⇨ EDEN PT. 2

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone!
When: Day 86 - Day 88
Where: Eden
What: The Furies of Eden have been found and have agreed to ally with the carnival to achieve their mutual goals. Meanwhile, tensions in the city only get thicker. How much longer until everyone's cover is blown for good?
Warnings: Increasingly high chances of ritual sacrifices.

FRUIT OF KNOWLEDGE↴ Progresses has been made, but obstacles are approaching. As various characters fall under suspicion for their unusual natures the threat of backlash from the community of Honorables and Architects grows imminent. Several carnival members have fled to the Barrens, allying with the Furies of Eden, a rebel group bent on defying Lilith and taking Eden for themselves. Meanwhile, those still in the city are left with the aftermath. Information is still being cycled between the two groups, via various super powers and delivery methods. Sans has been freed from the control of his Architect and has left to find the rebels, but his delivery service is still being used to disperse information. You can assume to have been told about anything on this spreadsheet that's been addressed to the entire mailing list. ► TENSIONS GROW: As the days go on, the attitude of long term residents have only grown more suspicious and hostile. Several members of the new arrivals have gone missing, and it seems as if the locals are starting to suspect these absences are intentional rather than accidental. Some of the most ornery of them will say things that suggest that they think they've run off to join the heretics, but they will be hushed by those near them. However, no immediately violence is being imposed on people from the carnival's entry group. Not that you've seen, anyway. ► SAMYAZA'S INVITATION: Displeased by the atmosphere being created by all this distrust, Samyaza the Hare, Architect of Festivities and Music, has invited all of the remaining new arrivals to an exclusive garden party of hers. Everyone who is still in the city will be invited to attend, along with some choice members of the native population. The actual party will be happening on Day 88. Attendance is strongly recommended by the other Honorables. The nature of this even will depend on what occurs before it, and will be covered in more detail later in the log. The invitations go out on Day 86. ► HERESY UNVEILED: On the evening of Day 86, the city of Eden is alight with controversy - a band of Furies have been found! Hasma of Araqiel (the horse featured in Missing posters last week) has been caught within city borders, along with two Honorables of Eden who had been secretly colluding with her. The three condemned Furies have been bound and chained in cages in a public areas of the city, awaiting trial and punishment. It's a similar tone to criminals being locked in stockades for the civilians to mock, though the initial city mood seems more uncomfortable and nervous than angry. There is a horse, squirrel, and border collie currently imprisoned. ► RINGMASTER'S RETURN: On Day 87, the Ringmaster will be returning from her investigation. Specifically, she'll be arriving at the doorstep of the Furies in the Barrens, and will be entering to visit her associates within. Apparently, she's been spending all this time searching the barrens for entrances into the core of Eden, as well as trying to communicate with the Serpent. Neither have yielded major successes, however. Carnival members at the Furies base can ask interact with her through investigations.

Comments

[moonfang]

Alone was good. Zangetsu has been tracking down the necessary people to disseminate the information he had gotten and waiting until there were none of those nosy animals around. While the Honorables of Eden can't see him at all, the carnies can see him as plain as day.

So Zangetsu -- ah, "Soru" -- approaches "Azri" boldly and without trying to hide at all. As opposed to his normal animal form, his form now is a brilliant white shark with exaggerated proportions, stark black markings, black claws on his pectoral fins, and a skeletal black mask.

He swims through the air up to Lambert, keeping his voice down. The Honorables may not be able to see him, but they can sort of hear him.

"Pssst. Hey. Laaaambert. Don't stop, just listen."

[whattaprick]

Blame latent animal instincts, but it’s hard not to bristle when Zangetsu swans up to him, one predator recognizing another. A cursory look around him tells Lambert the Hollow’s taken it upon himself to approach himself while there isn’t anyone else around, and Lambert turns back to keep stare idly at the paper underfoot (underpaw?) while he murmurs something quietly under his breath.

“You can talk normally,” he says, though he keeps his own voice to a murmur and disguising the order with a yawn. “Just stay close. The spell keeps people from listening in, but not seeing me.”

[moonfang]

"Oh, well isn't that a neat trick," he says, speaking a bit louder but certainly not at his usual exuberant volume.

"I don't know if you heard, but a bunch of us headed out to the barrens. I'm the only one who came back. But don't worry~" he says, with a lighthearted tone, "The others aren't all dead or anything! They just stayed behind... it was too dangerous for them to come back."

[whattaprick]

Lambert can’t help wonder, idly, if Zangetsu’s reports to Childermass are like this — and if the magician lets him get away with it.

For now, that isn’t the main concern. His tail flicks, and his ears cant.

“I did, and I told Syrlya to go and provide cover. What happened?”

[moonfang]

"Oh, right, Syrlya came from your team. Duh. I forgot," he says with a small laugh. And yes, his reports to Childermass are every bit as flippant. But the information in them is good?

(For the most part.)

"We ran into the Serpent! She's crazy feral, but the little rose boy protected us from Dreamland. We found a bunch of tunnels filled with some ancient magitech-- that's where the Furies hide."

[whattaprick]

Lambert’s head snaps up at that, despite himself, ears pricked.

“So it’s true? Animals out in the barrens do lose their minds?” he asks, before something else about what Zangetsu just said registers. “Wait, who are the Furies?”

[moonfang]

"They do! But it takes a while. The 'Furies' are the Honorables that have defected out to the Barrens to serve the Serpent's cause. They wanna take Eden back from Lilith so they can live their own lives!"

He pauses for a moment to let it sink in, then continues.

"The original Furies, the ones who went with the Serpent forever ago, they're all as feral as her. But the Serpent stole some of the power of the Fruit of Knowledge and the Flame of Inspiration, so her venom actually keeps the new Furies from goin' nuts."

He thinks of something he hadn't before, putting his pectoral fin to his chin thoughtfully.

"... Ah. I wonder how they get it...?"

[whattaprick]

The question leaves Lambert nonplussed for a moment, and he blinks at Zangetsu. That’s what he’s wondering, after all that?

“You can usually milk the fangs,” he begins, before he pauses. Never mind that, it’s not the important issue here!

“You said it was too dangerous for the rest to come back. Why?”

[moonfang]

"I dunno man. She's real big. Her fangs are probably as long as I am."

You'd have to be pretty big yourself to milk something like that!

"Even though most'a the Gems were in different shapes, the little rat and cat and turtle Furies that we talked ta seemed ta think we mighta been seen. I dunno how much I buy that -- there weren't many, if any, souls around when we left. But better safe than sorry, ne?"

[whattaprick]

"Sounds like something I would've been contracted to kill, back in the day," Lambert mutters. Not that he would have been thrilled about it. He shakes his head at Zangetsu, pushing the piece of paper under his paw at him.

It's an invitation to a party.

"Better safe than sorry. We haven't exactly been inconspicuous."