Well shit

[has_a_cult]

Who: CHETHLETXIA, QUEEN OF THE COUNTERPLANES (AKA Ionae) and whoever else's night she's about to ruin
What: General mayhem
When: Middle of the night after everyone got back to the future
Where: Initially near the apartments
Warnings: Chaos, Destruction, Violence, General Horribleness


Ionae, safely home and heavily tanned after her trip to the 1880s, went to bed that night. It had been a long day. What with the time travel and all, she'd arguably woken up over a thousand years ago.

At some point during the night, there was suddenly a sound of furniture and walls smashing from Ionae's room, followed by an inhuman roar that probably woke up half the building.

Outside was a...thing. More than anything else, it looked like a huge eel. It was easily fifty or sixty feet long, but it had arms, horns, and elaborate wings. Behind it was a ragged hole in the wall of the apartments that had once been Ionae's bedroom. The creature roared again, slammed into the side of a building, shattering windows, then slithered down the street, moving faster than a man could run.

In so much as anyone could read it's face, which was snarling and drooling acidic saliva from a mouth with way too many needle sharp teeth, it looked...more confused than anything else.

Comments

[onemoredeath]

Well, well, now that is interesting. Takegami had come out of his building after a hasty scramble to change his clothing and pull on some gloves and saw the giant creature tearing through the Hold and was now tearing around the place. His smile - still stretched far too wide because of all the ironies in all the worlds that brought him here - widen even more. He would have clapped, but really, that would just draw attention and he was still feeling off about a few things.

However he still had his weapons and he still was feeling particularly smart.

So up to the top of the building he went just to have a good advantage point to watch the mayhem. Maybe next time, he will taunt the creature, but for now, he was still savoring the idea of air.

[has_a_cult]

A lesser mind, but perhaps one of interesting quality. Takegami found himself under the creatures gaze, and the physical effect of just this was actually painful. Like his skin was being hit by a sandstorm.

Then it spoke, in a deep gravely voice. The mishmash of incomprehensible syllables were not meant to be spoken by a human tongue, but it was clearly speech of some form.

[onemoredeath]

He shook his head slowly. His mind was strange because of the way he though and while it was painful, one of things was that he just pushed the pain away. He just never let it bother him, just like it was when he bit his own fingers off, or sat for hours in a straightjacket. It just didn't matter to him.

"I'm afraid that you may be stuck here for now. Most of us are and I do not think there is a way out for anyone."

He did not know what it was saying but he was still going to be polite.

[has_a_cult]

It glared at him with yellow and black eyes. The glare was something more than just eye contact, though. Ideas, words, and meaning somehow seemed to be pulled from him.

It spoke again, this time in oddly accented Japanese.

"What you think is or is not possible is laughable, worm. Who is responsible for this? Anamalech? The Council?"

[onemoredeath]

That itched. Takegami shook his head like getting rid of a particularly irritating thought and sighed.

"I do not know those names."

[has_a_cult]

"I...know you? What is going on?"

It shook it's head and smashed the roof of a nearby building in in frustration. "Bah, you know nothing, clearly! I should melt you where you stand!"

It didn't, though. A half formed memory of a death stayed its hand.

[onemoredeath]

"The time machine screwed up and brought us here but from different points in our lives."

His voice was low and quiet, but under it a little frantic glee. There was already a kind of madness in his mind, and while the death in these streets was only a joke, the one in his home was different. More personable.

Less air.

Takegami tugged on his collar, feeling a little of the laughter tickle in his mind before he took a deep breath.

"Then do it. What is another death, mm?"

[has_a_cult]

It grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up to its face. The creatures eye was inches from Takegami's. Its skin felt like coals. He could smell smoke from his clothes smoldering.

After a few seconds of just holding him, it roared in frustration and hurled him back to the roof, then turned and left. Questions filled the creature's mind, and there were no satisfying answers here.

[onemoredeath]

A moment of panic at the sudden loss of air. Hands tightening into fists, a coil vicious hatred at the damage to his clothing and to the way it just thought it could touch him. Then a scramble to regain his feet, lungs gasping for air, lips pulled back in a disturbing smile.

And laughter. All the emotion shoved into that mad laugh before his air runs out and he is left to breath deeply and regain control over himself.

[trustycrowbar]

Oh holy fuck.

For someone who's handled... things like this before, Gordon's reaction is pretty conventional when he first sees the creature from just outside the Hold: he stops and stares, horrified. What the fuck IS it?

He watches, and while part of him is drearily cognizant of the fact that it's not being wantonly destructive, just really freakin' clumsy, the moment it spots him he takes advantage of the distance and gets off the street and into the labs as soon as possible.

Before he even starts this shit, he's going to have to suit up.

[has_a_cult]

It doesn't seem interested in chasing him, and while it's very fast, it's not hard to track. Provided he's willing to take the time to do it, Gordon should have no problem tracking it down in his HEV suit.

When he does find it, it is in a plaza towards the edge of town, with several frightened looking people. The people are trapped within a cage made of bars of what looks like smoke, but smoke flashing with internal light, and apparently painful to the touch. The beast is not eating them or anything, though. It is slithering back and forth in a tiny track. Could it be...pacing? Yes, it's definitely pacing and babbling at the poor people in recognizable, if growly English.

"It's all jumbled together! Both timelines! It's driving me mad and-Oh stop cowering like that or I really will eat you!"

[trustycrowbar]

...

[Well this is interesting. Gordon stares again, only this time with less abject fear and more abject bafflement. It's... captured people to LISTEN TO IT. He's got a neurotic eldrich horror on his hands. Faced with a scenario like this, there's really only one thing a man can do:]

HEY!

[Try to... commiserate the hell out of it.]

A captive audience doesn't listen too well, you know. C'mon, let 'em go.

[has_a_cult]

At "HEY!" it spun around to stare at him, and Gordon felt himself pelted by debris and a small shockwave. Apparently it can make things explode just by looking at them. The smoking crater from the near miss over his right shoulder is proof.

Despite this initial hair trigger reaction, it determines that Gordon PROBABLY isn't a threat after a brief look.

"You would presume to give me orders, worm?"

[trustycrowbar]

Gordon is knocked prone from the shockwave amid screams from her captives, but recovers quickly enough to push himself up, panting, eyes on the creature.

"Not an order. Just a suggestion. I don't know what the hell you are, but you're obviously new here and from the looks of it you're not looking to kill everything, and I don't want any trouble. I'm better able to handle what's on your mind than these people are. So. Why not let them go?"

[keep_smiling]

This is not what Elmer expected to see after coming back from shopping. Walking back towards the apartments when a giant eel monster started barreling right for him. No time to get out of the way, Elmer just hits the dirt, hoping whatever it is won't run into him.

[has_a_cult]

In a fit of irritation, it made an angry gesture at a random fleeing human, Elmer in this case, and a blade of smoke formed and sliced at him with enough force and speed to cut him in half.

[has_a_cult]

"That's the problem! I'm NOT new here! But I am at the same time!"

A frustrated gesture caused a nearby house to burst into flames.

[keep_smiling]

Elmer has no choice but to take the hit, since he can't get off the ground fast enough. There's a shower of blood across the ground from the blade as Elmer is cut in two. But it's not there for long. After a few moments the blood crawls its way back to him, quickly, as it slithers across the ground like snakes. It makes its way back to the slice in his body, as the wound mends itself back together. It's only a matter of seconds before Elmer is back together, head peeking up from the ground as he still lays there, blinking in confusion.

"...? That was unexpected...!"

[trustycrowbar]

OHGOD he hopes there's no one in there! He almost lurches towards the fire to help out, but no, running out on this thing is probably going to make things worse. So instead he takes to placating the capricious creature, hands up.

"...Destroying shit isn't going to help things! Now just... simmer down!"

Simmer down? Really, Gordon?

"You say you're not new here but I get the feeling I would have noticed you like THIS. What happened? Most people are time-shifting, not turning into... you. And uh, can you snuff that out while you're at it? It's distracting."

[has_a_cult]

It ignored the flaming house as well as, seemingly, Gordon, in favor of continuing its rant.

"I warned people that no good could come of this meddling with history. Which makes no sense. I've never even been to a plane with humans in it! I can't trust my own memories anymore! Not even the Council could do this!"

[has_a_cult]

It stops, then stoops down to face level with Elmer, revealing that it is just as ugly up close as it is from a distance.

"Your form is just as frail as the others. How is it you still draw breath?"

[keep_smiling]

Elmer stands his ground, grinning a bit sheepishly. He wonders if he's about to get eaten, which would be a new and very unpleasant experience, for both of them.

"Ah, I'm really not! I'm immortal. But I still die like a normal person. I just get back up again."

[trustycrowbar]

...Thaaaat's a no. Wait. Council?

[There's a whole COUNCIL staffed with these damn things?]

[demonbloodblade]

[Ionae has roommates. One of them has actually tried to connect with her - not that well, but Meliantha's still getting used to her head being opened up as it has been.

That said, when the smashing and stuff happened, it knocked Meliantha clear out of bed.

It takes the swordswoman two minutes to change from nightshirt to fighting gear, and since the door to Ionae's room was, uh, on the other side of the living room from where it should be, the ruins of Ionae's room were obvious, as was the hole.]

Once more into battle?

[Meliantha nods, grimly.]

Once more.

[She walks through the wreckage, looking out from the hole, and sees the creature. Shaking her head, she first runs down the wall of the building, and then, at ground level, taps the heels together while whispering a word. Tiny runes glow softly on the sides of the bootsoles, as she starts running, speed magically boosted, Chainbreaker in a prepared position to parry... or strike. She has no intent to parley with the creature that was once, she thinks, Ionae - the risk is too great. She can apologize later.]

[has_a_cult]

The creature that WILL BE Ionae.

With her magically enhanced speed, Meliantha had little difficulty catching up. She found the creature pausing at an intersection, looking around. It had not yet noticed her.