HOUSE OF M(ETA)

[metamods]

HOUSE OF M

A DREAM IS A WISH…

In dreams you will lose your heartaches,
whatever you wish for,
you keep.

Anti-Meta sentiments are on the rise. This is no secret. Check the news and you see it, politicians arguing about the dangers that superhumans pose to the world. What if they go rogue? What if they stage a mutiny? How can they tell that heroes are really the good guys, when so many of them have secret identities. In the last week, multiple protests against metahumans potentially moving to their cities have broken out across the United States. Some cities have proposed legislation that would make it illegal for metahumans to live within their borders.

Excelsior is leading the charge, politicians are looking to ban any metahuman whose abilities are not technical in origin from living there.

It is little wonder, then, that so many go to bed dreaming of a better world. One without the hardships of this one, or of the one they endured before.

Meanwhile, across the country, Sunset Falls is in a state of change. Mayor West finally has candidates willing to take the position of Mayor from him. This shift in the city's attention prevents anyone from paying much mind to the odd and potent energies taking shape. Sure, there are strange occurrences happening. A young woman walks by the school and immediately forgets her name, her job, and where she lives. Others report a strange feeling of being watched. Those sensitive to it may feel something otherworldly and strange hanging in the air. Bearing down on them with oppressive force.

And, dear heroes, as you know - two forms of surging energies create what is known as a Confluence.

THOSE LEFT BEHIND

You wake to pandemonium.

An emergency broadcast is blaring across any transmissible signal. A Confluence of unprecedented size has struck. Half of the country has been consumed by it.

By noon, there is a quarantine in place - not that anyone seems to be trying to leave the affected area. No, this quarantine is to prevent people from trying to go in. Unauthorized access is not permitted, not until the capes in charge have a better idea of what is going on. Once again, the Godfall Protocols are enacted. All able-bodied metahumans are recruited to the task, and once again, the Starfallen will find themselves standing shoulder to shoulder with those far weaker than them.

This time there is no giant monster to fight. Just a barrier, invisible to the naked eye, that seems to alter anyone who enters into it. The early metahuman scouts report themselves to be unaffected for the first few hours, but any normal humans who enter this space quickly find themselves… no longer themselves.

Atomight, Frances Starling and Mechanima are all at the Alliance HQ. For once, the three faction leaders seem to be in perfect harmony. This is a bad idea, they cannot send their people into this No Man’s Land… but they have no choice. The Godfall Protocols are what they are, they were created for this very reason. Though they are not arguing with each other, the government agents suddenly standing in HQ are telling a very different story. The three of them are not hiding the fact that they are all too aware that their “freedom” comes with a price, and their resentment is reaching a boiling point.

At some point during these early hours, Atomight finds himself temporarily locked out of his office. While the three leaders are distracted trying to regain entry, Fantastic takes center stage and begins issuing the most scripted heart-felt speech you have ever heard. Unlike the other three, he doesn’t seem to care much for what he could be sending people into. This is not a speech meant to inspire confidence that all will work out in the end, that the weakest among them will be taken care of, it is a speech to inspire soldiers.

By the end of this first day, they have gathered enough information to make a determination. The Starfallen seem to be more resilient to whatever effects are occurring than the rest of the population. They are called to a unique, private meeting - one in which all three leaders attend.

“We don’t know what you will be facing there,” they state plainly. “But we know you have the best chance of making it out with your minds intact.”

The choice is yours. You can help secure the area, you can retreat to Little Love and hope that this expands no further, or you can step into the unknown.

You can engage with the leaders here.

HOUSE OF (M)ETA.

Inside the quarantine zone, all is well.

Your alarm rings a little late and you find yourself groggy and briefly disoriented, as though waking from a very long dream. One that you find yourself considering to be unpleasant, and not worth thinking about. You stretch and slide out of bed, perhaps kiss your partner good morning and prepare yourself to wrangle your children and get them prepared for school, but today is like any other day. The world is as it always has been, and you find yourself oddly comforted to know that things are not as bad as they could be.

And then your day begins.

If you are a card carrying member of the Guardian Alliance, then you report to work before most of the world is up and running. Atomight appears to be busy in Central City, as he is not present and is not answering any calls, but you know what to do. The Guardian Alliance is all about finding ways to be useful, without enrolling in any of the government run Metahuman departments. It pays less, and you have to have frequent check-ins with actual government approved heroes, but you find a measure of freedom in it… though the pressure is immense. One wrong move and you may find yourself imprisoned for “irresponsible” use of your powers, branded as the reason why metahumans should stay under the thumb of the government after their service ends, and not allowed to organize themselves in fear they may take over the world.

If you took the darker path, then you will find yourself reporting to an ordinary office building in whatever city you live in, for a boring job that you do not have. Villainy is not a safe passtime, but those who band together tend to stay alive a little longer. The Society of Villainous Reformation exists to provide the community that most villains lack. Villainy comes in many shapes and sizes, and the Society has all sorts. The only uniting factor in this faction is the fact that you do not want to be used the way heroes are. You want to use your powers as you see fit, whether that means you get an edge on tests or rob banks to your heart's content is up to you.

Or are you a vigilante? A complete wildcard, answering to nothing and no one but your own personal sense of justice? Vigilantes have a reputation for being brutal and efficient, needing none of the teamwork and oversight that the guilds use. They are also generally less accountable, unless The Society or the Guardian Alliance steps in.

Starfall, formerly Starstruck. He was one of the first heroes to enroll in the government's War Hero project, which has now become a mandatory military service for all young metahumans upon reaching 18.

The most concerning thing right now in the world is the cult, the Battlements of the Shining God. They are known to sacrifice people to their fearsome God, stating that it will give them the power to put things right. But… you have never seen them in person. Only heard of the wreckage they leave. But disturbingly, if you tune in to the nightly broadcast that the Dreamers of the Willow Maiden put out to help lull you to sleep, you will note they seem… off. Warning of a war that is coming. You are fairly certain you can handle a confrontation with them, though. After all, nothing you couldn’t handle has ever happened.

And as you fall asleep at night in this perfect world, in your perfect life, you swear you hear The Lady herself whispering in your ear. Wake up, wake up, this dream is not yours to live.

Yet when you try to hold on to those words, they slip from your thoughts. And when you awaken, all remains as it should be.

SNAP BACK TO REALITY

For those who agree to go into the quarantined zone, you find yourself given the best gadgets both the Alliance and The Society can offer. They are unsure how to prepare you for this, though the scouts that made it back say that things seem… fine. Peaceful, even. Everyone seemed so happy, but they did not recognize them.

Contact will be difficult to maintain. The radios were functioning while they were inside, but it seems that the further they went into these zones, the worse communication got.

When removed from the quarantine zone, those who were affected regained themselves bit by bit. Some held on stubbornly to their illusionary life, but when presented with undeniable evidence of the life they had before, and reminders of any joy they found within it, they came back to themselves.

“Are you saying that they have to befriend them to remind them of their sanity?” Mechanima asks, torn between incredulity and amusement.

“What he’s saying,” Frances cuts in, “is that they need a reminder that they have a life worth living outside of whatever the hell is going on in there.”

Atomight nods. “This appears to be a shared delusion manifested by magic. So, a mass psychic relay would be the best way to break the hold. However, it will take time to do safely.” He turns to the gathered volunteers. “Your job is to start cracks, so the whole thing shatters when we deliver the final punch… and no one soul is left bearing the brunt of that psychic backlash.”

There’s a moment of silence. You find yourself being handed resources for your trip inside - no weapons, just first-aid kits and any items you may have told people to gather that could remind your lost friends of who they are.

"This is going to change everything," Atomight continues. "Even if all this goes to plan, the fact that it happened at all means things won’t stay like they’ve been."

He doesn’t elaborate. Mechanima’s mask turns to troubled static, and Frances throws a glance back towards the Alliance’s tents. Many of the native metahumans are gathered, and Fantastic is posing for photos with them. The hashtag #METASTOTHERESCUE has been trending for hours, and were you to believe social media, Fantastic is the one leading the charge.

You turn, take a deep breath, and walk through the invisible threshold into another world. The teleportation devices you have been given will take you directly to the city of your choosing.

IN SUMMARY...

• The unrest in Excelsior and the upcoming election in Sunset Falls has caused a massive confluence, which has affected a great portion of the country.



• Anyone within the border of these affected areas finds themselves thrust into an alternate universe, wherein they lived a very different life as a native citizen of this world. In this version of the world, the Godfall Incident never happened.



• All metahumans - regardless of if they belong to Society, the Alliance, and the Unaligned - find that the Godfall Protocols are being enacted, meaning that metahumans will be conscripted into assisting. Knowing most metahumans do not stand a chance against whatever metaenergies are causing this, the leaders of these groups are asking the Starfallen to enter willingly.



• Being in the alternate universe for more than 72 hours will make you start to believe that you are part of it. It is very keen to assimilate you into it, and you may find yourself slowly developing false memories the longer you are in there.



• Exiting isn't an immediate cure, but the longer you are out, the faster you will come back to yourself.




• You can bring your AU-affected friends back to reality by reminding them of who they are, and that the life they have outside of the bubble is equally good as the one inside.



• Anyone who wants to sit this one out can kick back, relax, and enjoy some Kansas hospitality. Little Love is a safe area and will protect any citizens who do not feel capable or are unwilling to jump into the unknown.

Please direct any questions regarding this log HERE.

Comments

[badbutsadboy]

[His familiar flies over and curls up in his messenger bag. Boy, it'd be a lot easier if he could fly himself somehow.]

Are you sure your wings can carry both of us?

[He's hoping the answer is no, because being carried like a doll by your aunt is the opposite of cool.]

[harageous]

Yes.

( immediate answer. too bad it's a lie. eda is not actually sure that her wings can even fly, much less carry the both of them.

however, that has nothing to do with it.

this is a bonding experience.

one where if she looks stupid, they're going to look stupid together. )

Don't make me grab you.

[badbutsadboy]

[He puts his arms around her neck, though he's still skeptical.]

And you know this despite only just sprouting wings, how exactly?

[harageous]

Haven't you figured out I know everything yet? Just watch!

( this is something that eda has said several times before, but it is not always followed by success. there have been plenty of times when she had said exactly this right before things blow up in her face. last time she said this, she had promptly knocked an entire piping hot pot of chili off the stove and flung it everywhere.

the room smelled meaty for weeks.

but it's too late for second thoughts now. as if guided by instinct, eda spreads her feet, hunkers down, tightens her grip on hunter, and then launches the both of them into the sky. )

[badbutsadboy]

[He holds on very tightly, eyes squeezed shut, half expecting them to go crashing down.]

[And...they don't. There's just the breeze.]

[He opens one eye, then the other. Looks down.]

Wow.

[harageous]

( above them is the clear night sky, decorated with the kind of bright shining stars that can only be found out in the suburbs. then below them is their home, where apparently there is a frisbee wedged on the roof because eda isn't going to question that.

it's nice. even nicer is hunter's reaction. really makes her feel like she could turn the night around.

so eda laughs, a warm rumble of a sound. )

Not bad, right?

[badbutsadboy]

[He nods against her shoulder.]

At least one part of this isn't 900% horrifying.

[Everything else is.]

[harageous]

( eda clicks her tongue, unable to really argue with the fact that this has been a completely horrible night.

but what she can do is give him a quick squeeze, a feeble attempt at reassuring him. )

At least there's nowhere else to go but up?

( pun intended. )

Let's not linger too long. You ready to fly?

[badbutsadboy]

[He nods against her shoulder.]

Yeah.

[harageous]

( then with that, the two of them set off. there's no reason for any further delays. whatever is happening with the house tonight can just stay there—a problem for another day. such as tomorrow or maybe even later. they'd have to play it by ear. it really depends on how quickly she can figure out how to reverse the spell-slash-curse that's affected her body.

it's an uncomplicated journey, simple and easy in a way the rest of the evening has failed to be. the skies are clear and peaceful, an easy breeze underneath eda's wings. below them, the city looks beautiful. almost like a festival of lights.

eventually, eda touches down to land in the parking lot of a highway side motel that she deems sufficiently far away from their home. she makes a tired attempt at pulling up the blanket, trying to use it as a makeshift hood. it's dark and the place is mostly empty, but it's never a waste to be careful.

she gives hunter a quick coaching session before she sends him to rent a room for the two of them, equipped with cash and the excuse that she's under the weather if the front desk attendant gets nosy.

they don't. they barely even stop playing candy crush on their phone to exchange the cash for a set of two key cards.

then comes the easy part of the night. they order takeout; burgers, fries, and milkshakes. they watch terrible made for tv movies that are available on the motel's subpar cable setup. they pull all the pillows and comforters off the bed and make a fort in the corner to sleep in.

eda hopes tomorrow will be better. )

[badbutsadboy]

[His dreams are troubled.]

[Not all troubled, though. At one point, he is standing with some teenagers. He knows them. They're his friends. He does a secret handshake with a younger black boy, Gus, who then breaks off to talk with a girl. Willow.]

[He hangs back to speak with a dark-skinned, dark-haired teenage girl. Luz.]

[He knows their names. He has a history with them. Some of it bad. But they reached out to him anyway.]

["Don't you dare... mention that thing around them."

"What thing? That you're a Grimwalker?"

"Shh! Listen, I don't know if I'm a witch, or a human. All I know is that I'm a copy of someone Belos made... disappear."

"I don't know what you three went through, but they seem to like you."

"So I shouldn't worry how they'd react, right? If that's the case, have you told them about helping Philip?"]

[The girl looks mortified.]

["Yeah, I overheard everything. Don't tell them. Please."]

[She nods slowly. She's his friend now, too, he thinks. She's willing to keep his secret. That he's a grimwalker -]

[A grimwalker.]

[He suddenly plunges down. Into the dark. Pulled down into still waters - into -]

[Belos' subconscious? Where he'll fade away, flattened under the floorboards of Belos' mental reality. Not even the sound of his beating heart will haunt him. After all, who knows how many versions of himself have been killed before now. Killed without Belos feeling the tiniest tinge of remorse.]

[His consciousness starts to fade. He hears voices above him.]

["And what about Hunter? What's a grimwalker?"

"He's... a better version of an old friend. But, thanks to you, I'll have to make another one."]

[In reality, in their little fort, he sobs. Because of terror. But also because of heartbreak. Because he knows his parent never loved him at all.]

No.

No no, let go!

[He thrashes, fighting the blanket and sheet wrapped around him. It's too confining. His brain is conflating it with the feeling of being dragged down in Belos' mind.]

Let me out, let me out!

Uncle, please!

[harageous]

( in the moment, the person present with hunter is not belos. it is not his uncle, not the emperor, not the person who was meant to have cared for him but failed him on every basic level. it's his aunt. in an unusual form, but still his aunt nonetheless.

and she wakes up to the sound of his sobs immediately.

it's been a long time since she's seen him have night-terrors, something that plagued him for a spell when he was much younger. but those were never like this. never screaming about an uncle. who did he think his uncle was?

the first thing she does is tug the blankets off of him, pushing them to the side. then she reaches for him to press her hand against his shoulder. )

Hey, hey, hey. You're just having a bad dream. Just a bad dream.

( she tries, now starting to gently push at him to wake him up. )

[badbutsadboy]

[He starts awake suddenly, shooting up to a sit, looking around for - for what? Darkness? Something.]

[Trees. Trees and tattered paintings.]

[His ragged gasps start to calm down when he sees himself surrounded by blankets. When he sees his aunt. (For a second, he's confused about how she looks, until he remembers.) When he remembers where they are.]

[Whatever he was dreaming about gets hazy. He doesn't understand what he saw.]

[He wipes at his face, at the tears there.]

We're - we're in the motel?

[harageous]

( what in the hell was he dreaming about?

the question burns somewhere deep in eda's chest. something about it bothers her, beyond that obvious fact that she wasn't fond of anything that hunter would have a nightmare about. it's nebulous feeling, one that she doesn't quite know how to pin down yet. but she knows she hates what he's going through. )

Yeah. We're in the motel.

( eda explains, moving a foot to better open up one of the gaps in the fort so he could see into the rest of the room. )

It's just us.

[badbutsadboy]

[He is just. Straight. Terrified. Of what's happening right now. Extremely scared. Even despite the reassurance of...they're here. At the motel. He's with her.]

[He's still shaking.]

[He falls back against the pillows.]

[And then he starts to cry. Because he's a healthy teenager, who grew up in a healthy home, where it was okay to.]

I don't want this. Whatever my brain is trying to remember. I don't want it.

[harageous]

( neither does eda. whatever is currently happening to hunter is nothing that she wants either. if she had any say in it, any ability to change things, she'd have made it stop as soon as she first saw it happen. it rips into her chest to see him like this, to see him go through this, and—

the more she thinks about it, the more she knows that "uncle" and the masked man are one in the same. it's only thing that's been plaguing him since yesterday, holding him in a vice grip. hunter sees him in the shadows, around the corners, and even in his own mind. it's got to be connected.

she had hoped, foolishly, that this was just a curse. neither of them had encountered anyone of note, but that hadn't meant a cursed object hadn't been slipped into one of their bags. it could have happened. it's no secret that eda used to do things like that herself.

however, the fact of the matter is that hunter is still plagued and they barely took anything with them. )

I know.

( she tells him, already reaching for him. she pulls him close to cradle him against one of her wings. )

I'm going to find a way to fix this. Whatever's happening. This can't be right.

( she presses a kiss against hunter's hair. )

Or I might be getting a murder charge.

( that's not a joke. although, can't you beat a murder charge if you try to help them after the fact?

they could also just move too. can't charge someone you can't find. )

[badbutsadboy]

[It's only when his aunt holds him and kisses his head that he's comforted a little. It reminds him of when he was little, when he had nightmares. Or got hurt.]

[Like that time he fell out of a tree while playing with his friends in the neighborhood and gouged his face very, very badly, the cause of his scar. He'd run home bleeding and crying and she'd held him at home while pressing gauze against his face to slow the bleeding. And later at the hospital when he'd gotten the stitches. She'd held him in her arm, and kissed his head, and joked until he reluctantly laughed.]

[It hadn't hurt after they put the pain stuff on his face and injected even more into his skin. But it'd been scary at first, seeing the needle.]

[Until he just closed his eyes and took refuge in being held.]

[Her holding him like she did when he was little is grounding. Away from the horrible unreality of - of someone. Someone throwing him away. Drowning him in the dark.]

[In a place where the only comfort is the echo of a girl's desperate, empathetic voice. The voice of someone trying to save him.]

["Hunter! Nonono! You're gonna be okay! You're gonna be okay! Just hang on! Just hang on!"]

[But he's not there. He's here. With his aunt who'll murder anyone that tries to hurt him.]

[He eventually stops crying, wipes at his eyes. His panicky breathing evens out.]

Where are we going to go now?

[The dreams and echos aren't stopping. And something definitely strange has altered her without them knowing why.]

[harageous]

( she's here, she's here.

for as long as hunter needs to cry, she is here. it really feels like the only thing that she can actually do for him in the moment, just hold him through it. her hands might be large and talon-esque but that doesn't stop her from rubbing her knuckles against his back until he feels a little more in control of himself. )

Home.

( she tells him. if this was going to be happening to them anyway then they might as well go home. where all of eda's tools and relics where.

and where she could reach out to her sister. )

We need Lily.

( a very matter o' fact explanation, but all that hunter should need. he's already well aware that she's not someone that can simply be reached by phone, not when she's in all manner of places at any given time.

no, they needed to prepare a spell for it. )

[badbutsadboy]

[Home, in the light of day, is less terrifying. They left and hid for a while. Whatever was after them might have tried to find them. There's a chance it might not be there anymore.]

[They can go home and try to get some help.]

[Hunter nods and fully sits up, wiping at his eyes again.]

[He's going to try to be brave.]

[They check out. The person at the desk isn't paying attention again, allowing Eda to slink by.]

[It's when they reach the parking lot that something unusual happens. A young women in a superhero costume appears, in a ring of life. She seems to be looking for something. When she sees them, she stops.]

["Oh, finally. I've been looking for you."]

[Specifically them. It's not like the Alliance has no records of them. They briefly stayed at the hotel, used the credit cards. The people searching for Starfallen have been split into search areas. They've been given pictures of people to memorize.]

Who - who are you?

[Hunter hovers behind his aunt, peeking around her.]

["My hero name is Penumbra." Hunter vaguely recognizes her.]

[He tugs on his aunt's sleeve.]

I think she's Alliance. I've seen her on TV.

["I am. I know this is...going to sound a little crazy. But have you had strange flashbacks, recently? Or powers you didn't have before? Or had a feeling that things just...aren't right?"]

[harageous]

( except this kind of things reads as incredibly suspect to eda. while she was a registered member of the alliance herself, that didn't mean that she particularly liked to get ambushed by another member.

actually she really didn't appreciate any kind of interruption at the moment. )

I'm not sure if you've noticed, but this isn't the best place to talk.

( not really. the entire parking lot seems to just remain in a constant state of emptiness. but eda is just trying to get rid of her. )

You got some kind of identification, Penumbra?

[badbutsadboy]

[She pulls out an Alliance ID and holds it out to her.]

["I know this is going to be hard to believe, but we're currently dealing with a nationwide unreality event. It's affecting people's memories, making them forget things from their real lives. Important details. I need you both to come back to Alliance Headquarters with me, outside the zones affected. We can explain more there."]

[As the heroine hands Eda her ID, Hunter's gaze becomes fixed on something behind her. Standing near the road is a cloaked figure.]

[He whispers to his aunt.]

We need to go.

[The figure doesn't have an antler mask. It's the one that's Hunter's height. The one with the golden mask that has narrow slits for eyes. Only Hunter can see them. After all, this is just a product of his mind.]

["I'm sorry," the figure says in a voice that's...it's too familiar, and shouldn't be coming out of another person's mouth. Then they pull down his hood, pull off the mask, and...]

[And reveals that he also has Hunter's face.]

["I'm so sorry. But the only way to fix this is to let him in."]

[Hunter tugs on his aunt's sleeve, horrified.]

We need to go!

["Crap," says Penumbra, at his reaction, realizing she can't talk them into it now, and she grabs them both. There's a crackle of ozone, and a rush of compressing air and then... blip. They're somewhere else. A busy area of Alliance HQ, filled with a crowd of people, many of them looking troubled. Some have shock blankets around their shoulders. Penumbra backs off before Eda can lash out and calls out to some other heroes. "I've got two more unreality victims!"]

[harageous]

( the next couple of moments feel like a blur, a horrid smear of overlapping sights, sounds, smells, and magical energy. the transition from the motel parking lot to this section of the alliance headquarters is a rough one, not only from the ability itself but from the assault to her senses. she sneers immediately, lips drawing back to brandish her sharp teeth.

this isn't where they need to be! they need to go. they need to go home, to contact lilith—

the heroes of the alliance don't waste any time in identifying eda as a threat, several of them starting to gather around them to box her in. more importantly, one of them ushers hunter away from her.

it happens all too quickly.

it's too fast, it's too fast.

eda lunges, desperately throwing herself in the direction of her charge. )

No, don't take him! Hunter—! Hunter!

( she shrieks, reaching and grasping for him as her body starts changing around her again. whatever personhood she had begins to rapidly burn away in favour for something more feral, more beastlike. two heroes grab her before she can get anywhere, locking her limbs together with rings of shimmering electricity.

then another presses her hand against eda's side and she slumps to the floor, suddenly lifeless.

"let's take her to one of the rooms. looks like she needs some time." the heroine says, moving to help the others carry the owlbeast out of the room. )

[badbutsadboy]

Aunt Eda!

[She isn't the only one that can fight back. Hunter's never had to fight before, not with the alternate life he's led. But he can do magic. With a magical language of the world that's slowly revealed itself to him.]

[And...something else filters in. An instinct. A ferociousness he's never needed to have before. The same thing that erupted out of him as he fought feverishly at Eclipse Lake for the portal key.]

[He knocks a paper cup out of a survivor's hand. Fortunately, it's grape juice instead of water, making it even easier to draw with. It splashes to the floor. He dives and sticks his finger in it, drawing a symbol. Plants erupt from the floor, cracking through the concrete foundation and wrap around two of the heroes, pulling them away from his aunt. But another hero dives behind him and holds out a glowing finger, tapping him gently on the back of the head.]

[There is a zapping feeling inside his head and consciousness leaves him almost instantly. He collapses face first on the floor.]

[Some time later, he wakes up. It's after Eda has been woken up and assessed for safety, after a telepath helps soothe her mind somewhat. Not enough to allow her to change from her owlbeast form but enough that she's safe to be around. They're not about to put a teenage boy in the same room as someone that's lost control of themselves.]

[But they do decide to put them together, due to Eda's panic about where he is and worries she'll lose control again. And concerns for him, and what it'll be like for him to go through the memory regain alone when he was already panicked.]

[A forcefield goes up over the door as soon as he's gently placed inside.]

[He wakes up just in time to see the magical symbols go up over the door.]

["Here he is, as promised," says Penumbra at the door. "He's not hurt, he was only knocked out telepathically. It will take some time for your real memories to filter back in. So far, everyone that was changed by the unreality bubble have had a gradual return of their real memories. We'll be keeping you here for your own safety until then. I'm so sorry about this, I promise it'll make sense eventually."]

[harageous]

( for your own safety.

how many times have these heroes told her that? eda has already lost count. lost count of the platitudes and reassurances. the stalling. if they hadn't brought hunter in, hadn't finally given in to her screams and threats (and rather serious attempts at biting), she would have lost whatever little faith she already had in this operation.

sure, she had heard the explanations that they have been trickling her way. heard what they've been willing to say, but that doesn't change the fact that she feels more like a prisoner than a refugee.

restraints have been left on her, locked around her limbs, but this part had been the condition of getting her child back. they weren't just about to let him into an enclosed room with her without them even after she had been soothed. "not yet", they'd said.

thankfully, seeing hunter in front of her and whole does wonders for quelling the festering rage inside of her. she stands up despite the restraints then all but waddles in his direction, her body big and bulky as the owlbeast. )

Hunter! Are you alright? Did they do anything to you?

[badbutsadboy]

[Penumbra leaves. The door is left open but the magical shield of glowing symbols remains.]

No, they woke me and tried to explain some...reality stuff I didn't understand, but I tried to fight them so they knocked me out again.

[He looks over and sees...]

Oh no.

[She's changed even more. And they have her in chains!]

Why did they...?! You're Alliance!

[That they're caging and chaining up someone who's registered is...]

[He goes over and tugs on them, but they're fixed pretty tightly. After a moment, he gives up, falling over into a sit in front of her, looking like he's about to burst into tears. But instead of crying, he crawls up close to her, fearlessly, completely unafraid of her hurting him despite her cursed form. He throws his arms around her neck - they doesn't even fit all the way around, and buries his face against the feathers there.]

[It's as much to try to comfort her as it is to seek comfort himself.]

Whatever's happening to you, it seems to be happening more when you're upset.

[He pets the feathers of her shoulder.]

I know this is...really bad, but we're together now. So you don't have to be upset about us being separated at least.

[Even though he's terrified, he wants her to be able to calm down. Wants her to not suffer from...whatever this is. And if they're together, they can be together to just deal with whatever happens next.]