seven devils all around you, seven devils in your house

[singmod]

JUNE 2024 EVENT

PART ONE — A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME: The Darkwalker claims another victim, and that is only the beginning of troubles for the Interlopers as they face a month of endless night and green gloom.

PART TWO — POLAR SUN: As June continues, Interlopers are faced with food insecurity as wildlife flees; tensions grow as they face hunger and the Darkwalker's continued influence. On the day of the Summer Solstice, the tension finally breaks and violent chaos descends upon Interlopers.

PART THREE — REPRIEVE: The end is in sight, and an ally comes to the Interloper’s aid.

A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME

WHEN: June 1st, then onwards.
WHERE: Milton area; Lakeside area (Carter Hydrodam).
CONTENT WARNINGS: death of playable character; supernatural death; mention of dead body; themes of death; supernatural beings; themes of terror; themes of peril.

The evening is quiet and still. May draws to a close and while the sun does not completely set, it dips low enough for the sky to grow a little darkdim with twilight. The midnight sun is almost upon the Northern Territories, the air is warmer than it has ever felt — even if it remains chilly. If this is summer, it is but a gentle brush of reprieve against the unyielding winter. The Interlopers wind down for the night, many turn to their beds to sleep, others sit awake and ponder their existence in this world. They think of home, of loved ones, of their predicament here in this place. The Forest Talkers, the strange beasts and monsters they’ve encountered.

The moon wanes in the skies, nestled amongst the stars. For those still awake to notice, they can see it: slowly, one by one, the stars begin to go out. Then the moon's light is swallowed whole, and a blanket of green gloom descends upon the Northern Territories.

The sky is dark and green and terrible. Many of those will recognise it, what this means and what will come. Others will not understand it, not know what it is that awaits them all.

They will soon find out: the Darkwalker comes.

Under a green sky, a cold fear washes over you — squeezing the breath from your lungs. Interlopers will find themselves overcome with that fear, and everything in their bodies and minds tells them to run. To flee. And so you run, heading for cover. Curtains will be drawn, some may hide under beds, within closets or wardrobes. Some desperately 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 cower 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.

For those within Milton, it is further away but is by no means less potent: Interlopers will find themselves frozen with the constant loom of the Darkwalker’s arrival — even if it does not come to Milton. Those within Lakeside, however, will feel the true force of this presence: more like a knife edge — painfully gripping your heart as it draws close.

The Darkwalker howls: indescribable, unnatural, demonic. Low moans and groans. It comes from the east, the faint booms of footsteps in the distance growing ever nearer. It is coming, once more. It's coming for one of you. And still, 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.

For those in Lakeside, through the fear, they may be able to note the path: a straight line from the east towards Carter Hydrodam. 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.

There is an almighty sound; the Darkwalker devours and even with the distance you can hear it. The sound of gnashing teeth, and… laughter. There is no scream, no bright light in the sky — Enola is silent this time. There is only that laughter, echoing off into the night.

The skies do not return to normal. The green gloom hangs in the air. It is done, but it is not yet over. While the overwhelming fear dissolves away, but a kind of… dread remains on the air — almost palpable.


The Darkwalker has devoured another. Braver souls who go out to investigate into Lakeside will find just who has been devoured once they reach the Hydrodam — although it may be a day or two before they will find the body in the medical bay.

At least it is cold enough that the rot does not fully set in — but death will certainly be here.

And this is but the beginning of the Interloper’s troubles.

POLAR SUN

WHEN: The month of June, up to Midsummer’s Eve + Summer Solstice.
WHERE: Milton area; Lakeside area.
CONTENT WARNINGS: themes of survival; food scarcity/food insecurity; supernatural weather; altered mental states; mental manipulation; themes of violence; potential character injury; potential character death; potential NPC death.

In the coming weeks and days, and weeks, the green gloom lingers. From the Darkwalker’s attack, there is no sun. No day, no night. No stars or moon or sun. No Auroras. Just the gloom and biting cold. Life becomes increasingly hard on Interlopers: higher expenditure on fuel — fires and lanterns are imperative to keep the darkness and the cold at bay.

With the green gloom in the air, the wildlife becomes more scarce — as if it has been frightened away into the deeper parts of the wilds. It will be harder to bring in fresh meat in both Milton and Lakeside, and Interlopers will find that they will have to rely on whatever stores they have — and perhaps even rationing for a while.

And it’s not the only thing frightened. Even with the debilitating fear that comes with the Darkwalker’s attack gone, there is still a kind of fear that lingers on the air that slowly eats away at the Interloper’s resolve over time.

Interlopers will find themselves anxious, on edge. Some will be prone to anger in their fear, others prone to fits of melancholy: tearfulness and sorrow. Between the cold, the lack of fresh game and the fear on the air — it’s no wonder spirits are low. Bickering and minor upsets between Interlopers are likely.

They call it the midnight sun, the polar day. It's opposite is the polar night. This is neither and both. On the day of midsummer's eve, that fear on the air is even more palpable. The air feels a little stifling at times, as if the pressure is all off — often quite oppressive, a strange kind of tension. There is something brewing, a low burning thing that begins from the moment Interlopers wake — heavy and sharp in their chest.

’So, Interloper. What will you do now?’ A voice sneers in your ear. The very same voice that has haunted Interlopers since the very beginning. The Darkwalker finally speaks after all these weeks of gloom since its most recent attack. ’When all is gone, when even the sun does not rise? What will you do then?’

A nervousness sits within you as you remember the Darkwalker’s words. What will you do if the sun does not rise? If the darkness is all that is left? If the food runs out? Your wonderings will continue to gnaw away within you. The darkness is hollowing.

’Will you lean on others, like you have always tried to do?’ the voice continues. ’What bonds you hold with them, the ones with those around you. But how strong are they, truly? Can you trust them? Will it matter when your belly is empty and your heart is low? Perhaps it is time to see.

’Never forget, Interloper. I am the Rot. And I will rot within you.’

As the day progresses into the Solstice, that tension lingers in the air, and the wonderings within you continue to wear at you. You find yourself becoming more and more agitated as time goes on. Those feelings that have been brewing for some time now have started to grow close to boiling. You may snap at others, grow restless, become enraged at the tiniest of things — the upsets wildly out of proportion for the smallest slights or issues.

You find your thoughts wandering, too. Perhaps it is to someone you know in this place, or perhaps it is to someone previously unknown to you. Maybe you have an issue with this person, or perhaps the voice’s influence extends further — not only adding to your agitations but creating them, too. A slight, a grudge, a bias.

You feel a bitter gnawing within you. The nightmarish green gloom above you persists and everything bubbles up from within. From the dark, the anger within you become too much. The tension finally snaps.

For some, it might come out as a vicious argument where you air your grievances, or finally let slip the things you’ve been holding close to your chest. A verbal beat down, incredibly hurtful in nature. For others, things may be drawn to getting physical. A literal beat down where your fists grow bruised and bloody, or perhaps even worse. Whatever it is, you want to do damage to someone else — there is darkness here, and so many things come out in the dark, don’t they?

Like a ripple, all around you: all hell breaks loose. Chaos erupts, and the air is filled with violence.

Let’s hope you might stop, or someone else stops you, before someone gets killed.

REPRIEVE

WHEN: Circa three days after the Summer Solstice.
WHERE: Milton.
CONTENT WARNINGS: blood.

All things must come to an end, even the most violent of deadly storms. In the midst of the seemingly endless violence of the night, you find yourself outside. Maybe you're fleeing from another Interloper, maybe you're desperately trying to reach someone you care for, maybe you're simply trying to find somewhere new to hide. Interlopers are hunting one another, blood lies on the snow, bodies too — some breathing, some not.

Perhaps it is a trick of the light. Perhaps it's the Darkwalker’s influence still warping your already frayed mind. Or it's the blood in your eyes, your battered and bruised body struggling to get through it all.

In the gloom, you see it. See her.

A woman, dressed in furs, stones and shells glimmering on her chest like armour, stands in the snow before you. Thin and pale, eyes sunken. Her chest heaves with each breath as she looks around with wide eyes. Her hands are bare and bloody. It drips slowly from her fingers. Is it her blood? Or someone else's? You cannot tell, but you cannot mistake how thick it coats her skin.

Her head turns to look at you. You are stunned, but not frightened. Even through the gloom, after a moment or two, her eyes widen in recognition: she knows you.

Slowly and silent, other than her noisy breathing, she draws close to you. Maybe in turn you draw close to her, closing the distance between you. Up close, her eyes are blue, and sad. You cannot mistake the sorrow in them. She is tired, weary. Her hair is dark, worn loose and long. For some, you feel as if you've seen her before, but you can't quite place her face.

Softly, she says your name.

For some, there may be no recognition. This woman is a stranger, who knows your name somehow. She has been silent the past couple of months, after all.

For others, hearing her speak brings a sudden, jarring realisation: this is Enola.

She’s here. Enola. All this time, she’s whispered to you in dreams, in static, in the very air itself.

She raises one hand, dark and dripping in the green light. Lightly, her fingers brush against your chest. You don’t feel the pressure of them, don’t feel the odd heat of blood — only the weight of her stare as she holds your gaze. It’s a long moment of peace in amongst the chaos.

You feel her exhaustion, a tiredness that sinks into your very bones. Apologies, too. You have never known anything like it. But there’s something else too, something that takes a moment or two to put your finger on. Defiance. A renewal. Something shifts in the air, a growing tension, different from the kind that’s been held on the air throughout the month. It’s the coming of a storm, the rolling clouds, the growing rumble of thunder before the first lightning strike.

Enola nods, her expression grave. She pulls away and turns from you — her head lifting towards the skies as she walks. Her arms raise, bloodied hands twisting and tensing before her. They curl, almost into fists, and she makes a gesture: the slow tearing of something huge and invisible before her — a shriek spilling from her lips. A battle-cry, a last stand, a wail of agony. It echoes.

The sky cracks and splits open before you, dazzling light and colours blinding your vision into pure white. The world tilts too hard below your feet, and you don’t remember passing out.

When you awaken, Enola is gone. The skies are clear and blue, the sun is high in the sky. As you pick yourself up from the snow, in the harsh light of the polar day, blood has never looked so red. The horrors of the night laid bare. Interlopers are dead, but the Darkwalker’s influence is gone. For now.

In the wake of Midsummer, all Interlopers can do is try reconcile. Bury the dead, rebuild, lick wounds. But that feeling in the air still remains — that different, new kind of tension that has come with Enola’s appearance. The first of the lightning bolts has struck, but more are coming.

FAQs

A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME

1. Alexander Hilbert has been devoured by the Darkwalker. His remains can be found in the Hydrodam. The following note has been left by Kates concerning his death: ‘Sveta gets possession of his research notes + blood samples + creepy lab journal because it's all in Russian, lmao.’

2. Information on the Darkwalker’s attack can be found here.

3. Usually, after the Darkwalker attacks, the sky would return to normal. This won’t happen. Instead, the usual atmospheric changes that occur during Darkwalker attacks will remain in place as June continues..


POLAR SUN

1. For an idea how the setting appears for June, it's like what you see in the game during the Escape The Darkwalker Challenge. Inside, there'll be a degree of green shades to rooms etc via what comes through windows but with it being lit up via fires and light sources, the gloom will be chased back.


2. Characters are free to use this event to kill NPC Interlopers. Methuselah and Young Bill are off the table, as are two marked NPC Interlopers. Please let Mods know if you intend on doing this for record keeping!

3. These acts of violence can be physical or verbal altercations, players are encouraged to work with the prompt however they'd like! However, anything potentially world-altering (ie. building destruction) must be first discussed with mods.

4. Interlopers under the Darkwalker's influence can be stopped in a number of ways. Showing genuine care and compassion in the face of violence is one way. Knocking an Interloper out is another way. Sometimes killing an Interloper may be needed, or simply restraining them and keeping them locked up somewhere so they can't hurt anyone else until the night is over would also work.

5. Talismans made by Heartman back in March with a Ward Sigil against the Darkwalker will come into effect during this prompt. It's been an ongoing process, with new Interlopers being offered them from their arrival. Players are free to choose what kind of talisman they received, or if they chose to get one at all. Their effectiveness is dependent on the type of blood used on the talisman.

— Animal Blood: Interlopers carrying talismans using blood from animals found in the world, such as deer, rabbits or wolves will find themselves more susceptible to the Darkwalker’s influence and disposition towards violence. They will be much harder to break out of the hold over them, and become almost frenzied state.
— Monster Blood: Interlopers carrying talismans using blood from any creatures or monsters that Interlopers have encountered in their time in the Northern Territories, such as the Serpent from December’s TDM will find there are no negative nor positive effects. The talisman is essentially useless. and Interlopers will fall under the Darkwalker's influence.
— Interloper Blood: Interlopers carrying talismans using blood for Interlopers will be offered protection/resistance from the Darkwalker’s influence and disposition towards violence. They may be slightly affected but will have their wits about them more compared to others. If the blood came from an Interloper with an Aurora Feat — this protection/resistance will be largely increased, an the Interloper may even feel braver, less affected by the fear in the atmosphere.
— No Talisman: Similar to the Monster Blood Talisman, Interlopers will be affected typically by the Darkwalker's influence in due course.

There are no additional affects with an Interloper using their own blood, just if they have an Aurora Feat or not.

6. Animals owned by Interlopers will be more frightened and will want to hide away in the build up — they will be disturbed by the world. Mostly lying down and whining/restlessness. They may display some signs of aggression on occasion, but not to the same degree of humans.

7. Forest Talkers are hidden away and will not be able to be reached during the Solstice.

REPRIEVE

1. Enola can only be met alone, but she will appear to all Interlopers in Milton.

2. Enola will be nowhere to be found afterwards, there are no tracks to be followed. She has simply vanished.

PLOTTING POST

Comments

[fidior]

[ It isn't easy. It hadn't been for him, either — it never is, to coax one's heart down from its frantic pulsing. He's always needed... help. And there's always been someone there to help him. Kate. Wynonna. People who have found him when he couldn't see anything but his upset, terror, horror — people who held onto him until he could function again.

He holds onto Kate now, grasping her securely to his chest. Around him, he can still hear sounds of chaos — but nothing that's dangerously close, not yet. Shouts in the far distance. A scream. He flinches and looks down to the girl again, holds her more tightly, pressed to his heart to make certain that she can feel it. Slow, in and out, steady, safe. ]

It's all right. You can. You'll be all right, [ he assures her, even if he doesn't know whether that's true or not and can only force himself to believe it. He's terrified that she won't be able to find her breathing again, that she might somehow just collapse in his arms, unmoving, but then— he feels the shift happen, an inhale the drags, lingers, and then that shuddery exhale. Another, and even if it hurts, she's breathing. Little nods, feeling some small flicker of a thing even among his own horror — a sort of pride, quiet and fond. ]

That's it. You have it.

[ Though the next bits and pieces of word that Kate manages to speak fill him with a fresh horror, and his throat tightens. Tried to find help. She was looking for help when Mikel... ]

I am. I'm here to help you — and you'll be all right, now.

[ A vow he'll do anything to keep. Edward knows the only way he can keep it is to get her to safety, quickly, but he's still so hesitant to move her. His head turns to the side, eyes wide and alert, skin buzzing with anxiety and adrenaline; he catches a glimpse of blood in the snow, not so far away at all — turns his body away from it, keeps Kate's head away from it. She shouldn't see this. His stomach is in agony for how tightly it squeezes in on itself. He feels a little faint, but he can't lose himself now. Kate still needs him. ]

I'm so sorry, but we need to leave as soon as you're able. I need to get you out of here. [ His voice drips with apology; he knows it won't be easy for her, that moving is likely the last thing she can think of right now. Perhaps they can spare a few more seconds there on the snowy ground, but— only a few. ]

It's all right. Breathe for a little while longer, and then when you think you can move, let me know. I'll help you.

[castitas]

[ Kate nods, and she's not sure if it's agreement or assurance. She has it, somehow. Somewhat. Slow, stuttering breaths she forces from herself over and over, trying to soothe the frantic beating of her heart and give herself air — following his example. Everything still feels dizzy and faint, but slowly it starts to sharpen and clear once more.

The initial shock begins to wear off with another shudder. There's still some reeling stun in her, but the first of it starts to break away and she whimpers: she's still alive and gosh— it hurts. Even through the slow breathing, sobs start to escape her. Finally, she's able to get her limbs to move again after her initial daze, her arms no longer useless at her side. She grips onto him tightly wherever she can in desperation: he's here. He's here to help her. She'll be alright, now.

She utters his name again, softly. Like a prayer, a blessing. She's still alive. He stopped it from happening. Her eyes close again as she clings onto him, her throat burns but he's here— She doesn't hear Mikel anymore. All she smell and taste is blood— she can't see him, she doesn't have the energy to try to—

He's talking, and she strains to listen, to concentrate: ... we need to leave as soon as you're able. I need to get you out of here. They're not safe, not out here. She understands that, on some level. Even with everything feeling so... strange. The danger hasn't passed, not completely. ]

I ran— from the Community Hall. I— I was there, but— [ Chloe. Kate terrified, with her flare-gun drawn, with no idea what to even do with it. And then it all went black. She feels so tired and like everything's on fire all at once, and all she can do is continue to breathe.

It's still ragged and strained, a little wheezing, but it grows calm again. Kate feels too stunned to move, but he's right. They need to go. She nods after a long time. Okay. Okay, she can, she thinks. ]

Need— we need to go.

[fidior]

[ Kate's pain is all-too obvious with each of those wheezed, aching breaths she manages to draw, and it guts him. It isn't fair (a concept that Edward knows lost any true meaning a long time ago, but one his heart still cannot help trying to hold onto in some capacity) — that such an innocent soul could continually know such suffering. ]

I'm sorry— [ he whispers again, his own upset leaking through into his voice. ] Forgive me.

[ The Community Hall. If she'd run from there, perhaps it isn't safe. He won't risk taking Kate back there; he needs to get her somewhere else, somewhere indoors, but his own cabin is quite a ways from here. There are others, many still unoccupied. Whatever is the closest, whatever seems safe.

He looks down to her nodding, adrenaline a staticy current coursing through his mind. But even so, he stays slow, movements careful, not wanting to risk hurting her. ]

All right. I'm going to stand now, and I'll help you up, too. I'll carry you.

[ Gently, he starts to slide her forwards a bit from his lap, enough that he can find footing behind her and will himself upwards. His heart keeps pounding relentlessly, all-too aware of Mikel, who lies mere feet away from him in the snow. The whole time, Edward doesn't let go of Kate, keeping his arms either around hers or under hers, helping to draw her upwards with him. When he has them both up from the ground enough, he'll bend his knees and slide one arm under the crook of her knees, the other securely around her back. He lifts her up, keeping her tucked in close. ]

Are you all right? We'll move now — somewhere indoors, safe.

[ But he'll have to turn to head towards the buildings, and that means... turning her towards Mikel. They'll have to walk past where he lies; there's no other way. ]

Kate. [ Little breathes her name again, soft and quiet, a direct contrast to the loud thuds of his own heart and the awareness of the dead boy just there in the corner of his own vision. ] I want you to close your eyes for me. Can you do that? Close them, and keep them closed until I tell you of safety?

[castitas]

[ Apology and forgiveness aren't strange things to hear from him, but once more they're uttered — she doesn't understand why. Not once, she thinks, has he ever done anything truly terrible to her to need her forgiveness. And even then, it's always given every time he asks for it — for whatever reason he feels the need to ask for it. She'll forgive him every time. He's only even done her more good than harm.

There's a shaky nod of her head, and she braces herself for movement — still dazed from everything, like a bird off a windowpane. She slowly reaches up, clinging to his shoulders as she tries to stand with him — her feet uncertain for the brief time they're on the ground, knees knocking as if they've forgotten what it's like to bear weight on them. She clings a little harder when she feels the balance of her shift, and she's lifted up — breath painfully hitching a little.

She remembers the last time someone carried her like this. All she remembers is the searing pain, Constable Fraser trying to carry her over the frozen flooded floors of the mine. ... But nothing happens. No pain, not even the hint of it. She's okay. She relaxes a little, not quite realising the tension in her limbs. ]

I— I'm okay. [ Another shaky nod, curling into him a little, returns to trying to even out her breathing — long and slow breaths that wheeze. Words are starting to hurt her now.

Even with the noise all around them: shouts and screams and sobbing and thundering footsteps through the snow that carry on the still air — there is a deafening silence behind them. She realises it before he even speaks, asking her to close her eyes. He doesn't want her to see. Her head ducks a little, as if trying to shield herself; there's a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach that she can't seem to put the words to. Her eyes close without question, and she buries her face against him. ]

He's— [ Her own voice is hushed. She isn't sure what word to use, and she fumbles for it. ] He's gone, isn't he?

[fidior]

[ She shouldn't see this. He knows Kate is no stranger to horrible things, both before and during this place, but she shouldn't have to. It's too much, too awful: this young man, a part of their community, now lying unmoving in a pool of red that's growing wider and wider in the snow.

Edward adjusts his hold on her, secures her tighter, and breathes quietly as he starts to turn around, slow, feeling as though time has slowed down into something that's impossible to count, mere seconds dragging out. ]

Yes. [ He's gone. He needs to say more, to explain, to plea, to tell her that he had to stop him, that something was wrong with Mikel, that he had to be stopped — but he can't bring himself to voice the words, not right now, and he knows Kate likely knows all of those things. The facts are there, too clear, stinging: Mikel was influenced by the darkness of this place. He attacked her. He wasn't going to stop, so he had to be stopped.

Edward's facing the boy now. He moves around him in a wide circle, but they'll have to walk past him, and he wills his legs forwards, trudging through the snow. There is a thought, though, something he suddenly feels he needs to say. To make certain of.

So he forces his eyes to move, to look at Mikel as he passes — to make sure that he's truly dead. That he isn't.... suffering. It becomes clear within moments that the died on impact, that the injuries are too severe. That is a mercy. ]

He's— he isn't suffering. It was over instantly.

[ Edward swallows hard, the movement felt down in his chest. Only when they're several feet past the dead boy and after he's turned the corner of the building nearby does he speak again. ]

It is safe now. You may open your eyes, if you wish.