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Event #2: The Long Night
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| Nervous, frightened whispers spread across Idan. By word of mouth and courier, warnings that the Long Night has nearly arrived are sent out. Anasta's Shadow, the planet whose orbit lies between this one and its sun, will share a path with this planet for one week before they go their separate ways once more. During that time the far larger planet obscures the light and warmth the sun provides this world. This is nothing new to you. It has happened every year at this time since your birth and although the cold is treacherous and the dark inconvenient, in your time those were likely the only major threats you faced during the Long Night. The great dragon bonfires had always been kept lit by the trio of dragon guardians, their light and warmth keeping away the deadly freeze and the other horrors rumored to come with the darkness.
Perhaps you remember the tales from your childhood, stories meant to scare children away from venturing too far on their own in the treacherous heart of winter. The long, cold week of darkness was likely filled with stories of people whisked away in the black cold, either never to be seen again or to be found mangled and frozen with looks of terror and agony forever etched on their lifeless faces. With the dragons ever present in your lifetime, you had never experienced the true horrors of the Long Night for yourself, even if you had witnessed a taste out in the world beyond the safety of the kingdom cities and villages. The true terror of the Long Night had not been experienced in full since the formation of the Elf-Dragon Alliance, many generations before your birth. The massive bonfires kept ever burning by the guardian dragons kept the towns and cities across all three kingdoms protected from the sheer dark and the deadly deep freeze of the week-long total eclipse. Now that the dragons are gone there is simply not enough magic to create the powerful, lasting bonfires that once sheltered the three kingdoms and kept out the dark and the worst of the cold. From the warmth and safety of a hearth, it is easy to dismiss the frightened whispers of Idan's current population as superstition, at least until the sun 'sets' on the night of the 27th, swallowed behind the looming shadow of the larger planet. As night approaches on the 27th, the world goes red. Only slivers of sunlight escape around the far edge of Anasta's Shadow, bathing the world in an eerie crimson until the planet's massive shape in the sky blocks out the sun entirely, plunging Idan into near complete shadow. With the light consumed, the shrieks and howls begin. Starting up like the roar of an angry wind, they grow louder and more twisted the closer they come. Within hours the howls and shrieks are mixed with a sound like metal grinding across glass. Windows are covered in sheets of cracked and spidered ice. Chimneys without lit fires begin to fill with screeching, clawing noises and an unsettling and unfamiliar clicking noise that rises and falls like an unknown language. The sounds outside begin to shift and change, as more human shrieks join the unsettlingly monstrous ones, and the crying sob of a young child, hiccuping in fear, breaks up the brief moments of silence. It's just beyond the door, or just out of sight beside the window, then silence, and the howling and scraping start anew. Now and then an eerie red glow shines through ever more solid ice caking the windows, and they briefly steam up as something living exhales a heated breath against the pane. Citizens within earshot or courier distance warn those who seek answers to stay away and avoid seeking out the source of the sounds. They caution that the answers are not worth the risks and warn that anyone outside cannot be saved. If they're out there, they're already dead. If you insist on going, they'll tell you not to leave the safety of hearth and fire without a torch in hand or your chances of surviving will drop from slim to none. Pay heed to the cautions of those more experienced than you in this new horror or you will not survive the long, harsh night and the ever more unsettling noises it brings. | |
| 🜙 Weather | |
| The cold fluctuates between -18 to -32C (0 to -25F) during the Long Night. At these temperatures, the risk of frostbite and hypothermia are greatly increased and without proper precautions, a person could experience frostbite in 10-30 minutes when exposed to the elements. In addition to this, wind, sleet, and snow periodically drop the temperatures further. The weather may be the least of your worries, however, as the cold is far from the most dangerous threat the Long Night brings with it. | |
| 🜙 Creatures | |
 Tundra Manticore: They share little in common with their lower mountain counterparts beyond their violent disposition. Their bodies glow from within due to the venom stored in their abdomen. They can secrete this deadly venom from their mouths or their barbed tails. The venom is said to burn like liquid fire and causes severe burns on contact. They live only in the coldest parts of Idan due to the significant heat generated by their venom that would cook them from the inside out in warmer climates. They consume ice and snow to maintain an internal temperature balance and if that balance is thrown off the combustible venom within them causes them to burst into flames. As a result, they are terrified of fire. They are silent stalkers and lone hunters. Greater Bearbat: Greater Bearbats are sound-based hunters that descend from their mountain homes, attracted by the shrieks of the shade imps. They are indiscriminate hunters, content to eat wayward travelers or other monsters without concern for what prey they catch in their long claws. They run on four limbs while hunting and will rarely take to the skies unless in pursuit of flying prey. Sound and heat deter them and light will blind them. Shade Imps: Seekers and servants of the Darkener, these monstrous shade imps can take a multitude of forms (Crawlers, Scouts, & Hounds) and shift between them at will. They are completely blind and travel as silent as the shadows they melt in and out of. They hunt through scent, sound, and taste, searching for traces of blood and fear on the air. When they aren't hunting, they communicate with other imps via ear-piercing shrieks or gut-churning howls, going silent only when they locate their prey. Their silence is more dangerous than the sounds they make. They recoil from fire but grow increasingly more determined the longer they are kept at bay, eventually overcoming their fear and attacking the source of the fire to attempt to extinguish it at the cost of their own lives. When fire touches them they go up in a puff of black smoke and a scream. Darkling: No one knows what darklings look like. They are the lost spirits of elementals consumed and controlled by the Darkener. They have no physical form and can control and manipulate shadows and sound. They mimic sounds to trick people into opening their homes or venturing out of safety and can perfectly replicate any sound they have heard, even capturing the voices of people speaking on the other side of walls. Their goal is to lure or force people out into the darkness where the Darkener can find them. They can be disrupted with light. Bayobat: Swarms of flying bat-like insects summoned by the Darkener. They have sharp, metal proboscises they use to pierce victims before consuming their blood. They are blind and seek out warm-blooded bodies to launch themselves at. Their screeches are metallic and mixed with insectoid clicking. Their bodies are sharp and metallic but their mouths are vulnerable. Their tails are lined with tiny, sharp spikes similar to barbed wire. They fear fire. The Darkener: An ancient being that is thought to come from the Outer Realm. The Darkener consumes flames with a touch, transforming them into shadow flames that burn black, giving off no heat or warmth. It possesses long-forgotten magic. Few have seen more than a glimpse. It causes temporary blindness in all who witness it, their eyes turning black with trapped shadows. Its image lingers in the mind, causing hallucinations. Those who witness it are often driven mad, growing increasingly certain the Darkener is watching them from the corner of their vision. It can be struck but doing so only causes darkness to erupt from the wound, consuming the Darkener and everything around it. There is only one Darkener. | |
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no subject
Strange is an unethical idiot. The rabbit, so far as Alucard can tell, doesn't deserve that same judgement.
"There may be thicker bedding with the inn keeper to take advantage of then," he offers, careful as he returns the tongs to where they ought to be.
Also, the sneezes? They're cute. And there's a bit of a thin smile at the noise.
no subject
The fact that Alucard is smiling is...odd. Strange continues to give head scratches as Bell gives another adorable tiny sneeze.
"Thank you," he says, with a little nod. "I'll definitely make certain to borrow some of that bedding when we both decide to sleep." He's not an idiot, he's not going to sleep directly next to the fire. And, because he's a bit curious, Strange asks, "How has your wolf been faring?"
no subject
"She is...spirited," Alucard ventures slowly. It feels like the best adjective for her most days, but that's hardly what Strange is asking either. If that rabbit can get sick, then that's a genuine cause for alarm.
"What were the circumstances that came before this change in condition?"
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"She died. Both of us did. And we revived a day or so ago."
no subject
"Again?"
Just one word. He knows how it sounds. Alucard does not care a goddamn inch. Every muscle in his body is tight. Plus there's more to come.
Ellis doesn't tense the way Alucard does. But her ears flick forward, indicating that she is listening.
no subject
"It was...odd. Different things happened than when I revived on the battlefield." There's a slightly confused pause before Strange admits, "I think I was a ghost?"
Which he's honestly not sure how to think about!
no subject
This time the weariness wins out in Alucard's tone, and he does not hide that either. He hates this information, far more than he dislikes the source's messenger, and while the messenger is hardly the worst of it, the fact that this information needs to be gained makes the whole thing feel very tiresome indeed.
Ellis doesn't move. Her eyes are on Strange, as are Alucard's, but her expression is much more muted. Alucard is essentially going through all the emotions at once, doing his very best to moderate tone.
"What makes you believe you were?"
no subject
As Strange talks, his voice slips from his normal excited tone to something that's also muted. Though his is less of a deliberate muted and more of muted due to the fact that he honestly has no idea how to process this. Why was this death different from the first?
No matter what, that feeling of loneliness was terrifying. He doesn't want to experience it again.
"There was someone there. I thought..." He breaks off for a moment before continuing. "I am not a religious man. I never was and, in all likelihood, never shall be. But that figure looked like Death itself."
no subject
A lot. The first two words that spring to mind are simply a lot. Brilliant, Alucard. Stunning intelligence. So he lets his mind mull it all over for a few quiet moments, poking and prodding in all the ways that he would process other information.
But he can't treat this like an object or an artifact, this is life and death. Something that impacts everyone, and if there's one clear thing here, it is that so much is wrong with what Strange has said. Not for any reason than to die twice and come back is just wrong and...this is still necromancy, isn't it? Perhaps this is part of it.
"You were in between," he settles on finally. Which is as good as an understanding as being a ghost. Probably the same thing, just a slightly different interpretation.
Ellis is curling around Alucard far more than she'd ever do under normal circumstances. Her entire body is pressed against his back, feet and butt poking out at either of his sides. Comical under normal circumstances too.
"Whatever's responsible for the initial return must have extended their reach deep into that domain. Were you noticed by the figure?"
It is such an intimate detail to ask, especially when you dislike the person in question. But oh, ignorance? That's much worse.
no subject
"Of a sort. It was following me at the start, lurking almost outside of my vision. It was hooded, on a horse with glowing blue eyes. It was only when I turned to confront the thing and we saw each other, eye to eye. Then the darkness spilled forth and I found myself reviving, like I did the first time."
It...was certainly something. Strange is staring off into space, distracted by what he knows he saw during his state of being in between. It's only when Bell nudges him with her nose, pressing a warm hare nose to his hand that Strange blinks back into reality and resumes some idle scratches.
no subject
It is a tiny detail. Perhaps it will reveal nothing. Alucard can only imagine that Death is a thing with no emotions, not in the way the living world understands them. Death has seen all, heard all, interacted with all. Why would Death be so moved to an emotion beyond potential curiosity at something well...strange.
Reality does not call to Alucard yet. He is awash in careful and measured consideration.
no subject
Just those two, glowing blue eyes, staring at him from afar.
no subject
What else does one say after such revelations either? With his late associates, Alucard could venture something, at least. Or they would break the silence for him, and all dark humor would break the terrible tension. All Alucard has is his thoughts.
His thoughts and the soft whine of Ellis who very, very much is not a fan of any of this information. But the noise breaks the tension, and Alucard can at least return to the original subject.
"And so all of that feeds into her poorer health." Bell's, he means.
no subject
How do you reduce a fever in a hare? What about a hare that's connected to your soul in some way? Strange has absolutely no idea, so blankets and water it is. It's obvious that he cares a lot for the poor animal, even beyond the normal capacity of an animas being part of someone's soul.
"That vial was hot to the touch as well," Strange continues. "I used to wear it as a necklace, but it's been sitting in my pocket, wrapped up in a handkerchief ever since."
no subject
It can't be, not if the glass and the rabbit (or wolf or raven or whatever else these souls have manifested as) are connected. Given time and equipment, Alucard would suggest actually taking both temperatures and comparing them. Confirm the link. As it is, he can only sit and speculate, the heat in the fireplace now a bit too intense. He backs up carefully. Ellis moves with him.
"If they cool at roughly the same time..." then that's the connection confirmed, isn't it? But to say if is cruel.
no subject
"When Bell's fever breaks, I'll check on the glass. Until then, my duty is to get her better."
no subject
There's an apology in there, which should be good enough for now. The glare is felt, but if this is permanent, then what do any of them do with such information? Or how is it to be hidden from the world? An all too burning piece of glass, animals that are feverish to the touch, it could draw attention. It's worrying.
Alucard will not demand Strange share whatever information results of all of this. He doesn't have the right, and others may yet have the same information. Wearily, Alucard picks himself up from his odd position across from Strange and Bell, head heavy with too much to sort through.
"I hope her recovery is swift."
no subject
Perhaps he may have misjudged the man a little. Granted, he is still an ass. But maybe he's not as much of an ass as Strange originally thought.
"Thank you," Strange says, with a little nod. "I'll keep you updated on her condition."