[WORLD ONE | UVI ATTACK]

[spellbindmods]

Who: The Uvi and coven members
Where: In and around the city land of Aimintas
When: Day 32 & 33
Open/Closed: Open to All

For coven members who haven't been in Aimintas very long, the panic of the Palai the past few days may seem like overkill. The day goes by rather quietly and Aimintas looks like a ghost town throughout the morning and most of the afternoon. Not one Palai can be seen, with shops closed and the roads virtually empty, aside from coven members. It isn't until the sky is turning a nice shade of pink that things begin. Observant people who may be gazing up at the ocean will see the very small dots in the sky that begin to approach at a very quick speed. If you're outside, you may get to see the Uvi up close -- but perhaps not for very long. The Uvi have rubbery bones, and they hit the dirt in a curled up position, unrolling themselves and leaping up on long, scaled legs. The shortest Uvi might come in at five feet tall, but most range from six to seven. They're lithe and gilled -- you may think they want to rely on stealth, but the sound coming out of their gills is very loud and raspy. There's no way you can't hear them coming as the ominous and rapid noise follows them everywhere. Some of them are walking around empty handed, eyes scanning and striding up to buildings, banging on the outside and observing the inside of the house as much as they possibly can. Others are carrying large, bleached tools made of fish bone and teeth. Some look like long blades, while others look like long axes. These are used for cutting into doors and other violent tasks they feel the need to complete. A ▢ If your character is wandering the streets, whether of their own ignorance or because they're part of the team trying to protect/negotiate with the Palai, they're very likely to run into one of the Uvi. While left to their own devices they'll only be focused on sniffing out Palai, but they're committed to going after anything they see alive and moving. If your character confronts the Uvi, they better be prepared for an attack. B ▢ Alternatively, maybe your character is caught outside and ill-equipped to handle the Uvi. Running is an option! ...But they better be able to run fast. Maybe your character gets lucky enough to run into someone who can help them, but they'd best hope they find each other fast. C ▢ Your character may also be committed to love and justice, fighting the forces of evil with good. It's very unlikely that Palai blood goes unspilled tonight, but your character may be able to prevent it as much as possible. Just be warned: if they confront the Uvi who are trying to break into a Palai house, they're going to be in for a fight. D ▢ Other characters may already be hiding, whether in the coven house or with Palai in their own homes. They'll hear the Uvi's harsh, gasping breathing before they see them, but if they do hear that raspy noise, they'd better be quick thinkers. Whether the Uvi visiting turns into a brawl or a blood bath, eventually the Uvi will return to the ocean with Palai bodies in tow. At around 4 AM, the Uvi begin to shriek, some making noises that are too high pitched for most ears to hear. From the sky, large flying fish descend from the sky and find their masters. The Palai are hoisted onto the back of these creatures and they take off, flying back into the ocean. E ▢ If your character is committed to defeating the Uvi, they may want to try and target the large fish they'll be flying out of. It's possible to kill them in the air, but watch where they fall. They're incredibly large -- larger than the sharks and bigger fish that have fallen out of the sky before. They can also be killed on the ground, but you'll also have to do with their protective Uvi owners. F ▢ Maybe your character is more into the idea of following the Uvi back home. It's possible! Once the Uvi breach the ocean, they swim fast through the dark water for miles and miles. The journey is treacherous, and some may stop the trek to attack in the water where they're more at home. If your character makes it to their lair, they'll find that it's a dense wad of seaweed that stays static in the ocean. The Uvi are used to the toxicity of the leaves, but trying to enter means touching these leaves that leave large, skin-melting welts as they grow and burst. G ▢ Wildcard! How will your character handle this violent and volatile situation.

Comments

[bulletbiter]

[ He had intentionally stayed away from Lenka during the fight, figuring that any Bias Field pulses he emitted might affect the younger youth. It was a success, and now that they're clear it should not be a problem anymore. ]

They have.

[ They're either dead, or have left. ]

[probablynoteren]

[Lenka does a last sweep of their surroundings anyway, just in case -- you know, stray Uvi, unstable architecture, wandering unhappy Palai, that sort of thing. It would be sort of ignominious to get beamed by a falling giant fish or falling debris after everything.

That done, he settles by Julius with a small huff of a sigh and a minor clank; contemplates his options, which are basically a somewhat bloody knife and a frying pan you really don't want to use for cooking for a while. If ever. The knife is getting wiped off on the lawn or something.

Everything smells like fish....]

They'll be back. [a bit resigned; he slants a look at Julius, thoughtfully] You're armed. I couldn't find good blades.

[bulletbiter]

[ Lenka probably got them from a fridge of his, which is why Julius doesn't question his choice of weapons. ]

Do you know Alphonse? I asked him to help me. It doesn't quite match up to a God Arc, but it works. I'll ask him to make one for you, too.

[ It's not Volitional, but it's for the best that he doesn't touch any more Oracle Cells. ]

How do you feel?

[probablynoteren]

I haven't met Alphonse. But, that's a normal sword, isn't it?

[It should be a rhetorical question, but there's a vaguely confused lilt to it that makes it a real one -- it's an awfully big sword and even if it isn't a God Arc in nature it's very nearly one in size. Maybe a bit sleeker. About the right size to behead an Ogretail or maybe cleave an Uvi in half, if you were lucky.

He's obviously never seen a retired God Eater fight, so Lenka isn't sure that's how it works. Is that how it works?

He stares at the frying pan for a moment, and then he's simply not holding it anymore. The knife remains, though, so he might have just raided a home and gardening section of the market at some point.]

... But thanks. I'd feel better with something more than a knife.

[bulletbiter]

It's a normal sword, yes.

[ It suffices to kill Uvi, and that's enough for him. Even after his sickness, it seems his body hasn't forgotten how to fight. ]

You should rest. Are you injured?

[ Given how Lenka would have lost his strength without Bias Factor, it's a reasonable worry. ]

[probablynoteren]

I don't think I've seen one that size before. In person.

[Like, maybe in historical archives or on one of the old TV shows, but actually seeing someone swing one around in the flesh is... not all that different from everyone carting God Arcs around, certainly, just. On a technical level, it's very odd. But hey, whatever works for fileting around here.

At Julius' inquiry, he stretches a little, carefully -- checks his range of motion and only winces a little at a few surface wounds. If there's one thing Lenka's specialized in, it's running, hiding and evading, so even minimally armed and being a confused squishy mage he's managed to come out of it in one piece. These aren't Aragami.

He's more tired than he has been in a while after a skirmish; he'd almost forgotten what it was like. But...]

I'm okay. I'll clean up when we're back at base. [the coven house is the base now; some habits die hard] You?

[Don't think he's forgotten that you have something going on there.]

[bulletbiter]

[ If it works, it works. It's meant to be a stand-in for his own Long Blade. Either way, since Lenka doesn't question it further, he'll leave it as it is. ]

I'm fine. Let's go back.

[ The road is no fitting place to rest, and he'll be able to try to take a nap at the coven house. ]

[probablynoteren]

... Okay.

[There's a part of him that wants to make sure there isn't any more clean-up work to do, and more of him that still wants to figure out what he can do about those fish in the sky -- letting the enemy run to raid another day is just as hard as it ever was, though now it stays a small tremor in his hand gripping the knife and a quick glance upward.

For now, he'll go back with Julius; they still haven't confirmed the safety of the house, actually, and there are members and Palai there who can't fight, at last count. That's something that needs checking on.

The streets are strewn here and there with rubble and corpses. It's nowhere near as bad as back home, and it's actually a little hard to tell the Uvi and the Palai apart when everything smells and has fins, but it's not a great sight regardless.]

[bulletbiter]

[ Some of them might have been ripped apart by Julius' hand. He's more of a battle-hardened veteran in that it never fazes him anymore. The enemy must be killed, and civilians protected. No other thought would be productive.

As a silent protagonist and a silent captain do, they walk quietly. No doubt their soldier instinct would let both of them traverse the grounds while keeping an eye on their surroundings, and that was enough to occupy their attention. Everything is quiet, and it should be fine.

Except as karma would have it, letting his guard down was not so good an idea; while he had believed the Singularity to be sated, a moment's lapse in concentration would still be all it needed to push back against him. Julius staggers soundlessly, quickly catching himself - Lenka might not have seen the motion, but what accompanied it would certainly be perceptible. A ripple in the Bias Field around them, something that a retired God Eater should not have.

Or should they? ]

[probablynoteren]

[And that's assuming that Lenka has any idea what bias fields are in the first place, which unfortunately he doesn't have the first inkling of -- it's not that he's unwilling to learn, or uninterested in the nuts and bolts of how his God Arc and Oracle Cells work; after all, it's in learning and crash testing their functions that he's gotten out of binds in the past.

It's that there's only so much he's been able to absorb between missions and crises; the life of a God Eater on an accelerated timeline (and borrowed time) is always a race in which things fall through the cracks.

That is to say, he has been watching their surroundings as well as -- surreptitiously -- his senior, just in case Julius needs help or something... but he's still unprepared for the ripple, something he's never experienced before, and Lenka stumbles too, half surprise and half disorientation.]

What...? [his first thought is that somehow stray Uvi have set up an ambush, and Lenka does his best to turn the stumble into a stance, knife up and scanning their surroundings again] What was that?

[bulletbiter]

[ It's easy to recognize the signs of a Bias Field surge, even if it's coming from one's own body. Lenka's inability to identify it thus surprises him - the boy was from a couple of years back, but he didn't think it to be that far back. It's then his duty to explain, but how much could he even say?

Julius is silent for a few moments, straightening up and looking into the distance. ]

Do you know what Bias Fields are?

[probablynoteren]

[Lenka blinks when Julius speaks up, and turns around to stare at him when the semi-familiar terminology comes up -- this has something to do with them? Oracle Cells? But there's only the two of them and he... he freezes for a moment, eyes dropping to his armlet before he forces them back up towards Julius again.]

No. I've never heard of them. Are they related to, uh, Bias Factor?

[bulletbiter]

They are.

[ How much to tell, how much to keep a secret? ]

Do you feel any different?

[probablynoteren]

[You've got a blank slate here, Julius. Use it well.]

Not really...? [he pauses to re-evaluate himself -- again; it's been a long, long day] A little dizzy, I guess.

[bulletbiter]

[ Then maybe he'd have to keep away from Lenka, even. ]

Anyone who carries Bias Factor emits their own Bias Field pulses. Usually, it's faint. But two people's fields can interact.

[ Like what just happened. He supposes it's a valid explanation. ]

[probablynoteren]

Hmm... [it's a considering noise as he turns this over in his head] If it's Bias Factor, do Aragami have it?

[He doesn't recall having run up against it with any Aragami he's faced, even the Dyaus Pita, so the field would have to be very faint indeed. That is, depending upon how it scales, and why it interacts.]

[bulletbiter]

Yes. It was the way they influenced each other, as a pack.

[ How does he not know? Maybe he's not sensitive to it. ]

[probablynoteren]

[... When put that way, it kind of gives you the heebie-jeebies?! Thinking about being like an Aragami pack in any way, shape or form... he'll take being trapped in the matchmaking bowels of Palai society over that. It's probably not a far stretch from literally connecting an Aragami to your nerves and going into battle, but. Still.

Things not to think about too hard, anyway.]

This never happened before... Maybe it's evolution.

[When in doubt or in the mechanics chasm, blame Aragami evolution. The things do change awfully fast.]

[bulletbiter]

[ 'I'm surprised you don't know' is probably written on his face, albeit subtly. ]

I'd suppose...

[ A lot of things can change in three years, after all... ]

[probablynoteren]

[Honestly he is completely used to getting that look from like, everyone in Fenrir; perks of being a protag from the Outside permanently trapped in tutorial hell. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯]

So... why do interactions happen?

[Is that going to happen again? Is there anything they can do about it?? What are your thoughts, sensei.]

[bulletbiter]

[ Now, that is a good question. How to answer it properly... ]

I'm not sure. Proximity, perhaps... does it make you feel ill?

[ It should have passed. He'll tighten his metaphorical hold on himself, just to be safe. ]

[probablynoteren]

Oh. [he was hoping there was a scientific explanation for it, even the vague rambling ones Dr. Sakaki comes up with on occasion, but it figures they'd be stranded out here with no idea] It just... it surprised me. If that's it, I think it should be okay.

[It's also disorienting to get hit with it all of a sudden, but that counts as surprise factor. Of course, in a fight it might become a problem -- but he'll just have to keep an eye on his surroundings. If there's no known way to deal with this, improvise: one of those obligatory God Eater skills.]

[bulletbiter]

[ There is a matter of science but it's not one to be revealed at the moment. ]

Okay. Let me know if you feel strange.

[ They can just keep walking back to the coven, Julius slowing down a little to make sure he can focus on the movement. All seems to be fine for a while, until a sharp stab of nausea lodges itself into the back of his skull. The world almost closes in on him, pressing against the edges of his vision like a dark haze; and for a moment he considers telling Lenka to run.

Then it ebbs a little, enough for him to regain a measure of clarity. He's not one to show pain, of course - but with the way he has a hand to his chest, it's evident that he can't go on just yet. ]

[probablynoteren]

[Okay, that one was stronger, but this time he's more or less on guard; so Lenka manages to stand his ground, gritting his teeth against the oddness on senses he didn't know he had until now. Aragami senses? Oracle Cell senses? He really wishes he knew what was going on.

Of course, he also didn't expect Julius to go down for the count -- out of the corner of his eye he can see him move strangely, like a doll with all its strings cut, and while the surge means he's not in time to catch him Lenka can at least crouch down to make sure he's still conscious. He carefully lays a hand on his (clothed!) shoulder, just in case he goes further and faceplants or something.

One thing he'd assumed, and which was obviously untrue at this point, was that Julius was feeling the same effects by virtue of being the other end of the equation. But...]

It's worse for you, isn't it? [his tone is carefully even, but he's definitely fretting underneath his assessing stare] You didn't tell me.

[It's not quite accusatory, but it is a little reproachful; he can deal with whatever this is, but only if he has all the information -- and they already have so little to work with.]

[bulletbiter]

[ The Singularity did not pressure him in the same way that one would expect a conventional possession to; the whispers to obey in the dark recesses of one's mind, perhaps some sort of hellish temptation. No, not like that - only a single blinding sense of conviction: to consume until all had become one. It had already claimed his body; only by virtue of his comrades' intervention did he still retain his soul. Now, he would have to gain purchase on what was no longer his lest his mind be lost forever.

Kind of like what happens when one puts an unbreakable spear against an impenetrable shield, really. Which would give way first? ]

Don't come so close...

[ A heartbeat or two pass before he's able to clear his vision completely, still looking down at his hands. Right, they're both wearing clothes. That's good. Who knew what direct contact might have wrought?

He also needs an excuse. ]

Do you know what happens when we assimilate too much? [ This works. ] I can't use an Arc anymore. The resonance would kill me.