WEEK ZERO EXECUTION

[grigori]

week zero: execution murder of crows

Hopefully you got a long night of sleep? Barring that, you got whatever answers, or closure, you might have needed. Because it's strangely quiet, the following Sunday morning. Moreso than Cittàgazze typically is. There's something almost oppressive hanging over the city, but it's a bright, clear, Mediterranean day.

Breaking the silence, somewhere, much like the song of Friday, there is the echoing, cruel laughter of voices you should faintly recognize throughout the city. It's followed by humming of that newly familiar song. It's strongest, interestingly, close to the courtyard.

As the clocks of the city strike 1 PM, though, there is a change as the voices fade. While there's no compulsion to investigate it, there's a small gathering in the courtyard. Your three Watchers are here with their daemons, and so are... Qi Rong, and his daemon, front and center of the square. All damages and evidence, anything amiss from the weekend, is all gone, and replaced with the state of the courtyard from the week prior.

Nearby, Baraqiel's daemon is pacing along the edge of the courtyard in tiger form, as if on guard duty. Baraqiel themself is simply keeping an eye on Qi Rong, holding him with one hand around both wrists behind his back, ignoring him otherwise as he rants at the three of them. Gripping hard on their hood and pulling over their face, Shamsiel stands there in relative silence while a small bird circles above their head chirping anxiously. Suriel's daemon is nowhere to be seen, though their hood does shift oddly as they look on, hands clasped before them as if to offer a prayer. The three appear to be having a hushed conversation, in the meantime, but a hurried one, glancing around occasionally or checking on Qi Rong and Xiao Jing. Are they waiting for something..?

And then, another party will be compelled to join them. Xie Lian will find that his feet are carrying him to his destination, San Lang keeping pace with him as they make their way down the streets of Cigazze. Once he passes through the centermost area of the courtyard, past where Suriel and Shamsiel stand, he'll find that he can't go back, and neither can his daemon. Baraqiel and their daemon are unceremoniously expelled from the heart of the courtyard, away from Qi Rong, skidding as they catch themselves, the other two Celestials stabilizing their companion and looking shocked.

Likewise, no one can enter the courtyard further than where the three Watchers stand. There will be no interfering from outside parties, no matter what it is that's about to happen. Any attempts to do so will result in them meeting an invisible barrier, one that rebuffs them with the same amount of force used against it—so take care.

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Comments

[voltadomar]

[Kim's been here the whole time, just standing quietly with his hands folded behind his back. He doesn't flinch at the violence in front of him, but he doesn't look pleased, either.

... At least, that's how it is until the creepy clouds slither in, and his hand goes to his holster.]

[winebar]

[FROWNING DEEPLY AT THE SPOOKY GHOSTS OR WHATEVER. Holding out his hand to Kim.]

Don't waste your fire, Lieutenant.

[voltadomar]

I won't.

[His hand stays where it is, but he isn't drawing the gun.]

[winebar]

[Just realized my previous tag could be misconstrued as trying to hold hands. Hold my hand, Kim.

But no at that he lowers his hand.]

But be ready if for some reason that so called "Ghost King" does escape.

[voltadomar]

[What if we held hands in the courtyard, by the spectre-swarm...]

[Kim just nods.]

Whatever happens, I'm ready.

[winebar]

[van Zieks himself has a hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword but.... then Something is happening to Qi Rong.]

It's... got some sort of hold on him.

[voltadomar]

... What the hell is it doing to him!?

[Even as Xie Lian calls for them to flee, Kim doesn't move.]

[winebar]

[FROWNING DEEPER, also not fleeing.]

It's as if all the feeling has drained from him, as happened briefly to me the other day...
[HMMMM]

One must wonder why they are not harming Mr. Xie Lian.

[drinkingproblem]

[Sort of. Eyeing those clouds and backing up away from the barrier his daemon moved him closer to. His hand goes to the sword on his back but he doesn't draw, 'cause uh.]

So. That the spectres they keep talking about? Or is it just the dead guy comin' back for revenge?

[You never know. Also he can't really see them properly so??? His daemon's not happy, though, and is actually moving in front of him 'cause fuck this shit.]

[voltadomar]

I don't know.

[His stare is fixed on it, though. Kim's own daemon has shifted into a bandicoot and crawled into his jacket to hide.]

[drinkingproblem]

Reeally hate fighting stuff I can't see when I haven't got any of my abilities. Looks just kinda like a mirage from here.

[It's half a grumbling and a little tense; he's not normally tense but his daemon's unease is filtering through, perhaps it's more attuned or perhaps it's just more reactive than him.

The shark presses in closer and he's just like:]

Whoa. Hey, I can't actually get in there, you'll just get everything wet.

[lefthandpath]

[noticing that and also Qi Rong and Xie Lan's reactions, but he sees nothing???]

Mr. Kim?

[voltadomar]

[He doesn't answer. His stare is fixed on the smoke-like creatures.]

[lefthandpath]

What's happening?

[suddenly Xie Lan's trying to defend Qi Rong???]

[voltadomar]

... Spectres. But that's...

[...impossible, he seems to want to say.]

[lefthandpath]

Spectres? Why're they showing up here? Now?

[he knows Kim probably doesn't have the answers but still has to ask.]

Mr. Kim, if they get loose...

[voltadomar]

... A lot of people will die.

[magichammer]

[ Ulrika is in the wrong age group, so she can't see much of anything

but boy does she feel it. ]

W-what's happening? What's going on?

[ Albin, ever faithful ferret, snarls, even as he hides away in her pocket. bad vibes... ]

[voltadomar]

I don't know. It looks like smoke, but...

[But he wouldn't be going for his gun if he thought it was smoke.]

[magichammer]

Smoke doesn't feel like that!

[ they're all in the Bad Place now ]

[trickedges]

[ Vosgetel is bristling, a mongoose chattering while caught between fear and fight, while he's just shifting his weight and getting ready to get the hell out of dodge if they need to. ]

It's- spectres, presumably, they match the description some have given. You can't see them? Some of the others said they could, even if it's faint.

[magichammer]

If I squint real hard, sure, but...

[ but what, is she supposed to just walk around squinting all the time now? ]

This is bad. No wonder all the adults left if they had to deal with a bunch of these.

[sponsoredby]

[ He's been a ball of tense, angry energy here and it's obvious with his tiger bristling and looking for any way to intervene that he's barely holding back by a thread. ]

What the hell are those?

[ Watching those eerie things filter into the ring. ]

[voltadomar]

I don't know. Spectres?

[His stance is rigid. He hisses something under his breath -- definitely a curse.]

[sponsoredby]

Why are they showing up now?

[ This is just making the situation worse. And he's starting to head toward the action, not away. Who runs away in the face of danger? ]