[network] @hexappeal; let me enlighten you [open/video] [cw:blood]

[sleight_of_fate]

Characters: Jared Rhys, Beckett, chaos, Enoch
Location: Building 326- the high school
Date: Day 298, afternoon
Summary: Rhys pisses off some ghosts
Warnings: cw: blood, cursing, rituals



[On camera, Rhys looks a bit shaken and pale, but his jaw is set and his blue eyes are hard and determined. He's got a blanket wrapped around him, and he holds the tablet awkwardly to talk, doing his best to present a calm, professional face.

Hey, is not the first time he's been assaulted by a ghost and he doubts it will be the last.]

So I think we learned a lesson, though I don't know how useful it is. That lesson being, don't do magic in the high school because it will fucking shank you.

[He opens the blanket to reveal a patched wound on his heavily tattooed chest.]

We do have video, though. I performed a tribute ritual combined with a provocation, which is basically going in and deliberately pissing off spirits. "My god is better than your god", basically. We did a pretty good job, apparently.

I've got a few thoughts about a plan B and what else might get results here, but since I'm not quite up for getting myself possessed, I think I'm gonna take a break and come back to it. But if anyone catches something we missed? Have at it.

[The footage, taken from several feet away and clearly from another person, shows the hallways in the high school under unsteady light, mostly weak daylight with the occasional flicker of the overhead flourescents. Rhys is stripped to his heavily tattooed skin except for his jeans and boots, shaved head bare and his sash-wrapped tail out and lashing restlessly as he works. Beckett is with him, on quiet standby as Rhys sets up the ritual with a brief explanation of the plan. He moves swiftly and surely as he sets up a small fire, lays out an X-Acto knife, and puts out a can of cranberry juice and some chalk and charcoal. There's dark winged figures already scribbled over some of the eyes on the walls, and it's clear that this isn't going to be a peaceful ritual like the one Rhys performed in the house before. Even Rhys himself looks different, particularly with all his ink showing: Dark, primal, a little bit crazed.

The camera follows the prayers to the Queen of Crows and Winter, the clouds of dark, noxious smoke that billow up from the handful of wood and insulation that Rhys lights, the ritual sharing and pouring of the "wine" and the quick, practiced bloodletting that Rhys performs on both himself and Beckett with the proper offering of prayer in two different languages.

It's a prayer and offering for battle: against the interloper and the whore, if anyone listens closely enough. Or happens to follow Celtic Gaelic reasonably well. Someone well-versed in mythology might also put together that Rhys's patron might be the Morrigan, goddess of war, death, magic and fate...though asking him about it later probably will get a lot of evasions and not a lot of answers.

It's when Rhys is getting up to close the ritual that he suddenly curses, stumbles, and falls against the wall, one hand pressed to his chest. Red leaks through his fingers as he goes pale and wobbles in shock, and the taping is interrupted in favor of quick treatment of what proves to be a single but profusely bleeding stab wound high on the witch's chest. Then the video ends.]

Comments

@hotstud_xxx; text

[rubikscomplex]

but did you finish?

@hexappeal, text

[sleight_of_fate]

[Pardon his typing, he's in shock and a little shaky.]

Yes

All that was left was parting

Final blessing

I was getting up to do that when I got stabbed

[rubikscomplex]

pretty sure that means you didn't finish
we need to see if it was just you
or if any schmuck going through the motions can elicit the response

@Mnemonsyne; video/action

[bookofnope]

[You know what this exercise in dumb recklessness call for? An exercise in even dumber recklessness. Which is why Beckett's tablet is currently propped up just outside the high school, recording Beckett within a circle of thirteen stones. Sitting on the snow. Naked. Yeah.

Thankfully, from this angle, nothing too risque is visible even if someone was into the emaciated corpse look. All you can see is as shivering vampire, cross-legged, eyes closed... meditating? Maybe. Something is distracting him. Possibly impending hypothermia, or maybe someone is speaking to him from off-screen, telling him he's a moron, because wouldn't you?

But since that someone is Angel, all he gets is a partially fussy, partially unimpressed:] John says you have ten minutes.

J-just one - one moment, I'm t-trying, trying to - [He can't quite get irritability right. His teeth chatter heavily as he talks.] Let me - c-c-concentrate - damnit! One - one minute - !

Can't you at least sit more modestly, I hate this, I hate everything, [says Angel, speaking for Norfinbury as a whole no doubt. Beckett, though, just grits his teeth.]

I can - almost - argh!

[And hopefully no one is surprised when quite suddenly he has a stab wound to the chest. It just happens. Blood everywhere. Not the fun kind. He would elate in having achieved some kind of arcane success, except he's too busy leaping up to his feet while swearing. Possibly whimpering. Definitely whimpering.]

Fine! Fine! I'm coming!

@hotstud_xxx; text

[rubikscomplex]

did you have to phrase it as "i'm coming"
when you're already naked?

text; a little later; hey Terri is it too late for a post-event pm thread

[bookofnope]

it takes a very special mind to look at me of all people in the snow of all places and think about sex. congratulations you sick bastard.

action;

[phaseshifter]

Freaking-- frick!!

[ QUITE. Angel bravely prevails over any vampeen-related squeamishness and immediately descends on Beckett with a blanket. Behold, the avatar of fussness. ]

Let's get you inside, don't try to walk by yourself -- this was the worst idea, I can't believe...

[ ETC ETC. Being the puniest of the group, she busies herself with getting Beckett wrapped up in the blanket rather than helping him to walk. That's a job for Enoch and/or Rhys the First, ok. ]

@PetertheGreat, audio

[zunesareawesome]

Why.

action; and now a real tag

[warriorscribe]

[Enoch had damn near stripped, himself, when Beckett had gotten settled safely inside, donating his cloak, raincoat, and the table runner he used as a sash to the cause of keeping Beckett warm even after getting his own clothes back on. Enjoy learning he's got a tacky colorful blanket-vest on beneath all of that.

After that, he remained by or near Beckett, a silent, worried presence. Very near, if he wanted more warmth; he was all too happy to lean on or hold him. But he doesn't speak - maybe he's terrified beyond words. That's probably it, actually, because his relief when he realizes Beckett will be okay is palpable, almost giddy.

Or definitely giddy. The first thing he actually says to Beckett since it all?]

...A strange ritual to take offense at, isn't it? I suppose they didn't appreciate the show.

action;

[phaseshifter]

[ Un/fortunately (delete as applicable), Rhys is spared the full force of The Fussening until Angel is finished with the whole Beckett kerfuffle. When she is done with that she pootles right on over, bearing a pillow and several scraps of cloth. ]

Okay, so. What do you need? I don't have painkillers, but I have a pillow you can borrow. And if you're low on bandages, I cleaned these after I was done with them! They're definitely better than nothing. Probably. You'd know better, I guess, I'm just -- bandages.

[ She's referring to the cloth strips, which are covered in a particularly twee cat print. Not very dignified, but. Free bandages! ]

Re: action;

[sleight_of_fate]

[Oh, hi, Angel.

He likes your voice even better in person.]

I like your voice even better in person.

These bathrooms, they've got period stuff, right? Maxi pads? Get some of those. Clean, and they soak up a ton of blood. Army buddy taught me that one.

And I will...stay still because I think that's a good idea right now.

[He gives her his best, somewhat shocky smile.]

@godsend, video

[termineur]

[ He lets out a low whistle and shakes his head. ]

Didn't think you were gonna need the first aid kit this fast.

Seriously, though- we're in the shed up north. Let me know if you want me to come over. We were just trying to avoid having an anomaly party at the school.

@hexappeal, video

[sleight_of_fate]

[He'll use the video pickup, but he looks kind of awful. Funny how much more shit hurts when you're human...]

This might need a couple stitches, but it's clean and stable for now. Didn't break anything and seems to be slowing down.

Also, maxi pads are a fucking miracle.

@w.graham; audio

[ex_this_ismydesign36]

Did you intend to piss off whatever was in there, or were you going for some other result?

[ He's not going to remark on whether or not this was a good life choice. He has absolutely no room to speak when it comes to those. ]

@hexappeal; audio

[sleight_of_fate]

In retrospect, it might not have been my best plan, though I think it still ranks slightly higher than the one where I might have gotten possessed and/or turned on the people with me and tried to kill them.

I'm not sure what I expected to happen, honestly.

@PetertheGreat, video

[zunesareawesome]

Oh cool, you have a tail.

[Because that’s what he takes away from this.]

Also, you okay, dude?

@hexappeal, video

[sleight_of_fate]

[Blink blink. Wasn't that public knowledge by now? He can never remember these things anymore.]

Yeah, souvenir of the Cells. It followed me gone and decided to stay.

[He's definitely a little punchy.]

The ghosties weren't a fan. Stopped the performance before I could play Season of the Witch or anything good like that.

@librarian; video

[cahooted]

Rhys, are you alright? Is someone with you?

[Flynn is genuinely concerned here. May or may not be one step away from fretting.]

How bad is the wound, are you in pain? Do you have a doctor nearby?

@hexappeal, video

[sleight_of_fate]

Yes, yes, fucking ow, and sort of?

[He grimaces.]

It's getting handled. I'm fine. Just a little more extreme piercing than I'm into.

action

[warriorscribe]

[He's going to have a hell of a day, due to shadowing both of these things and seeing both stabbings.

Unlike the later one with Beckett, perfect storm of all his greatest snowhell traumas that it is, Enoch is very much not half out of his mind with panic. However good he is under pressure, the tendency for tunnel vision is very real.]

What- what is it, what happened? [He shrugs his backpack off from under his cloak and kneels with it as it falls to the floor, unzipping it to dig out a dry green sponge and several scraps of blue fabric. That'll help, won't it?]

action! cw: wounds

[sleight_of_fate]

[Beckett is the lucky one: Rhys's cutting is small, precise, and nicely handled with a little bit of paper towel.

Rhys, however, is bleeding like a stuck pig. And all his proper witchy demeanor goes out the window with that. Because fucking OW.]

I think something stabbed me.

[He moves his hand just far enough off the source of the blood to be an actual hole in the flesh of his chest just under his ribs, raw and pink and deep enough to have been caused by an actual blade.]

What the actual purple paisley fuck.

[He sounds more amazed than upset, and starts to sway slightly on his feet before pressing his bloody hand back over the wound.]

@thebigc; video

[onlytwothings]

[ What the hell, Rhys? Have a disapproving Wilson. And a worried one. Mostly worried, but definitely disapproving. ]

I'm not going to say I think you need supervision, but-

[ Wow. He's also trying not to gape at the revelation that Rhys has a tail. ]

I'm starting to think I should join up with you, in case of situations like this.

[ Really, Rhys. ]

Are you okay?

@hexappeal, video

[sleight_of_fate]

[Rhys is better now that he's sitting and wrapped in blankets, with his injury properly tended, but he still looks groggy, a little bit dopey now that the blood loss has hit him and the adrenaline rush has died down.

Also, he's definitely starting to feel the pain by now.]

I definitely need supervision. This is why you should come supervise me. Also possibly come keep me warm because I'm freezing my ass off.

[He gives a crooked smile that he's fairly sure is charming. Never mind that there's a smudge of ash on his cheek and he looks vaguely shellshocked.]

For what it's worth, I was not planning to get stabbed when I planned this. Thrown out a window, possibly, but not stabbed. But m'okay.

Now when I say I am a very holy man I mean it.

action;

[cosmicwords]

[Once everyone is patched up or at least being attended to, chaos wanders off to search around the school.

When he walks back, it's with a grim expression and he starts to pack his supplies.]

We've upset the spirits, this place feels much colder and more hostile now.

I wouldn't stick around much longer...

[Said in the tone of someone who suspects everyone around him already knows and senses this... Also said in the tone of someone who is considering sneaking back and sticking around a bit longer.]

action;

[sleight_of_fate]

[Huff.]

Yeah, just gimme a minute here and I'm good... Just gonna catch my breath.

[Probably not.]