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singillatim2024-01-25 02:44 am
singmod) wrote in singillatim2024-01-25 02:44 am
oh you fool, there are rules, i am coming for you
THE DARKWALKER COMES
The Darkwalker makes its first real strike against the Interlopers, resulting in the death of La'an Noonien-Singh. In the wake of her death, her fellow Interlopers are left to deal with the fallout of this new part of the horror of the Northern Territories.
WHEN: January 25th, onwards.
WHERE: Milton.
CONTENT WARNINGS: death of playable character; supernatural death; mention of dead body; themes of death; supernatural beings; themes of terror; themes of peril.
OH, THE RECKONING BEGINS
On the night of January 25th, all is calm. It is a peaceful, if not cold evening. There are no clouds in the skies, the stars and moon hang high in the blanket of inky black. It would be just another night, until something strange happens: one by one, the stars begin to go out and the moon's light fades from view, as if swallowed whole.
Instead, there is nothing but the gloom. The sky is dark and green and terrible. Interlopers all over the Northern Territories will stop and stare — horrified by such a sight. And then, it washes over you like a cold wave: fear. Interlopers will find themselves over-come, and everything in their bodies and minds tells them to run. To flee. And so you run, heading for cover indoors. Curtains will be drawn, some may hide under beds, within closets or wardrobes. Some desperate attempt to conceal themselves, make themselves small, unseen. Some Interlopers, in that fear, may rush to friends or loved ones to hide with them, others may simply cowered alone — crawling and whimpering away from the night. The fear is irrational, unable to be overcome — even by the bravest or most stoic of Interlopers.
And then: noise. Coming from towards the east, the sounds of unnatural and almost-demonic roars, groans and moans — unable to be likened to or truly described. Drawing nearer and nearer — and you know it, even if you don't understand why: something is coming. It's coming here. You are powerless, unable to do anything. And it is an agony, awaiting its arrival. You cry, you whimper, you cower. Curling up for some shred of comfort, and finding none.
It seems to go on forever, building into a crescendo. Your heart beats so hard you fear it may burst from your chest, as if you might die of fright.
And then, a screaming wail — sharp as it cuts through the building dread. A woman. You know it, don't you? You're sure you've heard it before.
The silence that follows is deafening. The green gloom subsides, the fear slowly melts away within you. You wait, and wait. Finally, when it feels like you can breathe again, you decide to move.
Interlopers who dare to venture outside, who dare to look from behind curtains may see nothing at all. The skies have returned to normal, the moon is out once more. But those close to the center of town will see the small frame of a body curled in the snow. Some may not know her, but plenty will recognise her: Lieutenant La'an Noonien Singh.
It looks almost as if she'd collapsed. But those who decide to investigate will discover a gruesome scene. While there will appear to be no physical wounds, her body will appear contorted — expression frozen in absolute fear. It will be incredibly unnatural and violent to look at. La'an is dead. Around her, the footsteps that brought her to this spot. Strange 'waves' in the snow, too. Hard to define as to what exactly made them. And... faint glimmers of green, intangible. Almost like a residue — which will vanish by the time morning comes.
This is not the first time. La'an Noonien-Singh is the thirteenth Interloper to die since they first began to arrive in this place. But this is certainly the first time something like this has ever happened.
But preparations must be made, an Interloper must be mourned and laid to rest.
And the rest of Milton must come to terms with what has happened, if they can put a name to such a thing.
FAQs
1. Essentially, a 'party post' for reactions to the Darkwalker's Arrival, the immediate aftermath, and any funerary preparations following La'an's death. Have... fun?
2. Information on the Darkwalker's attack can be found here.
3. An OOC Rundown can be found here.
4. For those interested: Harry Goodsir is conducting a post-mortem on La'an, which can be found here.
no subject
A wolf?
[ Huh.
With a shake of his head, Wolfwood tears his attention away from the shaggy beast to head into the church, waving for Fraser to follow. ]
I always thought they were bigger.
[ The pastor's office is just past the threshold and to the right, and that's where Wolfwood leads Fraser. The previous holder of this office had been a neat and organized man, and the space hasn't been used much since he disappeared. Wolfwood looks decidedly out of place as he drops into the chair behind the desk, waving for Fraser to take a seat as he fishes around in a drawer for some scrap paper, and a pen that hasn't dried up or frozen. ]
no subject
[ He says, as he follows the man into the church. He removes his hat respectfully as they enter, and keeps his voice down. ]
There is certainly some amount of dog in him, I think, but I try not to bring it up. He can be surprisingly sensitive.
[ Fraser sits, sets his hat on his lap, and gives the other man his full attention. Some sort of priest or minister, he assumes. ]
I appreciate your willingness to help with this particular matter. Though... I wish it wasn't needed. Meaning no disrespect.
no subject
Huh? [ What was that about disrespect? He wasn't entirely listening, distracted by the sounds of others walking through the sanctuary. There's been visitors here since he arrived, but never this many, and it's going to take him some time to get used to all the company. ] ...Oh. Yeah, no, trust me, I wish I wasn't needed here either.
[ But that's how it is, and there's no use complaining about it. ]
Okay, to start, personal details. You said her name was Lieutenant La'an Noon-Sing?
no subject
[ He spells it out for the other man, doing his best to keep from worrying the brim of his hat with his fingers. It's a nervous tic, just the back of his mind telling him he needs to get up, to keep checking things off the list, to get to work.
But this is important, too. Not necessarily the funeral service itself, but remembering her. Telling other people about her, so they remember her, too, even never knowing her. ]
She was the chief of security on a starship called the USS Enterprise. [ Words that, even now, feel strange to say. He wishes he could have seen the universe as she'd seen it: connected. Open. All those mysteries and living things suddenly connected to this one small world. ]
Starfleet. She belonged to Starfleet. It's a discovery and defense service under the United Federation of Planets.
no subject
Wolfwood lifts his head from where he's been hunching over that paper and stares at Fraser with shock (and not a little amazement). ]
She was from a spacefaring age?
[ There's folks here who don't know what electricity is, so it shouldn't really be a surprise that there's people here who were traveling the stars... but it's still unexpected!
It's really not the time to ask about this sort of thing, but the safety and security of the living always has to take precedent over the dead. ]
Is there anyone else here from Starfleet?
no subject
[ That, at least, he's perfectly certain about. It had been something of a distressing truth for La'an, who, he knows, had felt alone and isolated as a result of being so far removed from all the other Interlopers by both time period and mission. ]
She was the only one. But she spoke about it often.
no subject
[ They're all of them lonely, he's certain, every one who's been brought by themselves to this frozen prison. The real shame is that they had somebody here whose knowledge might have helped them all escape... or at least fight back with more force than their current blades and scarce ammunition supply will allow.
That's how he'd do it, anyway, were he running this place. Kill the smartest and strongest first, leave the rest hopeless and obedient. It's possible that the lieutenant's death was pure coincidence, that she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, but it's also entirely possible that she was meant as a warning for the rest of them. ]
Sounds like you two were close. Did you arrive at the same time?
no subject
I believe she'd been here some months already, with some others who were the first to arrive. Which was helpful when we met, since she could tell me about some of the things that had already happened here.
I know that she took it upon herself to try and keep the people here safe, much as she had in her role back in her own world.
no subject
Plus, when the real fight comes, it’ll be good to know what the rest of their allies here are capable of. ]
D’you think that’s why she was out so late? Did she have regular rounds?
no subject
[ He thinks of a broken watch and a gleaming badge, of the notes that came with them both. ]
There's some evidence that she was aware something was going to happen to her. And her footsteps led directly from her home to the spot where she was found, as if she went out with the intention of meeting the thing that killed her.
[ The thing from the dream, the one Levi thought was a god of his own world. Maybe it is; certainly Fraser doesn't have any explanations for what happened. ]