video

[snowslip]

[ Marianne appears in the video looking more anxious than usual, perhaps because this is her first time addressing so many people at once and she's never liked drawing attention to herself, but also because of the news she's about to share. ]

Um, I wanted to warn everyone that monsters around Aldrip have become more aggressive lately. They've also been roaming closer and closer to town. Even where I usually take the horses out to graze isn't safe. Please be cautious when walking about, and I would avoid the outskirts. Um, those that can fight, it might be good to band together to try and drive them away...

[ ... ]

There's something else...

[ After an agonizing pause, she rolls back the sleeves of her dress to reveal her arm, black marks marring her fair skin. Her expression turns pained. ]

These marks appeared on me shortly after encountering the monsters. Healing doesn't seem to have any effect on it. Something like this happened once before and I...I'm afraid it could make me not myself.

If anyone knows anything about it, please...

[ She trails off, unable to conclude her announcement on an eloquent note. ]

Comments

Video | Charm

[beshackled]

...I cannot say for certain that I know aught, but those marks... they seem familiar.

Might I have a closer look at them? Where are you?

[snowslip]

Familiar?

Um, sure. I'm at Astralin's farm, the large one by the meadowlands.

1/2

[beshackled]

Ah... the farm at which the morbol was frozen. I remember the way.

I shall be there soon.

->action

[beshackled]

[And so he is. A man who is, as ever, clad in dark robes, hood and mask down so that his features are clearly visible. His skin is dark, a deep contrast to the brightness of his vibrant copper hair.

There is a brightness to his red eyes that is unlike most of the other Chosen here... though they presently glance around with a somewhat bemused expression.]

...I... probably should have asked her just where on the farm she would be...

[Maybe he could try contacting her again...?]

Voice

[shadowofpride]

[The monsters getting closer to the town doesn't bother him much. He knows how to discreetly handle them and maybe get a meal out of it. But he has to reconsider the latter when Marianne reveals the black marks. Were the beasts infected?]

Does it hurt...?

Re: Voice

[snowslip]

No, I don't feel any pain. The monsters didn't hurt me in any way, either.

[ If she's been feeling extra anxious, it's just because she's always been prone to the emotion, right? Surely it's nothing new. ]

[shadowofpride]

You got the marks just from being around them? Is it a good idea for others to get near them? Even if it's to keep them away from town?

voice;

[laserguy]

[So she's affected too, huh...? Guess it's nice knowing that he's not the only one, but it also sucks that someone else is affected, someone that's pretty nice and everything. They might not have spoken too much in the past, but it's not like Scott's going to forget how she helped him out in the maze.

Still, he doesn't have much energy to do much other than reach out like this.]

I have those marks too. [...] Do you think we're going to lose control of ourselves?

[He didn't even think about that until now and fear grips his chest, managing to bypass some of the sadness he's been feeling for no reason at all. Maybe just a bad day, everyone has one of those, right?]

[snowslip]

I don't know...but we should probably stay calm and try to figure out what's happening.

[ She says that to reassure herself as much as him. In the past, when the brand had appeared and voices called to her, Marianne had kept her condition hidden. That hadn't turned out well, she recalls with a twinge of guilt. This time, she figures if she speaks up, maybe together they could stop it somehow. It pains her to hear Scott is also afflicted. In the maze, she'd learned of the burden he carried. She knows the fear of losing oneself all too well. So if there's anything she can do for him, she wants to. ]

When did it start for you?

[laserguy]

[Strangely enough, he does feel calm, but in the sort of 'I just feel tired and have no energy' way. There's anxiety somewhere in him as he's quite familiar with that particular feeling, but it just feels like it's burrowed under everything else. It's strange, he's never felt this way before and he knows he should be worried about that, but.]

Yeah... you're right. We probably should figure this out before we lose control or something.

[That's probably the worst part in all this. It's that thought alone that drives Scott a little, because he doesn't want to hurt anyone, especially not his friends. He can't lose control of himself or his powers after all this time. It just feels like he'd be making several steps back. He does his best to pull himself to really focus on the conversation, before offering what little information he has.

She's being brave in all this, he needs to at least try.]

Recently, around the start of this month, but I didn't go near any of the monsters.

video

[geass]

[interesting...]

What gives you the fear that it won't make you feel like yourself? I'm no doctor, but I'm curious on the context.

[snowslip]

Oh, that's because...something similar happened a few seasons ago. Strange marks appeared on some of our bodies and eventually took hold of our thoughts and feelings.

[ It pains her to remember. She tugs at her sleeve self-consciously. ]

These marks look different from before, but I wonder if this is still...a curse of some sort.

[geass]

[he notes the self conscious movement of hers, his expression softening.]

Sorry if it brought up bad memories for you. I'm one of the newer arrivals here, so I'm afraid I haven't had so much time to find out what happened before my time.

Are you feeling any sort of physical effects from it at all so far?

voice

[rebellions]

[ While Ragna's by no means a specialist, those black marks certainly look familar. It's been quite a while since he's seen something like that ─ in fact, he hasn't encountered it since coming to this world ─ but he can't rule out the possibility now that he's seen it right with his own two eyes. ]

... And just so we're completely clear on the subject, you're sure this isn't seithr poisoning?

Re: voice

[snowslip]

Seithr poisoning...? [ She's probably mispronouncing it. ] Um, what is that?

[rebellions]

[ He takes that as a "no" on the being sure that's not it, then. ]

... Seithr is an airbone substance with no smell, color or taste. It's not dangerous in small doses, but with high concentration it begins to corrupt living things, causing them to become more aggressive until they go completely feral. And they end up covered in black shit like that from head to toe.

[ He's not great at explaining things, especially ones that are considered obvious from his world's perspective, but this should shine some light on why it feels familiar to him. ]

not here

[geass]

[👀]

video

[baldrshand]

[Normally, Ethlyn can hide her dismay at seeing an injured friend and get down to the business of fixing them. That is not so easy this time. It's bad enough that Marianne has been forced to endure such a horror once--one that struck at her deepest fears--but again?

Still, she makes sure her voice is steady before replying.]

I've been seeing townsfolk with the same symptoms. We'll start working on developing a medicine for it.

[snowslip]

Are they alright?

[ Marianne's worried face appears in the video, but hearing Ethlyn's voice reassures her. Her take-charge attitude makes her believe they'll find a way to fix this. ]

I- I'll help you with the medicine. I still feel fine.

video;

[entreats]

[ At least Ange can understand Marianne's concern. Every single time marks like that started appearing in this place, it's always been bad news..

Maybe that's why Ange herself is taking this seriously too (well-- that, and Ange actually thinks Marianne is a good enough person to deserve being treated decently in the middle of all this), sounding more serious than deadpan when she speaks up to reply. ]

Did they really start appearing only after you encountered the monsters? Do you think it's connected?

[snowslip]

[ Seeing Ange so serious, Marianne tries to keep the fear out of her voice so as to not worry her. Although she's probably not doing a great job at convincing anyone she's fine. ]

I'm not sure. Someone else with the marks mentioned he never encountered monsters, so it may not be the only cause.

[breakin_ur_lore]

...If you need help with keeping the horses safe, I could go out with you.

[It seems like several other people have already asked about the marks, so he's not sure if he should bring it up, too. He doesn't want to overwhelm her.]

[snowslip]

That's kind of you, but I'm starting to think it's too risky. There's a possibility contact with the monsters could cause you to be marked too. I couldn't ask that of you or anyone.

[ She regrets making the suggestion now. As someone had pointed out to her, the monsters could be responsible for the infection. ]

video;

[izanagis]

[Yu is clearly focusing on that last part, here. He frowns thoughtfully, but otherwise his expression remains fairly neutral.]

... I've seen this happen to someone else. They became aggressive, but otherwise, I... think they were still them. If that makes sense.

[It's hard to hold onto that composure, thinking about it. Thinking about the marks on his hands, too.]

... Are you feeling alright? You're sure it happened after a monster encounter?

[snowslip]

A-Ah. So it's as I feared.

[ Her expression turns pained. It wasn't a benign mark. Which means it's only a matter of time. Although for someone like her, perhaps the countdown started long ago... ]

I don't feel any different... I first noticed them after running into the monsters. That was half a day ago.