperately seeking. You see, if Darin was as much of a monster as he claimed, then his fate should match that of the monster, the witch of betrayal, that he sought to defend. It's only fair, right?]

[There would be no peace. Not while monsters walked among the people of this world.]

A - Transformation (CW: Blood/Mild Body Horror)

[Camelot was gone. Or at least, Caster's curse made Darin believe that it was. And Darin, on his knees, was slamming his fists into the earth with all of his magical given might; each blow sounding like a cannon shot as it cracked the stone beneath his fists. Inconsolable, he screams, believing no one will hear him.]

[However, anyone making their way to the woods to try and stop Caster or the fire she's set might stumble upon him. Calling out to him draws his attention to you, but there's something...off...about his eyes. They're clouded over with a dark haze. And while he might be looking at you...what he sees is something different altogether.]

You...it was you!

[Enraged, Darin pushes himself to his feet, magic coursing through his body so sharply that it crackles in the air. The air becomes stifling. Oppressive.]

You've taken everything from me, Dromas! Everything! So, you want a monster?! I'LL GIVE YOU ONE

[His giant antlion familiar bursts from the ground behind him and latches onto Darin's back. For a moment, it looks like his familiar might actually attempt to subdue him. Unfortunately, those enormous, terrifying mandibles find purchase in Darin's back and, for a horrifying moment, the familiar begins to burrow. Writhing in pain as his magical power skyrockets faster than his body can compensate, Darin lets loose a blood-freezing scream. But just as quickly as it had begun, his familiar disappears into Darin's body as the two merge.]

[Darin slams his hands into the ground as he begins to grow and change. Two horns erupt from his temples, black and glinting in the light of the burning woods behind him. His torso swells; muscles grow massive as chitinous plates form around his extremities like armor. His body contorts, his back arches, until finally he's a hulking beast, towering at over ten feet tall.]

[Green eyes glowing ominously amidst the haze, the newly transformed Darin lets loose a bellow that sounds like it's three voices screaming in cacophonous harmony.]

[And then he rushes to attack.]

B - City Escape (CW: Blood/Violence)

[Believing Camelot to be nothing but wreckage, Darin storms the city chasing...something. In his cursed state, every person he sees looks exactly like the person he believes to have brought about this disaster. Unfortunately, in this state, Darin isn't much for conversing. He's barreling through Camelot, tearing through buildings like they weren't even there. And any person, resident or not, that crosses his vision is likely in for the fight of their lives as he presses the attack. After all, in his mind, Camelot is in ruins.]

[He tears up a chunk of the street and hefts it towards a group of terrified people, all of which scatter. Or attempt to. It might be too late for some.]

C - Lockdown

[It had been several days since Caster's message. Several days since he'd lost control and was set upon the good people of Camelot. He'd been keeping to himself in the forge almost the entire time, only going out occasionally in the evening for food or groceries. When he did, he wore a cloak with the hood drawn to hide his blue hair and he barely spoke.]

[Of course he did his best to help the city recover from the damages. For the first two days, he worked tirelessly to get supplies and forge tools for whatever reconstruction needed to be done. But he would always send then out anonymously or send them to whoever needed them via a proxy. It's clear that he's doing everything he can to avoid going into town himself and he hasn't been spotted in town since the incident.]

[He threw himself into his work after that but...he still seemed off. Anyone who stops by the forge might find him struggling; hammering away at something that just isn't taking shape properly or tinkering with, and subsequently screwing up, some detailed work. Finally, in frustration, Darin pitches his hammer across the forge with more strength than intended, burying it into the wall across the work space.]

[Frustrated, he sits down and buries his face in his hands.]

Wildcard

[Got another idea that you want to thread out? Go for it!]

(OOC: Feel free to threadjack as much as you want during the events of this log! It's going to be chaotic and people should definitely help each other! Got questions! Message me on the journal, my discord, or hit me up at

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[Gokudera had been in the crowd of people that had been attacked, had been working light magic to make shields and protect as many people as he can. He can't heal, unfortunately, but he's able to call out for healers until he notices someone playing Hero in trying to distract that strange monster tearing up New Camelot. He gets up, brushes his hands off and starts towards them when things take a violent turn quickly.

Of course, he can't keep up, and being uninvolved, he hears very little of the conversation. But the girl who'd been helping is hurt. Gokudera uses his magic to hide himself, all but invisible as he moves to Adela, and he's scattering smoke bombs to conceal them.]

Hang on.

[He's making himself visible, throws up a light shield for good measure, and turns to look on as she staggers to her feet. Gokudera will spend as much time as he can to make sure he can get her to safety, even if that means having his back to the strange monster and little more than a smokescreen and an invisible shield between them.]

Let's get you out of here.

[The smoke isn't close enough to her, but she doesn't look well, and he knows it could make matters worse. Getting her out of this monster's attack radius is the highest priority. Then he can fight it, or knock it out, or something. He hasn't thought that far ahead, yet.]

Who, [ Agh, hurts to breathe, give her a second. ] Who are you?

[ That she's rattled is an understatement, both from getting slammed into a wall and from the sudden appearance of the previously invisible person before her. She's still using one arm to support her chest, but when she tries to use her other she flinches and lets it fall back. That's not good, that hurt far too much... Now that she's looking, it looks misshapen under her cloak as well. Something's wrong with her shoulder, likely from the impact against the wall. She can't fight like this, can she? She can't defend herself or even run anymore. ]

... All right.

[ At least her legs still work, but the frustration she's holding with herself is an almost palpable aura around her. She knows she's not going to be able to keep her balance well either, so as much as she doesn't want to she has to rely on this stranger for now. ]

[Backlit by the destruction, Darin's hulking silhouette can be seen ominously through the smoke. He might not be able to see them, but that hardly stops his attack. Who needs a precise strike when you can just level the area in a rage?]

[And so, Darin clasps his hands above his head and swings them both down like a sledgehammer, only for the strike to connect with Gokudera's shield. It sounds like a boulder slamming into glass and while it stops the initial strike, the shockwave that reverberates from the strike is enough to shake lowertown.]

[Sensing that his attack was thwarted, Darin strikes again. And again. Slowly, the strikes build into a massive flurry of blows that can be felt throughout Camelot. Whether the shield holds out or not, the sounds of glass shattering from the force of impact can be heard throughout the area.]

[And he's just not stopping.]

Okay, so she's more injured than he can visibly see, so he'll move about her gently, moving to the side where her arm moves better than it's injured counterpart.

Gokudera. I'm here to help.

[It doesn't matter that he doesn't know who Adela is. He saw her try to distract this monster that's now targeting her. That's heroic and he's not going to let her get injured further if he can help it.]

Ah- I don't think I can keep this up much longer.

[Gokudera creates a new shield behind the first, then another behind the angry creature. As far as he's concerned, it can beat the alley in Camelot into a tunnel right to their world's core, and at the moment, he just needs to get them to safety. So long as Darin doesn't think to jump, this should be fine for the time being.]

Okay, I can make us invisible so we can get out of his range. Your pick... one or three?

[Gokudera lights a cigarette and turns his head away while awaiting her answer. He's starting to move them further away, each step cautious since the ground is shaking with the impact of those sledgehammer-like strikes]

[ Ah, she wishes she could just keep bracing her chest, and she's not a big fan of having to hang onto Gokudera, but right now there's no choice. She has no idea what he's doing, the smoke smells terrible and is doing nothing helpful for her lungs, she almost wants to use wind magic to--

Wait. ]

How do you think... He would handle smoke in his eyes?

[ She really doesn't know why he's speaking of numbers (thus why she hasn't answered), but hopefully temporarily blinding Darin sounds like a plan. With the little bit she could move her other hand, she started to show wind lifting some stray debris in her hand. Temporarily blinding him sounds like a smart plan in her head, at least. ]

[With the barriers temporarily sealing him off, it might appear that Darin is trapped for the moment.]

[But adaptability is one of his strengths, and his familiar is an antlion; a creature known for burrowing. And with those enormous forearms, it doesn't take much effort for Darin to tear through the street and burrow under the city.]

[The rumbling as he descends his substantial and the street buckles and ripples until everything is still.]

[Frighteningly still.]

I was talking about bombs-

[Gokudera replies, then his attention is cut off by the monster burrowing. That can't be good. How did it even penetrate the street like that?!

The boy keeps his cigarette burning, helping her walk with him. If he could put her on the back of his familiar, he would, but this is not water, and they seem to be at a disadvantage.]

Come on... I don't know if he's retreated or what...

[He's quiet, listening for any approach beneath or behind them. Not even his illusions will help them, since he has no idea what sense their enemy may be using while underground. Sound? Maybe it can feel vibrations?]

[ She's about to ask what in the world a bomb is, but she's thinking along the same lines as Gokudera -- that Darin burrowing underground is a very bad thing right now.

She's moving as quickly as she can manage, but she does have to use Gokudera as a support in order to move at more than a crawl, her breathing shallow and shaky for the moment. She really isn't going to be able to converse like this, which is just all the more frustrating. She won't even be able to sound a warning if she feels or hears something before Gokudera does, she's worse than useless right now! ]

Run without me. [ She hates that she's wheezing while saying this, but at this rate he's going to wind up hurt or worse because of her. She has to go through the words slowly, feeling dizzy again as she's using precious air just to get the words out. ] I will only slow you down. Do not hurt yourself over my foolish choice.

[The stillness continues. Honestly, at this point, it's possible that they're safe. That Darin's run off somewhere.]

[But Darin did have a sense that let him know where every living thing was. His blood magic could detect their heightened pulses. He didn't even have to surface.]

[Suddenly, ropey tendrils of viscous blood erupt from the street around them and start lashing, attempting to bind and ensnare them.]

Are you fucking crazy?! You'll just be a sitting duck! If I have to, I'll put you on my back.

[Which isn't too bad an idea, so long as he can support her weight rested against him and not have her bent in a way that strains her ribs. It's a guess as to what injuries she has, but the labored breathing speaks of some internal damage. He'll be cautious, but he'd rather this girl be injured and out of this trouble than dead.]

This isn't my first fight against something like this, so-

[Blood tendrils. Disgusting. Nothing he's seen before and nothing he wants to see again, thanks! Gokudera's pulling sticks of dynamite out and hurling them at those tendrils, then swiftly kneeling before her.]

Good arm around my neck. Grab on or I'm picking you up.

[They don't want to be around when the dynamite goes off.]

I know that! Is it wrong that... That I do not want you hurt for my sake!?

[ Raising her voice like that hurts and probably uses more air than she can spare, but she doesn't know what else she can say or do to get him to listen. Not that it seems to matter since he's gotten it into his head to carry her. ]

...

[ She hates this. She hates that she has to rely on him like this if there's a chance for her to survive, especially since she knows she's only slowing him down. And just like that he's robbing her of what little use she can make of herself. He seems to have faith in the strange sticks he's just thrown at the blood tendrils though, which has her frowning. Just what is he planning? ]

... Fine, but you must leave me behind if it becomes too much, all right?

[ Gingerly she's resting her weight against him, following his instruction to hang on with her good arm. Luckily for Gokudera she's quite small and consequently not very heavy, though she is going to be quite tense the entire time he's carrying her. Unfortunately, she hasn't quite noticed that one of those tendrils is maybe a few inches away from wrapping around one of her ankles by the time she finally decides to let Gokudera carry her. ]

[As the blood tendrils explode, the spray of blood goes everywhere like a fine, red mist. In fact, that's all Darin needs. The mist starts to congeal and create mesh barriers of blood, corralling Gokudera and Adela into increasingly narrower corridors.]

[And if that's not enough, one of the tendrils manages to slither around Adela's ankle. It doesn't pull with much force, preferring instead to let Gokudera separate them. And once they are, the ground begins shaking violently.]

[Like an eruption, Darin explodes from under the street, aiming to separate the two on either side of him.]

It's not wrong, but I'm not just going to let you get hurt even more after you helped so many out!

[He's got her, and they're moving, and he's grumbling just before the bombs go off.]

I'm no hero, but even I know leaving you behind won't be right.

[If it becomes too much. Tch! Gokudera is confident she will be easy to carry about. He's naturally very agile, and quick, and now that he's doing the moving for both of them, she can catch her breath. His grip on her tighten when the dynamite explodes and he gives a somewhat relieved sigh before he notices the blood gathering in the air.

The corridors forming cause Gokudera to form another light shield, pushing it as if it were a battering shield. But then he feels the weight on his back shift and he stops and turns, preoccupied trying to somehow strike that tendril off Adela and unable to be fully prepared for the ground lifting under their feet. He grips the girl tighter, but even then, he knows she won't be able to hold onto him as well.]

Larry!

[Gokudera cries out for his familiar, who is nowhere to be seen. The boy falls some distance from Adela, landing on his side and earning a few scrapes, but even if his shoulder were dislocated, he's only concerned with the girl he's trying desperately to rescue.]

[ Ah... That actually does make her feel a little better about the whole thing. She guesses it's a little like what she was doing, making sure that others weren't getting hurt. She has to wonder if he would still do that for her if he knew that--

She's trying to grip onto him a little tighter when she feels the tendril pulling on her, tensing and looking at it. Maybe if she can get her ankle through the tendril, she can get her foot free. Sure she'd lose a boot but that's nothing compared to getting them both out of there.

There's no time to think further than that though, with Darin bursting through the ground and splitting the two of them apart. Now she's on the ground, one arm out of commission, breathing hard as she realizes that Darin is right there and ready to... likely kill the both of them. Oh Nehra this is bad.

Her mind's shutting down and focusing on her earlier idea, though there's no smoke to use. She'll have to use something else. As quickly as she can manage she grabs at some dust and debris from the ground, and once she has at least some she's shooting it towards Darin's face, specifically his eyes, in an icy-cold gust of wind. Between the cold and the dust particles in his eyes, hopefully that should blind and/or irritate him enough to distract him, maybe even long enough for them to get out of there!

She's scrambling to use her good arm to get back to her feet (with or without the damn tendril on her), which is hard due to not being able to use one arm and that she can't really breathe properly, but hopefully the distraction is long enough to allow that for both her and for Gokudera. ]

Edited (complete sentences are important, apologies for the edit spam) 2021-06-13 19:31 (UTC)

[Adela's aim is true and she manages to get dust and ground up glass right into Darin's eyes. In a rage, Darin begins swinging his arms wildly. But because he can't see, his strikes go wide and he starts striking the sides of structures, tearing full chunks from them.]

[Effectively blind, he can't even counterattack.]

[They can talk about whatever they want, or at least introduce themselves once they're out of this situation and somewhere safe. Unfortunately, Gokudera doesn't know many healers. The only one to come to mind is Nobunaga, but first he has to get to Adela and get her out of here.

He feels useless. Nothing he's done has helped either of them, but if he can just get them somewhere far away from this monster pursuing them, he'll feel he's done something right. Gokudera's boss will be mad at him for putting himself in harm's way.

There are chunks of the buildings in the alley coming down around them and he curls up to protect himself, already sporting wounds from an oddly similar situation. Narrow passageways are generally really great areas for him in combat, but he has no idea what he's up against, and how long this enraged thrashing will continue.

Gokudera pushes a shield up and over his head, imagining it holding like a lifted cloak, guarding his back as he crawls over to get to Adela. It's a slow, quiet, and dangerous move, but well worth the risk. If he's lucky, Darin can as easily assume that -if his strikes hit the shield- it is little more than chunks of the building he's caused damage to.

He hopes to make it to Adela, to cover her, but until then, she may notice a bubble-like shield forming over her. And then right next to her, a toy-sized plesiosaurus slides up to her and blows a few more bubbles, sliding along on a pile of marbles before hopping off. The marbles roll forward towards Darin, and the little creature clicks at her, ignoring the commotion entirely. Larry does not care]

[ What... The...

Any startled noise that wants to come out of her is quieted to a gasp, and she seems more bewildered than anything at the creature next to her. She's not steady on her feet, glancing between it and Darin (and noting that it's sliding a bunch of orbs towards Darin, possibly to trip him up?) before she catches Gokudera's eye again. ]

Are... You all right?

[ Yeah, they should probably be running instead of wasting time talking, but at least asking is probably a good idea. Once they regroup, they can figure out what to do from there. Now it's looking like he's hurt too though... Damn, she knew this would happen.

She's probably going to have to apologize to Darin later for all of this, too. ]

Edited (I apparently can't type anymore) 2021-06-14 19:58 (UTC)

[Darin continues to howl in pain. Without a specific target, he no longer has a way to direct his fury. Blinded, he has to rely on being able to sense blood and life force. But with all of the heat from the explosions, he's having a hard time pinpointing anything.]

[He turns his head to the sky and clutches at his temples n frustration. This area has become too much trouble. He crouches and leaps, blasting off into the sky and over the city's wall.]

Yeah.

[So his shoulder hurts? Big deal. It'll just be a matter of relocating it, which will hurt, but he's been through much much worse. Larry is staring up at them, flapping his little plastic flippers before Gokudera scoops him up and puts him in his inner shirt pocket. Gokudera offers her his uninjured side to lean on if she'd like, but if she won't take it, it'll be a slow trek to safety.

Darin howling lets Gokudera know that the monster is there, but when he blasts off, the silence that follows makes him uneasy. Is he gone? Really? Gokudera won't allow himself relief yet. First thing first, he's taking out his device and contacting Nobunaga]

[ She's watching carefully as Darin bounds away, seeing it as an apparent retreat enough to relax. Adela can't help the heavy sigh that leaves her, and she trudges forward as quickly as she can manage. Now that Gokudera is hurt as well she doesn't want to trouble him, not leaning on him for the time being.

But, suddenly, she's just so... Tired...

Her adrenaline is finally wearing off and she can't help leaning more of her weight on Gokudera than she's intending to, especially with everything catching up to her now. Now her head's pounding, everything hurts a lot more than it did, and she's visibly exhausted by that point. ]

Hope... No one kills him...

[ It's about the only thing she can say, but now that they're... apparently? Out of danger, they need to find a safe place to rest. They can figure out what to do about their arms later, and she'll just have to deal with her chest hurting for a while. That's going to be a pain if it doesn't go away, though. ]

Easier said than done, I'd think. What was that?

[He doesn't mean to be rude, but he has no idea that monster was Darin. Gokudera just thinks it came into New Camelot and started attacking unprovoked. If he knew it was an acquaintance of his, he'd obviously be more concerned.

Instead, he's just getting them somewhere out of the way of the bustling streets, but not together hidden, since he wants Nobunaga to find them as soon as he gets Gokudera's message.]

I don't think I got your name...

I think... That was Darin. But I do not know for certain...

[ When they can finally stop she collapses, leaning her back against whatever's nearest so she can just rest and focus on breathing. She doesn't really remember being hurt this badly before, but it's not like there's not much to do about it. ]

... Adela is my name. And... Thank you, for helping me.

[ That last bit was a little harder for her to say, and she's keeping her head bowed just so that she doesn't have to meet his eye. She's still frustrated that she got hit at all, but she can at least be grateful for the aid. ]

Edited (icon) 2021-06-18 03:37 (UTC)

That looked nothing like Darin.

[And now he's concerned.

He's not going to stop helping Adela, even if she seems like she wants to be independent and stubborn. Gokudera gets it, really he does, considering the number of times he's been hurt and pushed through it just to throw himself into more dangerous scenarios.]

You're welcome. You got pretty beat up back there. I'm going to call someone with healing magic, since it seems like most of your injuries are internal. [Well, that arm is clearly injured, but the way she's weak suggests that there may be breaks or even worse going on that he can't see.]

I've been a nurse in another world. I can't heal you, but I can at least help until you don't need me to anymore. Is that alright? My name is Gokudera, by the way... Try to stay awake for as long as you can... if it's too hard to talk, simply nod or grunt, alright?

[Gokudera is looking over scrapes, scratches, and none seem terribly deep. His shoulder hurts and he's irritated, but it'll be a bit too difficult to pop it back in place without help, and she doesn't look like she could push it back even if she tried her best.]

I know, but... I just know it was him.

[ And she's frowning now, though now that they're not moving she can at least breathe and even converse (mostly) normally. It at least doesn't seem like she's going to get worse out of no where.

She feels like she's getting a little bit of deja vu though, she's sure she knew his name from earlier... Well, that's not important right now. ]

I think the worst of it is that I still cannot move my arm. Something happened to my shoulder, similar to yours. [ Because she definitely noticed that he's hurt too. ]

Well then... maybe getting away from New Camelot is what's best for a while.

[It's at least safer for the people of the city. He just wonders now if Darin will return to normal, or if they should get a group together to locate and subdue him before giving him some kind of cure.

If he introduced himself, he's not even certain. Gokudera may have, but there was a lot going on.]

I just landed on it poorly. It's dislocated, and if it weren't, I'd help you set yours. Heh, together we have a working set of arms.

[He sits next to her and pulls out his device to check on Nobunaga.]

Feel it right behind you, a grinning monster out to kill

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