ORP with Steals Fire (Bring Back the Light Event)

[HuniPi]

Heart was about to give her own name when Steals Fire and another kin (an ascended one at that!) joined in the conversation. Normally in groups, Heart would have withdrawn into submissive silence, speaking only when spoken to. However, the notion of referring to the MotherFather as a tyrant was jarring, not necessarily offensive but certainly something the doe had never once considered a possibility.

Her eyes widened as if scandalized by the idea, but she had to remind herself every kin was entitled to their own opinion. She was not in any position to judge. She cleared her throat before introducing herself "I'm Heart and Home. A-and I've always believed the MotherFather was more benevolent than violent. And it's been demonstrated before that one needs to be cruel to be kind."

[Beejoux]

"Yes, I agree." And frankly, what choice did they really have? It was as good a starting point as any, and at least these kin seemed knowledgeable about what was going on. If it didn't work...

He pushed that thought aside for now and dipped his head to bump his nose to the side of Fisheye's head. "Let's go catch some motes." He flashed her a toothy grin before hurrying off to follow a soft light that'd just drifted past them.

Catching the things wasn't easy. Chasing them down was difficult, they'd dart away at the last moment and sharp teeth would close around nothing but air. After a few missed chances he switched tactics, slowed his pursuit to a creep, sprang at the dancing light when it was close enough.

This worked, and he grunted in satisfaction, turning to head back, but paused, distracted by movement around his feet. With the light caught in his maw his legs were illuminated, Shadow din against the ground. It shivered around them, long tail flicking, then stepped away from him entirely to run off among the long shadows of the trees.

Brother Shark blinked after it, baffled. He looked down at his hooves again, then back into the trees. It frolicked between them, weaving in and out of thick trunks. Then it was back, like nothing had happened at all. He blinked again, shook his head as if to clear it. When it didn't move again he headed for the lantern.

--

He ran into Fisheye again after dropping off the mote and paused briefly. "Oh yes, I noticed. My shadow ran off without me." The buck chuckled, then stiffened, glowing eyes tracking a note that was during dangerously close. He waited...and snapped.

He grinned at her with the thing caught in his jaws, but it faded quickly as more and more of the things drifted towards him.

They landed on him, lighting him up like a tree during winter market. He looked to Fisheye, to see if she was seeing what he saw.

--

They flickered and vanished and Neither Shark shook himself, spitting the mote into the lantern. "This is very bizarre."

He brushed along her side, heading back towards the tree line, towards more lights.

This time, when he managed to capture over, the forest shrank around him, the kin that had surrounded him scampered around his hooves, small as ants. Brother Shark froze, fearful of accidently stepping on anyone, least this not all simply be in his head.

Thankfully it didn't linger. He was himself again after a few moments. When he rid himself of the mote he waited beside the lantern for Fisheye.

6: Your kin imagines their shadow has taken on its own life!
9: Your kin imagines they are completely covered in motes!
2: Your kin imagines they are huge!

Spoiler

1: Your kin imagines they are very, very tiny!
2: Your kin imagines they are huge!
3: Your kin imagines they have become a type of familiar!
4: Your kin imagines they are a tree and cannot move!
5: Your kin imagines they are made up of one of the four elements!
6: Your kin imagines their shadow has taken on its own life!
7: Your kin imagines they are a different species of kin!
8: Your kin imagines they are in a different climate (plain, mountains, desert, caves)!
9: Your kin imagines they are completely covered in motes!
10: You capture an exceptionally large mote with no consequences.

[Appeal]

Fisheye was pleased that Brother Shark agreed, not only because she felt secure with a companion who stood on the same side as her. She returned the nose bump to Brother Shark gently as their noses touched, following up by nodding her head to his suggestion. "Yes, let us see how this story pans out."

She followed him, allowing him to lead her into the direction of the motes. She was more worried about losing Brother Shark in the darkness than she was catching the motes so she put a lot of her focus on that. The motes were hard to catch, and gave quite the chase but eventually she did manage to catch one.

She had been warned about what may happen but as she imagined herself suddenly in the desert she felt very stressed by it. Her grandmother may have been from the desert but she wasn't about that life. She had settled by the ocean for a reason, and while it was hard, it brought her life meaning and joy. Feeling the heat and the dryness of the desert caused her heart to beat faster and panic wanted to set in but she ran all of the reasons and logic that proved her hallucination just that.

"Brother Shark?" She asked as the hallucination began to end. "Be careful, they weren't exaggerating about what happens within close contact with them."

She caught sight of him, trotting up beside him. "You got one as well." She congratulated him, heading for the lantern with him.

---

She carefully stalked the next mote, intent on not taking a trip to the desert again. Of course, as she caught the next one she found herself quickly falling. No. She wasn't falling. She was shrinking! This wasn't what she had in mind when she wanted to sneak up on it. The world was getting bigger and bigger as she soon became the size of the mote itself. She seemed to become one with the mote momentarily before everything bounced back into shape and she stood there with the mote, looking absolutely dazed.

"That was dizzying," she admitted, looking at Brother Shark. They must have had completely different looks on their face because she laughed lightly.

---

It felt like it was getting easier to find the motes, or to catch them. It was no surprise though, the more you honed your skill at something the more competent at it that you became. She followed one of the motes and then quietly pounced on it. Upon capturing it, she found herself floating. Bobbing, if you will. She felt like the ocean waves were carrying her through the sky as she floated along as a fatfish. She prayed that this one would end soon, although it was still not the worst of the hallucinations that she'd had so far today. Eventually she found herself falling back into herself, and she confidently carried the mote to the lantern. She was all too pleased to be done with this for now as she dropped off the mote and looked at Brother Shark.

"I would pass on doing that again," she said firmly but there was a hint of a joke. Of course she'd do it again, she'd do it a thousand times more if it meant protecting everyone. "I hope yours were better."

8: Your kin imagines they are in a different climate (plain, mountains, desert, caves)!
1: Your kin imagines they are very, very tiny!
3: Your kin imagines they have become a type of familiar!

Spoiler

1: Your kin imagines they are very, very tiny!
2: Your kin imagines they are huge!
3: Your kin imagines they have become a type of familiar!
4: Your kin imagines they are a tree and cannot move!
5: Your kin imagines they are made up of one of the four elements!
6: Your kin imagines their shadow has taken on its own life!
7: Your kin imagines they are a different species of kin!
8: Your kin imagines they are in a different climate (plain, mountains, desert, caves)!
9: Your kin imagines they are completely covered in motes!
10: You capture an exceptionally large mote with no consequences.

[Dizzy_Kat]

Speed Racer wasn't frightened by the failure of dawn to arrive. If anything, it had become easier for the young zikwa to see. After spending his entire life underground where the only light came from the kin around you, even the brightness of the moon and stars at night blurred his awareness of the world around him. Not that any of that had slowed him down. There were too many new things to discover up on the surface and even after nearly a year aboveground he was still finding new experiences every day. Now, it was like he was back home with just the light of kin, the strange bugs flying through the air, and River to guide his steps towards the bright clearing.

So when the lights went out, he wasn't afraid. In fact, if anything he was confused. "The sun and the moon disappear every day? Why is this a problem?"

[Baneful]

"And if the Motherfather was the one who stole away our light?" he said, critically.

"I am not content to lay down and suffer the blows of fate."

He merrily skipped off to go investigate the now steadily glowing mote cages.

[subducting]

Like the other kin, Dark Moon Rising was utterly shocked by the pronouncement of the odd acha. She followed him warily, signalling to her companions to see what they could find out for themselves, and as they dispersed she approached the acha warily.

“You don’t think-“

She faltered, chewing her lip. It felt like a betrayal to suggest it.

“Why would the Motherfather take the light?” She asked, searchingly. Her entire life had been dedicated to appreciating the parts of the Motherfather’s creation that were swathed in darkness, but somehow this still all felt wrong.

[Baneful]

Steal's Fire unquenchable perky optimism seemed very much still present as he checked on the mote gathering which seemed to be going according to plan given his smile at the cages that they were using to hold the drifting fragments.

He inclined his head curiously at Dark Moon Rising.

"Why wouldn't they?" he asked. "Do you think an entity so vast and callous would care about the strife of a few creatures? It could be for any reason, for sport, an ill-founded test."

He made a face. "The reasons could be beyond our understanding. The results and solution for me are the same."

He cast a glance in the direction of the gathered kin. "The motherfather isn't the only voice in the swamp, either."

[Toshiful]

Stay Awake had noticed the extra shade. It wasn't even like it was summer where the shade was a welcome reprieve, this was shade on top of shade. Dark, and cold, and threatening to stay that way. Now, Stay Awake was okay. When it came down to it, he was fluffy and this whole situation was more comfortable than the swamp's usually muggy and miserable weather.

And Stay Awake was a little interested in what imminent doom would do with the pebble economy.

But he was not interested in dying sometime soon, so when he heard some guys were getting together to figure something out, he figured why not. He rarely pitched in on anything for free, but when it came to saving his own hide, he could make an exception.

He eyed up some of the food. The bonfires and meals looked great, but he'd work up the appetite first. He rolled his shoulders. Time to herd.

The motes were tricky little guys. What he really wasn't sure about was if he was supposed to handle them with his teeth at all. He probably could hold them in his mouth without swallowing, but they looked really fluttery. He grimaced. Bugs were acidic, it was not a good flavor. They were bugs, right? And the bugs were supposed to...lead them to what they needed to fix whatever was going on? He thought they'd have better luck just using them as an extra light, but the swamp was weird. Why shouldn't it work?

As Stay got a good chunk of the guys cornered, his shadow began to squirm weirdly in the firelight. He thought that was the bonfire, but after a while it slithered around him comfortably, then cracked in a reedy voice, "Hey! What's up! Nice party, huh?"

Now the guy, the Acha guy with the really trustworthy name, had said something about the motes having weird effects. And Stay thought that was more likely than him suddenly going nuts, or his shadow talking, but not 100%.

"Uh, trying to save the world, you know, usual shit," Stay said, deciding to answer it.

"Cool, cool, mind if I like...tag along?"

"Go for it," Stay said, noticing that he was an acha all of a sudden. That was the worst thing he could be with the weather like it was. He had been pitying the little guys. He shivered, huddled up and scuffing the ground. The shadow curled around him wasn't helping with the heat part. He really was going to need that fire after this.

Whatever. Stay could focus. In spite of the weird set backs, in short order he had a batch of motes herded over to the right cage, and one particularly fat mote that he thought might be a queen or something.

6: Your kin imagines their shadow has taken on its own life!
7: Your kin imagines they are a different species of kin!
10: You capture an exceptionally large mote with no consequences.

[Toshiful]

Mud Bath supposed he said he would help, and he really did intend to, although he could tell things were winding to a close. He had left it late, as usual. He normally did like...small...creaturish, things, although he wasn't absolutely sure about these. They were awfully bright.

The phosphor could probably be used for something interesting, but the acha had seemed to think this was more of a talking it over sort of operation.

Mud Bath was not admittedly very good at chasing. It was the part where he moved quickly and all at once, and moved for a long time, and doing both of those things together. Not really his skill. He slithered away into the shadows and tried convincing the motes that they were better served over there where the rest of where everyone was gathered anyway.

He had thought they were listening, but then all at once rather than going towards where he rather thought they'd be happier, they all seemed to come towards him. Not quickly. Rather slowly. He probably could have gotten away. He leaned a bit instead. It didn't stop the things from shedding light all over his decidedly inky presence.

He squinted, wishing he had made something for this occasion. Some kind of eye covering. Something transparent, yet tinted? He'd think it over. In the mean time, all of him seemed to be made of fire. Also, he was in the desert. It was hot and bright and he wouldn't really be able to get back under these conditions. He swore under his breath. Had this been some stipulation he'd forgotten? He thought- this was all going wrong. This was very backwards.

"Bizarre," he said in a strained way, even though Bizarre wasn't there.

In spite of some very dire hallucinations and distress on his part, the motes had seemed to listen to Bath's reasoning, probably. More of them seemed to be over with the others, in any case.

5: Your kin imagines they are made up of one of the four elements!
9: Your kin imagines they are completely covered in motes!
8: Your kin imagines they are in a different climate (plain, mountains, desert, caves)!

[Toshiful]

Light was in a merry mood. He tore into the food by the fire in great gulps, and his light laugh could be heard above the chatter. He licked his snout free of grease, and turned an interested eye on the main focus of the evening, the dancing lights.

He thought chasing them around and the...side effects...sounded like a riot.

Whatever they were, he'd have to catch some to breed for back home. They certainly livened up the party.

He limbered up, then set off on legs that had grown a little stronger recently, circling up the largest mote he could find and depositing it on his first try. He beamed. "Always room for more!" he chuckled. It was his motto.

When he went after the next one, things started to get funny. He found himself a lot fluffier and smaller than when he'd started out, with small paws and sharp teeth. A foxbun! He jumped around, enchanted. Another mote down.

He'd get another one, then go see if he could go steal any of the choice vegetables from the prep area at the back of the event, while he was small and invisible. That didn't happen. What did happen was he found himself suddenly planted. Now, he'd had his share of funny mushrooms, and the accompanying wooziness wasn't altogether unfamiliar. He grinned in a toothy way.

"Oh no," he said in false dismay, "Looks like I can't move! Some brave kin available to help a guy out?"

10: You capture an exceptionally large mote with no consequences.
3: Your kin imagines they have become a type of familiar!
4: Your kin imagines they are a tree and cannot move!

[Prolixity]

Consume listened to the other buck speak and blinked a few times, the glow of his eyes flickering briefly in the dark. "It's wise to be wary," he said mildly, not wanting to provoke the suspicious male. Privately, he thought that the buck sounded a little less than all there. But he wasn't about to offer that opinion openly.

He nodded to Clash as the younger male greeted him. "I think I'll have a look around, see who's here if I can," he said. He wasn't inclined to be as suspicious or pessimistic as this small group was, and he also didn't feel like making it into an argument just now. He inclined his head to the other buck and the doe with them, and then moved away, more interested in the motes and the gathered kin than in conspiracy theories.

[Lutz]

Hang The Moon watched as more and more kin arrived to the clearing, drawn by the light and led by the motes. It was becoming a bit overwhelming and if the sun wasn't missing she probably would have simply stepped into the swamp to remove herself from the situation, but thanks to the current predicament she felt like she had to stay here. There were many kin, yes, but some of them seemed to know what was going on. Kind of. Being with the few that didn't seem scared or worried was reassuring and even though she was starting to feel overwhelmed by all the different voices and conversations drifting through the air, she held her ground.

Well...sort of.

"Whoa!" she yelped as someone bumped into her. Since she wasn't expecting the jostle she didn't have time to prepare herself for the bump and it sent her staggering to the side a bit. She did catch herself before she fell though her movements couldn't be called graceful. Either way, Hang The Moon looked up with wide eyes at the doe that had walked into her.

"Fine! I'm fine," she responded quickly, her voice a bit shaky. Physically yes, she was fine. The other female hadn't hurt her, though she certainly was startled and definitely out of her element. "S-sorry, I should have..." She trailed off, searching frantically for a way to place the blame on herself even though she'd been the one standing still. "Shouldn't have been standing in the walkway." Hang The Moon gave a weak grin as she shuffled a bit closer to the edge of the clearing, making way for the other kin.

She's a bit of a wet blanket right now XD

"Oh! What a good idea!" Echo was all for helping other kin and this seemed like a great idea. Catching a mote and putting it into the lantern seemed like quite the task, especially if any rough handling or surprises made them release whatever power they had that caused the hallucinations. More than willing to be the bearer of the lantern, Echo scooped up an empty one that was laying nearby before following Grim into the semi-darkness of the surrounding Swamp. He kept pace with the other Acha fairly well, keeping close enough that when she caught one of the motes he was caught up in the effects of the mind-altering power as well.

"Whoa!" he said, looking down at his legs which were now water. They were somehow maintaining their shape as they sloshed around, little droplets leaving his body to splash onto the ground. He looked up to see if Grim had seen his new body, but as he did his regular orange self was present once more.

"I sure did," he said, though it hadn't been Grim that was the target. He supposed she'd probably seen something similar and he wondered for a moment what it might be like to be made completely out of water. Holding still while the mote was placed into the lantern, Echo pondered this before following Grim for another mote. This time when she caught it Echo's shadow became quite large and it danced along the tree trunks, spurred on by the Acha's enthusiastic laugh.

"These motes sure do have some crazy power," he said as his shadow returned to attached itself to his hooves, once again only flickering with the light of the fire not far off. Finally Grim caught one last mote and this time Echo felt powerful, but not in the way that Grim did. His legs were strong and body built for speed and endurance. A kiokote's body, surely! He felt more sturdy than he ever had in his life and ached to run and run and run-

And just like that, Grim had shut the door of the lantern and they were ready to head back.

"I dunno," he said around his mouthful of the lantern's handle. "That was kind of fun! Kind of...weird, but fun."

[lolternative]

8: Your kin imagines they are in a different climate (plain, mountains, desert, caves)!
7.Your kin imagines they are a different species of kin!
2. Your kin imagines they are huge!

Air watched in awe as the zikwa jumped into action and she wasted no time following suit - bounding quickly towards a mote that flitted before her. It took a few attempts but finally, she caught the mote in her mouth - the light glowing through her lips and illuminating her cheeks from the inside. Suddenly, the wind chilled and blew across her back, causing her to shiver. Snowflakes caught the light of the fires and stone erupted from the ground around her, rising into the sky to form mountains she'd only viewed from a distance. The snow piled around her feet and crunched as she took a cautious step.

A blink and it was gone and she shook her head, quickly depositing the mote before she returned back to Illuminating. "They are strange," she exclaimed excitedly. "I saw mountains! And snow!" It was her first time seeing both and she made a plan then to take a trip to the seem for real once the sun was back.

Another mote danced in front of her and this time Air only had to extend her neck to catch it in her mouth. It buzzed against her tongue, causing her to giggle. She felt pressure and a pop and she knew she was not herself. A curious glance at what she could see of her body revealed a broad chest, covered in fur and shoulders covered in armor. She knew if she could see her reflection, she would be a totoma, strong and proud. Maybe she really should visit the mountains.. She deposited the mote and then she was back to herself. "That time I was a totoma. Maybe it's a sign."

[Ruriska]

Illuminating watched curiously as Air tangled with her first two motes. She too was experiencing the strange effects and it was odd to see the Acha looking perfectly normal while knowing that in her mind something completely different was happening.

“A totoma and the mountains? Oh my!”

When the next mote floated by, Illuminating was almost excited for her own experience. She jumped forward, snatched up the mote and -

She was low to the ground, round, many eyed, she saw everything, over and over. She stretched her legs, all eight of them. There was no thought but hunger, predator, waiting to strike. She wanted to weave a trap that everyone would fall into, so that she could feast, suck them dry and -

Illuminating shuddered, casting the spider from her mind.

She quickly raced to the next mote, just to get rid of the feeling and was awarded instantly. Motes suddenly appeared everywhere, coating her body, clinging to her. “Air,” she called, too scared to move lest she scare them off. “There’s so many motes! Quickly! We can catch them all together!”

The motes were all over her, crowding her in light, covering her eyes.

She tried to snatch at a group to clear them but they disappeared at her touch and after she blinked twice, they were suddenly gone. As if they’d never been.

“Oh....” Confused, she turned in a circle. “Oh, I was imagining it...”

She sighed. What a shame.

[lolternative]

It was strange to watch as the zikwa caught the motes and how she reacted to the illusion only she could see. She saw the shifts in her posture and her demeanor. Others around them experienced the same and it was quite.. funny. She found herself laughing for the first time since the sun disappeared, deep and true. She almost missed the mote as it drifted in front of her and she blinked her eyes clear of the happy tears that had gathered along her lashes before she jumped after it, chasing it around the fires and other kin before she finally managed to capture it.

The ground fell away from her - no.. she was moving away from the ground.. She was growing! Bigger and bigger she got until she towered over even the trees, the world spread out before her. If she took a step, she would crush everyone below her. She froze - she definitely didn't want to do that. Motes, almost invisible thanks to the distance between them, sparkled below and if she was careful she might be able to catch them all in a single attempt. She opened her mouth and the breath she inhaled bent the trees around her and moved clouds.

Suddenly the ground rushed up at her and Air closed her eyes tightly, the feeling of falling too real. When they opened, she was herself again and she deposited the mote.

"Not all the effects are pleasant," she murmured.