Encounterlogs
Ritsukas Odd Encounter Sr Syl 241102
On a calm evening at Biolabs Pharmaceuticals, an unsettling event unfolds involving a possessed man, a determined woman named Ritsuka, and other bystanders. Ritsuka, finding herself in the midst of preparing for a heist, decides to visit the pharmacy she is a part of. Upon her arrival, she encounters a commotion caused by the possessed man, displaying erratic and aggressive behavior. A woman named Jiae with a deep understanding of the supernatural correctly identifies the man as being under the influence of a vengeful spirit. Ritsuka decides to handle the situation, attempting to communicate with the entity possessing the man. When the situation escalates, with the spirit showing anger and confusion through its host, Ritsuka takes physical action to subdue the man while Jiae prepares a ritual to banish the intrusive spirit.
The climax of the incident involves Jiae performing a ritual using her own blood, which successfully banishes the spirit but leaves her unconscious due to the life force drained. Ritsuka calls for backup, and Lucienne arrives with support from the Order to take care of the aftermath. Meanwhile, bystanders Emily and William find themselves entangled in the chaos, with Emily stepping in to assist and William suffering from feeding sickness, highlighting the physical toll of supernatural encounters. In the end, Ritsuka decides to take Jiae home instead of to the hospital and vanishes with her, ensuring her safety. The mysterious Order assists with cleaning up the scene, emphasizing the complexity and danger of engaging with the supernatural in Haven City.
(Ritsuka's odd encounter(SRSyl):SRSyl)
[Fri Nov 1 2024]
In an Entrance Hall and Kitchen
The entrance to the shrine home is simple and elegant. The entrance is made up out of a smooth stone floor at the genkan, the traditional Japanese entryway. A small, neatly arranged rack holds different pairs of women oriented shoes, while a low wooden bench offers a place to sit and remove footwear before stepping up onto the polished wooden floors of the main home. Above, an overhead beam made from dark cedar wood bears hand-carved motifs of swirling clouds and sacred cranes, symbols of longevity and protection.
To the side, the kitchen area appears to be both functional and minimalist. A simple wooden counter, free of clutter, holds carefully arranged utensils and a ceramic tea set. A black iron kettle sits atop a traditional stove. Small shelves on the wall display earthenware jars containing rice, miso, and other essentials, each jar decorated with intricate calligraphy.
It is dusk, about 59F(15C) degrees,
(Your target is possessed by an angry spirit that is forcing them to act out and putting themselves and/or others at risk. They must either defeat it or find a way to calm it down.
)
Ritsuka is in the middle of her home today. She had put on a nice outfit and moved herself to the kitchen, in the middle of putting on a white wool coat. There is a little stretch that she does, and a satisfying noise that leaves from her. She breathes in deeply and glances around the room, which also happens to be a shrine to the cult she is a part of. "Alright, I think I have about two hours before I need to be ready for the heist. I should probably visit the pharmacy for a little while. Check in and make sure everything is working well for staff, see if there is anything they need."
Ritsuka takes on her keys, and steps out of her home. She secures the door behind herself and then steps on over towards the side of the street, and takes up her sports bike after putting on the helmet and making sure the coat is secured shut. And then the drive into Haven properly. She does bring her sportsbike to a stop outside, on a parking spot and then right makes her way into the building itself. "Konichiwha everyone-" The greetings are idle and fleeting, and there is inquiries to how people are doing and if everything is going well at the pharmacy.
Jiae lingers in an isle of over the counter-medication, one hand wrapped in a dirty red shirt, the other vibrating something in a fist. She stares at the long rows, the rival colors of sold health, the competing, the clashing, lost in the complexity of choice. A few beads of sweat coat her brow, and her ears register, faintly, the sound of clacking heels.
Biolabs Pharmaceuticals is just off of Deadwood Street, parallel to the edge of Badwater Park and Temple Steel. The glow of old street lights spills onto the pavement, illuminating the smooth asphalt roads bordered by well-maintained concrete sidewalks. Small median islands with twisted old trees appear where the street widens, adding a quaint charm to the well-kept buildings lining the street. It's after dusk, getting cool, though not cold, and a waxing crescent moon hangs in the sky.
A wheelchair-friendly path of stone slabs leads across a freshly cut lawn to the glass front doors. The scent of grass mingles with fragrances from the pharmacy gardens on either side. The building has a slate gray faade, straightforward and unadorned, with a sign above the doors that lights up at night.
Entering the pharmacy, the scent of isopropyl alcohol greets you. Pristine white tile floors reflect the fluorescent lights overhead, casting everything in their true hues. A pair of chimes resembling icicles hang by the door, tinkling softly as you pass. The aisles are filled with supplements and over-the-counter medications, all clearly labeled with large letters for easy navigation. Ahead, the prescription counter is manned by a small team of pharmacists.
Yet there is one oddity that might call attention to itself. There is a man, a large and hulking man, nearly six foot two with muscles that are thick like logs. He is an aisle, staring at pain killers, when he suddenly lashes out. Black haired and bellowing as his only warning he swipes his arm across the shelf, sending bottles and boxes crashing to the floor. The sound echoes sharply in the otherwise quiet store.
is updating the room description
Jiae watches the movement with a tilt of her head, a stray Tylenol rectangle sliding to hit her shoe. She glares at its nerve, but looks up pleasantly to the man. Then, blinking, she sobers and takes a hesitant step backward- trying not to call more attention to herself than the moment deserves.
Jiae says, whispered, "Shit."
Ritsuka glances up from her quiet conversation with the staff at the OTC department, and then over, towards where there now lies many of the bottles crashed to the floor. The corners of her lips turn a hue downwards, controlled, but it is still there. She gives the other staff a glance, and it's enough to communicate to leave this to her. Her attention is drawn towards this singular figure and so, both Emily and Jiae go unnoticed by her for the time being. "I apologize mister, but is everything alright? Do you require medical attention? I could take a look over you for a moment, I am trained." Of course, it is not entirely as it seems. She places a hand at her side, under her coat, across her sternum placing a hand close to a weapon she conceals. Though her eyes then do come to narrow then.
New arrivals, please provide emotes of your arrival or what you were doing in the store.
Emily walks into the pharmacy, eyes glued to her phone, barely looking up from it and not quite registering the mess at first as she takes her spot in the queue - but only for a moment before she is stealthily trying to cut in front of a man to get just a little closer to the counter.
with far more impetus, Jiae reaches for her pocket- where nothing her wince speaks of nothing valuable residing. She swallows, arms raising in a cessation of conflict- or a near attempt to dodge one. She glances to Ritsuka, then lingers it. The beautiful are aware, they have to be. "He is posses- He is taken by ghost."
Jiae's somewhat on-the-nose grant of information, that lands less on the tip and more in a nostril, ears a sigh from her as she continues to step away.
After a black car parks close by, outside the pharmacy, William comes out of it. Looking to both sides of the street for a good couple seconds. Not seeing anyone around, presumably since they all were inside. He waits and waits there, giving a curious and half rushed look towards his phone every couple seconds "She told me to come here..." He mutters to himself, not that anyone could probably hear him where he was.
Another minute passes and he simply sighs, texting something real quick, before resigning himself to look around the place. His face one of visible exhaustion, as if the man hadn't slept in days. The usual curiosity in the eyes of William substituted by an expression that screams 'tired'. Shoulders slacking and hands almost limping to his sides as he drags himself inside the store, remaining by the entrance while he watches whatever was going on around in order to assess if his sister had truly called him here or there was a change of plans
The man was big, strong. His face, a mask of rage, scowling. Yet as he turns toward the sound of Ritsuka speaking his gaze doesn't actually move all the way to her. For some reason, the man pauses. Anger is replaced by something closer to confusion as he gazes upon Jiae. Then his scowl is returning. "You," SRSyl accuses. Then he is lifting a hand, shoving a finger violently toward Jiae as if to stab it into her chest. There is confidence and fury in his voice as he accuses. "You were there. You were one of them." The black haired and brown eyed man looms over the tiny woman, intent on her, seemingly. His voice is loud enough that what few customers are nearby are shying away. While he's speaking the things he knocked to the floor on the aisle are still skittering and sliding only now coming to a full complete stop for those little bottles of tylenol which had rolled and rattled.
Scared people at the counter are nodding at Ritsuka, letting her handle things. The distraction of it all is enough that the man that Emily tried to cut past is completely distracted, not noticing her action in the slightest as he is intent on the enraged man. Yet with how big the man is, no one save for Ritsuka seems eager to get into his path.
The figure of Jiae, to anyone in the lobby, can now be seen at the corner-end of the isle. She wets her lips, look up at the man with her legs tensed, slowly falling back into a stance that rests on her back foot. "You are angry.." she begins slowly, trying calm, but resulting in careless as any emotion fails to find its way through her mouth, "...You need to be in grave."
"In grave.. Instead" Jiae adds helpfully.
Emily looks up from her phone, a mumbled: "What the fuck is goin' on here?", her lips, looking more annoyed that scared as she glances over the man, her brow furrowing. "What's the fuckin' holdup?", her glance brushes over the customers before it settles on the man again, takign a step towards him. "The FUCK is ya problem?"
"A Yurei," Ritsuka quietly mutters in a different language, by the sounds of it Japanese for those more familiar. Her tone is slightly higher pitched and it is not loud enough to be easily understood. "Probably an Onryo, could try to communicate with its source of rage and see if it allows it to pass on. But it could also just plain be an evil Onryo." There is the slightest shake of her head. She did not turn to Jiae on the caution voiced, and when she looks to the figure, her eyes are not directly on the man's face, not quite, but she does remove her hand from her side, her steps stably in her heels, and her gaze remains on the entity.
"I have seen, noticed you, mister, and ask to speak plainly on what has you filled with so much rage that freedom evades you," Ritsuka then asks, in English again. "Don't know the lady you speak to, but you say she was there- why?" She asks, though she had yet to look at Jiae, be it for caution or otherwise.
Jiae hears a familiar voice, but doesn't move her eyes away to confirm it. Instead, she continues her retreat, readying to dive back.
Jiae says "You waiting for him to attack? You Other or something?"
Jiae's voice, directed at the man looming in front of her, indicates no suggestion it's mean for anyone else. Given its tone, she may have even insulted him.
William looks dismissive at first of the noise going on, only trying to spot a particularly small, teal-haired gremlin that might be either roaming around or hiding from the plain sight of distracted people- But he doesn't really find anything like that, letting out a deep sigh from the top of his lungs that has his torso slide a bit forward, back bending.
And in this state of annoyance mixed in with exhaustion, his eyes are nudged towards whatever mess was going on close to the counter. Taking a second to register all of the figures there. Scared and altered costumers- Some large angry man, that seemed to be the cause of the disturbance around him- Then Emily, to which he takes a slight expression of disdain- And then Jiae, speaking something that he seems to assume is just another poor translation of Korean into English. Finally there's Ritsuka, trying to take ahold of the situation and calm everyone down.
There's another low voiced, guttural sigh coming from William, taking a couple steps towards the whole scene, if Emily and Jiae were around, it was indeed where the tiny mischief maker had prompted him to go, because he was apparently needed despite being sick "What is going on?" Comes out of his mouth, annoyed and tired, probably hitting them with the most basic and generic of sentences with a perked eyebrow
Jiae makes, possibly, a mistake in turning around to see William.
The man, in his anger, is suddenly blinking, looking at his own hand in some confusion at how is it is raised and pointing. Like he isn't quite sure why it was there. His eyes trail along the floor noticing the things he knocked over. There is fear on his face a moment later. Worry and terror at the strangeness of what is happening to him. "W-what?" He asks. "Am I sick?" To some it might seem as if the man's angry fit has subsided briefly without warning and without apparent explanation. Hearing someone asking him what his problem is, Emily he turns, looking at her with a troubled, worried expression on his face. "Huh?
It's cold in the pharmacy. It typically is, but right now it's colder than usual. Frost is tickling at the glass as the temperature slowly drops due to the spirit's presence. The air in front of each person is cold enough that breath is misting out rather than remaining invisible. private Jiae You feel a strength from that cold. Bolstered by it."
The man, in his anger, is suddenly blinking, looking at his own hand in some confusion at how is it is raised and pointing. Like he isn't quite sure why it was there. His eyes trail along the floor noticing the things he knocked over. There is fear on his face a moment later. Worry and terror at the strangeness of what is happening to him. "W-what?" He asks. "Am I sick?" To some it might seem as if the man's angry fit has subsided briefly without warning and without apparent explanation. Hearing someone asking him what his problem is, Emily he turns, looking at her with a troubled, worried expression on his face. "Huh?
It's cold in the pharmacy. It typically is, but right now it's colder than usual. Frost is tickling at the glass as the temperature slowly drops due to the spirit's presence. The air in front of each person is cold enough that breath is misting out rather than remaining invisible. (fixed)"
Emily turns her head towards William as well as she hears his voice, the look of disdain mirrored in her own eyes. "Fuckin' hell... teaches ya ta never say a day can't get worse...", she answers sarcastically, instinctively moving a step away from. "I have no fuckin' clue what is goin' on..." Her mood seems to be quite foul, a reflection of the impatience and annoyance in the expression of other customers.
Jiae skips back from the man, this, noticing another familiar face, rounds her eyes. "He is POSS-ESSED-" she hisses William, waving over Emily. She unwraps the partially white, partially blood-tiedye, shirt to reveal a series of recently infected cuts, the small shining of bits of glass reflecting like glitter.
Jiae says "Get that man eating pill or something- get him knock out, I need sharp thing to get rid of the thing."
Jiae, face lingering on William for a moment shoots over to an isle for scissors, the kind designed to cut bandages.
Emily recoils a little and rolls her eyes. "God... you are fuckin' insane and you are useless...", she glances at William. "How about ya two go an'... I don't know... fuckin' kiss in a corner..." With that she steps closer to the man, scrunches up her nose and raises her voice: "I don' know if ya are sick, but I know ya are holdin' up the line and makin' a fuckin' mess... so calm the hell down! And take your pills for ya psycotic... issues... or whatever..."
Emily recoils a little and rolls her eyes at Jiae. "God... you are fuckin' insane and you are useless...", she glances at William. "How about ya two go an'... I don't know... fuckin' kiss in a corner..." With that she steps closer to the man, scrunches up her nose and raises her voice: "I don' know if ya are sick, but I know ya are holdin' up the line and makin' a fuckin' mess... so calm the hell down! And take your pills for ya psycotic... issues... or whatever..." --fix
Emily's eyes wander over to Ritsuka, a glint of recognition in her eyes, but she does not act on it, simply turning her gaze back to the man while pressing her lips together and hugging her arms to herself as goosebumps form on her exposed skin.
Oddly enough, the pharmacy staff are not surprised by any their breathe misting, and some of the more frequently visiting people do not either. Vaelys had once been known to them, though she has fallen silent now, and with it, people perhaps thought the air conditioning was fixed, never knowing entirely about whom had listened to them when she had wanted. "It is best to let it go." Ritsuka says, Her eyes linger vaguely on the man, more with a saddened look. "I can't understand you just yet. See, but not hear. Haven-city has nothing that should interest you anymore. I can guide you-" The next three words are very quiet again. "To the hereafter." A pause "If you let me."
William considers for a moment, promptly ignoring Emily's whole speech and instead focusing on Jiae with a perked eyebrow. He considers for a moment, and after that decides she is probably in the right, remembering to himself some talk he had earlier today. He moves towards the counter when Ritsuka speaks, tilting his head to a side at the statement, curious even. That response distracting him from the request to get something sharp or to knock down the angry man
Jiae pauses at William 's eyebrow, brokering a greater conversation. She turns to rip a pair of suture scissors from a blue-box packaging, but when she looks back he's walking off.
William glances at Jiae, before looking between the man and Ritsuka He remains put in place before walking closer to the Korean woman, lowering his voice to whisper something to her
There are people watching the scene. It's public in that aisle and although the man isn't in a line it is true that he is holding up the line. People are gawking. Yet more and more as they realized the three girls aren't being assaulted by the massive man people are starting to relax. Less attention by the moment. That doesn't mean they aren't watching, but it's not the riveted attention of someone who can't figure out or place the events. It's the more guilty, trying to watch without trying to watch for some when there is something worth paying attention to but one might worry they are rude by doing so. The staff at least are now fully over it, perhaps because dealing with so many people locally who have issues because of the nearby asylum they are used to such oddities occurring from time to time. It's easy for people to come up with some excuse for why this is happening: a sick man, knocking things over. Or maybe the girl had done it and that was why the man was pointing at her while saying you as loudly as he was.
The man starts to move, but this time his motions are erratic. Like he can't quite move them as he wishes to. Struggling. Arm raising, but then freezing up. Someone more familiar with Haven might recognize it as someone attempting to take an action which would break Sanctuary. He is trying to kill. Or one might also guess that it is merely a person possessed struggling against the being that is controlling them.
Jiae looks up, teeth clamped around the side of a second, annoying plastic container that shields the scissors from her grasp. She stops biting it, covering her face with a hand to regain decency from a meal.
Jerkily, limbs shaking and face moving more and more back from confusion toward rage, the hulking man rounds on the small woman talking to the air near him. He takes a stumbling step toward Ritsuka.
The moment that the man starts to move in a manner that's especially threatening, it is no longer the patient stillness that there was before, Ritsuka reaches for the man's arm, and at first reflexively, and then purposefully attempts to grapple the man, to pin, and then to knock out. She is quick, and there is no kindness or compassion in her eyes now, just something very very cold.
Emily sighs a little, not seeing more than a lunatic in the scene like most of the onlookers do. A glance at her phone again. "Fuckin' hell", she curses under her breath yet again, talking to no one in particular other than herself as she watches Ritsuka take on the man, body tensing and a somewhat indecisive look affixed to them.
William tilts his head towards Jiae in confusion, like he didn't understand whatever she was whispering to him. Only keeping track of the huge man with the corner of his eye as he walks towards Ritsuka. Though when she is the one to take the first movement, his head turns in her direction, eyebrow perking, though there's not much surprise in his face besides that.
He glances around towards the rest of the store, the people around just being bystanders watching everything unfold, and he even considers Emily as one of them
Emily is indeed little more than a bystander, her arms still crossed and her gaze on the fighting couple, occasionally glancing to Jiae or William
Jiae holds the scissors in a fist grip, eye'ing William insistently with rounded brows.
Jiae grimaces.
Jiae probably isn't gossiping in the aisle, given the wide range of brows and finger points towards William. She sits between a crouch and a stand, starting to move, stopping to whisper, then starting again.
Emily moves closer to Jiae and William as she watches the events unfold, as if wanting to listen in on them.
William gives Jiae a little nod, his expression unbothered in contrast to hers, there's maybe even a bit of a hateful note being the stare, now, what elicited it, he did not disclose it out loud. The whispering continues, but he does step closer to Ritsuka and the man, though, in the condition he's in, it doesn't seem like he'll be of much help, he probably looks like he could be knocked to the ground by a gust of wind
Jiae waves in Emily as she stands. "That lady playing with food I guess, keep it away if it gets up?" She raises the sleeve on her arm, and looks at the unmarred flesh with red dread.
There is a thing someone expects when they see a large man, hulking and with arms like timber moving to grab a woman Ritsuka's size or any woman for that matter. Anger, fury. Even with the shaky quality to him, it looks from the outside like a farce. And yet, as the man sends a blow toward Ritsuka and they both grab each other's arms things take a decidedly odd turn for those watching. The man bellows, heaves with all his strength, and... Ritsuka is pushing the man back, throwing him down to the tile floor. The exertion on his face tells a story of rage lending impetus as tries to heave himself up even as she moves to keep him down. It isn't enough. Oh, he pushes back ever so slightly; and a stray foot kicks the shelving in his thrashing with enough force to set it rocking and to send yet more medicine spilling and crackling into the aisle. But it isn't enough to avoid getting pinned down.
Around the store those who were previously tuning out what was happening are once more engaged, looking toward the sight. There isn't as much to see now. The aisle being what they are, the angles aren't quite right to see a man on the floor. He had been visible earlier because of his hulking size, but not now. Not while tackled.
Time hasn't stood still as William and Jiae have been whispering to each other. So as the struggle goes on Ritsuka gains advantage further. The thwack of her fist slamming into the man's head is met with a brief instant of awareness coming back to him. Confusion. Worry. Then - BAM - lights out for the big man, one moment awake, the next his entire body slumping.
The soft lights of the store continue. The rattling of the bottles of medicine rolling echo out. Some come to a stop against Ritsuka. Others continue on to bump into Emily.
Jiae says, calling out, "You going to remove spirit or am I?"
"Did he knock over alcohol too?" A pharmacist without a good view asks. He lifts himself up a bit trying to get a good view, looking like he might come closer. Some people -- apparently not Jiae -- know to deflect from the fact that something supernatural is happening and as one of the workers there the pharmacist is no stranger to the impication of the misting breath and the oppressive cold that has stolen over the place due to the presence of the angry spirit that had been within the hulking and now quite unconscious man.
The soft pop of flesh, like a chewing noise, stutters weakly as Jiae rolls up her sleeve and saws up an eighth of length along her upper forearm. She whimpers quietly, almost pitifully, falling to her knees and beginning to draw a wide circle in the current of blood going down her arm.
Ritsuka rises up to her feet, she hears the voice, the question and she does answer "Go ahead." Two very simple words as she stares off somewhere into space, at something, that only seems so visible to herself. Those looking at her can see that her eyes have grown cold and detached, apathetic. Tense still, but tight. She then does add, turning to her staff "Can you get a Diazepam injection from upstairs? Let's get the man to calm down for when he wakes up." Then, she does, finally, glance around the shop, and looks to Jiae. Her eyes do linger a good moment.
Jiae begins a glyph. Circular in full patern, drawing a cross from width to length. She pants slightly, more from the sense of loss in her arm than the activity causing her some manner effort. It is a process that will take time.
Emily grows pale as she sees the blood, muttering "fuckin' hell..." under her breath. She quickly turns away not to have to see it and marches down the aisle to its very end, crossing her arms and telling any customers trying to get closer: "Aisle's closed...", as if she were staff here and not wearing a dorky elf costume that marks her as having come from the Sleepy Dragon Inn.
An unusual sight, an inappropriate sight for such a public place, begins to take shape on the tiles. Under the soft lights showing the true hues, spread out in the blood of someone, a circle begins taking shape. There are people in the store. Attention on the area. Yet the blood is already dripping as the seemingly crazed woman begins enacting something far more appropriate to a private place. There are, of course, people in the store. Some of them, likely, unaware. Its a fragile moment. The store has settled slightly, but all it would take to set things off again was someone to round the corner, look into the aisle and notice the circle of blood taking shape in a public place to realize that things were well away from the reasonable norms.
An unusual sight, an inappropriate sight for such a public place, begins to take shape on the tiles. Under the soft lights showing the true hues, spread out in the blood of Jiae, a circle begins taking shape. There are people in the store. Attention on the area. Yet the blood is already dripping as the seemingly crazed woman begins enacting something far more appropriate to a private place. There are, of course, people in the store. Some of them, likely, unaware. Its a fragile moment. The store has settled slightly, but all it would take to set things off again was someone to round the corner, look into the aisle and notice the circle of blood taking shape in a public place to realize that things were well away from the reasonable norms.
Jiae in casting the ritual actually cast a ritual just now rather than RPing; she had low life force and has fallen unconscious as a result. Given this we will proceed as if the ritual has concluded successfully, banishing the spirit, but in the process, someone has fallen unconscious.
Jiae in casting the ritual actually cast a ritual just now rather than RPing; she had low life force and has fallen unconscious as a result. Given this we will proceed as if the ritual has concluded successfully, banishing the spirit, but in the process, Jiae has fallen unconscious.
William watches as the man goes out cold, and as Jiae begins drawing the circle with blood in the ground. His gaze moving towards the other customers and pharmacy staff the moment he stops to think what the whole symbol might look like on the outside. He wasn't on his best state, or with his best judgment, his mind was just as tired as his body was.
His hand is driven to his forehead as he bends slightly, groaning to himself before moving to do exactly the same thing that Emily was doing, encouraging the people outside, trying to get it as empty as possible, muttering to himself, rather than to the rest of people around "Now do whatever it is before the cops arrive..."
Ritsuka reaches around for her communicator, and she just straight up speaks into it, her tone, just a touch more quiet- and then decides against what it was that she was going to do. She quickly paces over to Jiae and kneels down besides the woman. Her hand quickly reaches for the neck, placing two fingers somewhat at the side to see if she has a pulse.
Emily glances over to William as he helps her empty the aisle and stifles a sarcastic remark as she sees him slump to the floor, simply bending down to offer her hand to him, albeit rolling her eyes a little.
William reaches for his head again, another groan, this time more pained. His legs seem to shake for a brief moment before he slumps forward, his knees meeting the ground while he still was trying to get people to leave- His breathing growing heavier, more ragged, legs clearly weak, only his arms having prevented his face from meeting the ground, and even those presenting some shakiness to them
Emily and William are guards against people noticing what is happening. Or at least Emily is. Her words push away customers easily throughout the ritual and still after. Yet the other side of the store has William providing a different sort of distraction. When a customer passes by as if to move that way and William tries to block him, the weakness of his feeding sickness strikes him. "What do you mean I can't go this way," a middle aged woman says. "Its just..." And then she is falling silent and looking quite horrified aa William collapses to his knees. She bends down. Thankfully the fact that William is now collapsed is drawing attention from the bloody floor.
Spirit now banished, its the aftermath that is the biggest issue. Three people each in states of distress: William on his knees with feeding sickness, Jiae having given too much of herself to the ritual, and then there was the original victim. Beyond that, there is the burnt out ashes of blood the ritual had left behind.
Making sure that Jiae is breathing, too, Ritsuka withdraws her hand and then does reach for her phone and calls a number. "Lucienne, I have a bit of a situation at the pharmacy. Mind coming to help clean up? Some might need to be kept under the Crown." She explains, looking worriedly at Jiae, and then glances over to William, to whom her eyes grow more analytical with. "Two need a move to the clinic, anyone you can send to help?"
For future reference to anyone with ritualism, the spirit you see here is me; do not attempt to banish me. It is apparently not at all healthy for you.
William slowly gathers the strength to get one of his knees off the floor, putting his foot down while he tries to still his breathing, though it is admittedly still quite loud and heavy, more than a healthy person should be. The hand from Emily is unnoticed, and so is any attention from the bystanders- What gets his attention though is the little he listens to from Ritsuka, barely hearing it really, not even getting the full meaning or the complete picture of the conversation, but he manages to say "I'm good- I just need to rest at home... No clinic for me" He forces himself to put the other foot on the ground once again, standing up slowly, shakily, almost to an extent that is painful to watch, and with a stance that seems like he's about to crumble back to the floor any moment. Definitely not a good sign for someone who got here driving, a danger on the road.
Emily having apparently already abandoned her post at the other end of the aisle to try and help up William sighs as her hand is ignored or not even noticed and after some hesitation tries to grab his arm to support him.
It takes some time, but soon enough aid begins to arrive. One of the is a woman in a dark suit. Standing at 5'9", she cuts an imposing figure, accentuated by the tailored elegance of her attire. Her clothing carries a faintly Victorian influence, with dark, muted colors that exude sophistication. The perfectly fitted suit drapes around her slender frame with an air of timeless grace, emphasizing her pale skin and the dark fall of her long brown hair. Finely detailed lapels and understated buttons complete the look, giving her an aura of composed authority. Piercing gray eyes survey everything around her, taking in details that might escape others' notice, yet her expression remains unreadable. Trailing after her are men and women from the Order as well as ambulances. Haven is not stranger to the paranormal. Unlike the others dissuaded by Emily and William she brushes past the two. She walks to Ritsuka as Orderites trail in behind her and begin the cleanup. "
// We're wrapping up and those outside Jiae are welcome to leave as the Orderites now begin handling things.
Ritsuka smiles to seeing the woman, it is a friendly kind of smile and a familiar one. "Thank you for coming, Lucienne," she says, making to dip her head, of course. "Just an oni ghost possession, the girl here banished it, but paid a little bit much with it to do it instantly. It was trying to flee, so it must have costed her tremendously. Best we set her in into the hospital for a day, I'll visit her tomorrow and check in on her and I'll figure out the rest with her after that."
William finds some support not offered to him but instead forced upon himself, he goes to complain, but his body right now is in no condition to fight against it. Turning his head slowly to find it's Emily doing it, and with something in between a scoff and a huff remarking "I'm good... I don't need help... I'm just tired, is all" His eyes glancing at the arriving orderites and at the woman talking to Ritsuka with a moment of consideration. One last thoughtful look at Jiae before assessing his own situation and almost sighing out "I need to get to my car... And home..."
"Instantly?" Lucienne gives the comatose woman a second glance. "Yes, best we do." She glances also toward the remnants of the blood circle, now ashed. "Zealous in her commitment to stopping the Oni."
Lucienne looks back to Ritsuka. "It's a good thing you were here. I'd hate to imagine what might have happened to her if you weren't."
Emily glances back at Ritsuka and Jiae as well and seems satisfied that the situation is being handled. "Yeah, maybe ya are goond on ya knees...", she answers sarcastically, trying to keep William supported. "But you are in no fuckin' condition to walk, let alone drive... an' now move it...."
One of the Orderites, recognizing the weakness in William for what it is, comments, loudly enough for those near to hear. "Feeding sickness. Another one of them, taking things too far." There is a grudging anger in his tone. "Don't worry. We're here to help."
Ritsuka says "I'll bring her over to the hospital- Actually. I'll bring her home. I- can't do much for her today, I need to be somewhere- twenty-two minutes ago, and I will need to get the locks set up for her. "
Ritsuka does give a look to the Orderite neat William, and if they notice it, she makes to make a brief nod, but that is it.
William groans at Emily, rolling his eyes slightly before pointing towards his black car outside, his finger slightly crooked and the arm not entirely lifted up, more like hanging from where it should be "You drive then... I'm not leaving it here..."
Orderites take the man Ritsuka knocked unconscious away on a stretcher to receive medical aid at the hospital.
Ritsuka crouches down to grasp Jiae into her arms, carrying her, and for her stature - well, those that know understand, but she should not be able to carry someone with such ease with her build- and then. She makes a nod to Lucienne and she walks, steps, shadows take up a corner of the store, and there is brief, golden hue that begins to surround her as she disappears with Jiae, leaving everything else behind to be caught up on, later. For now that is.
Emily groans, perfect echo to William's. "Hell...", she curses under her breath, but continues, "...fine... hand over ya fuckin' key and any scratch was already there BEFORE..." She starts to move to the exit and further to the car, one arm under William's shoulder and the other grabbing his arm to place it over her own shoulder for support.
The climax of the incident involves Jiae performing a ritual using her own blood, which successfully banishes the spirit but leaves her unconscious due to the life force drained. Ritsuka calls for backup, and Lucienne arrives with support from the Order to take care of the aftermath. Meanwhile, bystanders Emily and William find themselves entangled in the chaos, with Emily stepping in to assist and William suffering from feeding sickness, highlighting the physical toll of supernatural encounters. In the end, Ritsuka decides to take Jiae home instead of to the hospital and vanishes with her, ensuring her safety. The mysterious Order assists with cleaning up the scene, emphasizing the complexity and danger of engaging with the supernatural in Haven City.
(Ritsuka's odd encounter(SRSyl):SRSyl)
[Fri Nov 1 2024]
In an Entrance Hall and Kitchen
The entrance to the shrine home is simple and elegant. The entrance is made up out of a smooth stone floor at the genkan, the traditional Japanese entryway. A small, neatly arranged rack holds different pairs of women oriented shoes, while a low wooden bench offers a place to sit and remove footwear before stepping up onto the polished wooden floors of the main home. Above, an overhead beam made from dark cedar wood bears hand-carved motifs of swirling clouds and sacred cranes, symbols of longevity and protection.
To the side, the kitchen area appears to be both functional and minimalist. A simple wooden counter, free of clutter, holds carefully arranged utensils and a ceramic tea set. A black iron kettle sits atop a traditional stove. Small shelves on the wall display earthenware jars containing rice, miso, and other essentials, each jar decorated with intricate calligraphy.
It is dusk, about 59F(15C) degrees,
(Your target is possessed by an angry spirit that is forcing them to act out and putting themselves and/or others at risk. They must either defeat it or find a way to calm it down.
)
Ritsuka is in the middle of her home today. She had put on a nice outfit and moved herself to the kitchen, in the middle of putting on a white wool coat. There is a little stretch that she does, and a satisfying noise that leaves from her. She breathes in deeply and glances around the room, which also happens to be a shrine to the cult she is a part of. "Alright, I think I have about two hours before I need to be ready for the heist. I should probably visit the pharmacy for a little while. Check in and make sure everything is working well for staff, see if there is anything they need."
Ritsuka takes on her keys, and steps out of her home. She secures the door behind herself and then steps on over towards the side of the street, and takes up her sports bike after putting on the helmet and making sure the coat is secured shut. And then the drive into Haven properly. She does bring her sportsbike to a stop outside, on a parking spot and then right makes her way into the building itself. "Konichiwha everyone-" The greetings are idle and fleeting, and there is inquiries to how people are doing and if everything is going well at the pharmacy.
Jiae lingers in an isle of over the counter-medication, one hand wrapped in a dirty red shirt, the other vibrating something in a fist. She stares at the long rows, the rival colors of sold health, the competing, the clashing, lost in the complexity of choice. A few beads of sweat coat her brow, and her ears register, faintly, the sound of clacking heels.
Biolabs Pharmaceuticals is just off of Deadwood Street, parallel to the edge of Badwater Park and Temple Steel. The glow of old street lights spills onto the pavement, illuminating the smooth asphalt roads bordered by well-maintained concrete sidewalks. Small median islands with twisted old trees appear where the street widens, adding a quaint charm to the well-kept buildings lining the street. It's after dusk, getting cool, though not cold, and a waxing crescent moon hangs in the sky.
A wheelchair-friendly path of stone slabs leads across a freshly cut lawn to the glass front doors. The scent of grass mingles with fragrances from the pharmacy gardens on either side. The building has a slate gray faade, straightforward and unadorned, with a sign above the doors that lights up at night.
Entering the pharmacy, the scent of isopropyl alcohol greets you. Pristine white tile floors reflect the fluorescent lights overhead, casting everything in their true hues. A pair of chimes resembling icicles hang by the door, tinkling softly as you pass. The aisles are filled with supplements and over-the-counter medications, all clearly labeled with large letters for easy navigation. Ahead, the prescription counter is manned by a small team of pharmacists.
Yet there is one oddity that might call attention to itself. There is a man, a large and hulking man, nearly six foot two with muscles that are thick like logs. He is an aisle, staring at pain killers, when he suddenly lashes out. Black haired and bellowing as his only warning he swipes his arm across the shelf, sending bottles and boxes crashing to the floor. The sound echoes sharply in the otherwise quiet store.
is updating the room description
Jiae watches the movement with a tilt of her head, a stray Tylenol rectangle sliding to hit her shoe. She glares at its nerve, but looks up pleasantly to the man. Then, blinking, she sobers and takes a hesitant step backward- trying not to call more attention to herself than the moment deserves.
Jiae says, whispered, "Shit."
Ritsuka glances up from her quiet conversation with the staff at the OTC department, and then over, towards where there now lies many of the bottles crashed to the floor. The corners of her lips turn a hue downwards, controlled, but it is still there. She gives the other staff a glance, and it's enough to communicate to leave this to her. Her attention is drawn towards this singular figure and so, both Emily and Jiae go unnoticed by her for the time being. "I apologize mister, but is everything alright? Do you require medical attention? I could take a look over you for a moment, I am trained." Of course, it is not entirely as it seems. She places a hand at her side, under her coat, across her sternum placing a hand close to a weapon she conceals. Though her eyes then do come to narrow then.
New arrivals, please provide emotes of your arrival or what you were doing in the store.
Emily walks into the pharmacy, eyes glued to her phone, barely looking up from it and not quite registering the mess at first as she takes her spot in the queue - but only for a moment before she is stealthily trying to cut in front of a man to get just a little closer to the counter.
with far more impetus, Jiae reaches for her pocket- where nothing her wince speaks of nothing valuable residing. She swallows, arms raising in a cessation of conflict- or a near attempt to dodge one. She glances to Ritsuka, then lingers it. The beautiful are aware, they have to be. "He is posses- He is taken by ghost."
Jiae's somewhat on-the-nose grant of information, that lands less on the tip and more in a nostril, ears a sigh from her as she continues to step away.
After a black car parks close by, outside the pharmacy, William comes out of it. Looking to both sides of the street for a good couple seconds. Not seeing anyone around, presumably since they all were inside. He waits and waits there, giving a curious and half rushed look towards his phone every couple seconds "She told me to come here..." He mutters to himself, not that anyone could probably hear him where he was.
Another minute passes and he simply sighs, texting something real quick, before resigning himself to look around the place. His face one of visible exhaustion, as if the man hadn't slept in days. The usual curiosity in the eyes of William substituted by an expression that screams 'tired'. Shoulders slacking and hands almost limping to his sides as he drags himself inside the store, remaining by the entrance while he watches whatever was going on around in order to assess if his sister had truly called him here or there was a change of plans
The man was big, strong. His face, a mask of rage, scowling. Yet as he turns toward the sound of Ritsuka speaking his gaze doesn't actually move all the way to her. For some reason, the man pauses. Anger is replaced by something closer to confusion as he gazes upon Jiae. Then his scowl is returning. "You," SRSyl accuses. Then he is lifting a hand, shoving a finger violently toward Jiae as if to stab it into her chest. There is confidence and fury in his voice as he accuses. "You were there. You were one of them." The black haired and brown eyed man looms over the tiny woman, intent on her, seemingly. His voice is loud enough that what few customers are nearby are shying away. While he's speaking the things he knocked to the floor on the aisle are still skittering and sliding only now coming to a full complete stop for those little bottles of tylenol which had rolled and rattled.
Scared people at the counter are nodding at Ritsuka, letting her handle things. The distraction of it all is enough that the man that Emily tried to cut past is completely distracted, not noticing her action in the slightest as he is intent on the enraged man. Yet with how big the man is, no one save for Ritsuka seems eager to get into his path.
The figure of Jiae, to anyone in the lobby, can now be seen at the corner-end of the isle. She wets her lips, look up at the man with her legs tensed, slowly falling back into a stance that rests on her back foot. "You are angry.." she begins slowly, trying calm, but resulting in careless as any emotion fails to find its way through her mouth, "...You need to be in grave."
"In grave.. Instead" Jiae adds helpfully.
Emily looks up from her phone, a mumbled: "What the fuck is goin' on here?", her lips, looking more annoyed that scared as she glances over the man, her brow furrowing. "What's the fuckin' holdup?", her glance brushes over the customers before it settles on the man again, takign a step towards him. "The FUCK is ya problem?"
"A Yurei," Ritsuka quietly mutters in a different language, by the sounds of it Japanese for those more familiar. Her tone is slightly higher pitched and it is not loud enough to be easily understood. "Probably an Onryo, could try to communicate with its source of rage and see if it allows it to pass on. But it could also just plain be an evil Onryo." There is the slightest shake of her head. She did not turn to Jiae on the caution voiced, and when she looks to the figure, her eyes are not directly on the man's face, not quite, but she does remove her hand from her side, her steps stably in her heels, and her gaze remains on the entity.
"I have seen, noticed you, mister, and ask to speak plainly on what has you filled with so much rage that freedom evades you," Ritsuka then asks, in English again. "Don't know the lady you speak to, but you say she was there- why?" She asks, though she had yet to look at Jiae, be it for caution or otherwise.
Jiae hears a familiar voice, but doesn't move her eyes away to confirm it. Instead, she continues her retreat, readying to dive back.
Jiae says "You waiting for him to attack? You Other or something?"
Jiae's voice, directed at the man looming in front of her, indicates no suggestion it's mean for anyone else. Given its tone, she may have even insulted him.
William looks dismissive at first of the noise going on, only trying to spot a particularly small, teal-haired gremlin that might be either roaming around or hiding from the plain sight of distracted people- But he doesn't really find anything like that, letting out a deep sigh from the top of his lungs that has his torso slide a bit forward, back bending.
And in this state of annoyance mixed in with exhaustion, his eyes are nudged towards whatever mess was going on close to the counter. Taking a second to register all of the figures there. Scared and altered costumers- Some large angry man, that seemed to be the cause of the disturbance around him- Then Emily, to which he takes a slight expression of disdain- And then Jiae, speaking something that he seems to assume is just another poor translation of Korean into English. Finally there's Ritsuka, trying to take ahold of the situation and calm everyone down.
There's another low voiced, guttural sigh coming from William, taking a couple steps towards the whole scene, if Emily and Jiae were around, it was indeed where the tiny mischief maker had prompted him to go, because he was apparently needed despite being sick "What is going on?" Comes out of his mouth, annoyed and tired, probably hitting them with the most basic and generic of sentences with a perked eyebrow
Jiae makes, possibly, a mistake in turning around to see William.
The man, in his anger, is suddenly blinking, looking at his own hand in some confusion at how is it is raised and pointing. Like he isn't quite sure why it was there. His eyes trail along the floor noticing the things he knocked over. There is fear on his face a moment later. Worry and terror at the strangeness of what is happening to him. "W-what?" He asks. "Am I sick?" To some it might seem as if the man's angry fit has subsided briefly without warning and without apparent explanation. Hearing someone asking him what his problem is, Emily he turns, looking at her with a troubled, worried expression on his face. "Huh?
It's cold in the pharmacy. It typically is, but right now it's colder than usual. Frost is tickling at the glass as the temperature slowly drops due to the spirit's presence. The air in front of each person is cold enough that breath is misting out rather than remaining invisible. private Jiae You feel a strength from that cold. Bolstered by it."
The man, in his anger, is suddenly blinking, looking at his own hand in some confusion at how is it is raised and pointing. Like he isn't quite sure why it was there. His eyes trail along the floor noticing the things he knocked over. There is fear on his face a moment later. Worry and terror at the strangeness of what is happening to him. "W-what?" He asks. "Am I sick?" To some it might seem as if the man's angry fit has subsided briefly without warning and without apparent explanation. Hearing someone asking him what his problem is, Emily he turns, looking at her with a troubled, worried expression on his face. "Huh?
It's cold in the pharmacy. It typically is, but right now it's colder than usual. Frost is tickling at the glass as the temperature slowly drops due to the spirit's presence. The air in front of each person is cold enough that breath is misting out rather than remaining invisible. (fixed)"
Emily turns her head towards William as well as she hears his voice, the look of disdain mirrored in her own eyes. "Fuckin' hell... teaches ya ta never say a day can't get worse...", she answers sarcastically, instinctively moving a step away from. "I have no fuckin' clue what is goin' on..." Her mood seems to be quite foul, a reflection of the impatience and annoyance in the expression of other customers.
Jiae skips back from the man, this, noticing another familiar face, rounds her eyes. "He is POSS-ESSED-" she hisses William, waving over Emily. She unwraps the partially white, partially blood-tiedye, shirt to reveal a series of recently infected cuts, the small shining of bits of glass reflecting like glitter.
Jiae says "Get that man eating pill or something- get him knock out, I need sharp thing to get rid of the thing."
Jiae, face lingering on William for a moment shoots over to an isle for scissors, the kind designed to cut bandages.
Emily recoils a little and rolls her eyes. "God... you are fuckin' insane and you are useless...", she glances at William. "How about ya two go an'... I don't know... fuckin' kiss in a corner..." With that she steps closer to the man, scrunches up her nose and raises her voice: "I don' know if ya are sick, but I know ya are holdin' up the line and makin' a fuckin' mess... so calm the hell down! And take your pills for ya psycotic... issues... or whatever..."
Emily recoils a little and rolls her eyes at Jiae. "God... you are fuckin' insane and you are useless...", she glances at William. "How about ya two go an'... I don't know... fuckin' kiss in a corner..." With that she steps closer to the man, scrunches up her nose and raises her voice: "I don' know if ya are sick, but I know ya are holdin' up the line and makin' a fuckin' mess... so calm the hell down! And take your pills for ya psycotic... issues... or whatever..." --fix
Emily's eyes wander over to Ritsuka, a glint of recognition in her eyes, but she does not act on it, simply turning her gaze back to the man while pressing her lips together and hugging her arms to herself as goosebumps form on her exposed skin.
Oddly enough, the pharmacy staff are not surprised by any their breathe misting, and some of the more frequently visiting people do not either. Vaelys had once been known to them, though she has fallen silent now, and with it, people perhaps thought the air conditioning was fixed, never knowing entirely about whom had listened to them when she had wanted. "It is best to let it go." Ritsuka says, Her eyes linger vaguely on the man, more with a saddened look. "I can't understand you just yet. See, but not hear. Haven-city has nothing that should interest you anymore. I can guide you-" The next three words are very quiet again. "To the hereafter." A pause "If you let me."
William considers for a moment, promptly ignoring Emily's whole speech and instead focusing on Jiae with a perked eyebrow. He considers for a moment, and after that decides she is probably in the right, remembering to himself some talk he had earlier today. He moves towards the counter when Ritsuka speaks, tilting his head to a side at the statement, curious even. That response distracting him from the request to get something sharp or to knock down the angry man
Jiae pauses at William 's eyebrow, brokering a greater conversation. She turns to rip a pair of suture scissors from a blue-box packaging, but when she looks back he's walking off.
William glances at Jiae, before looking between the man and Ritsuka He remains put in place before walking closer to the Korean woman, lowering his voice to whisper something to her
There are people watching the scene. It's public in that aisle and although the man isn't in a line it is true that he is holding up the line. People are gawking. Yet more and more as they realized the three girls aren't being assaulted by the massive man people are starting to relax. Less attention by the moment. That doesn't mean they aren't watching, but it's not the riveted attention of someone who can't figure out or place the events. It's the more guilty, trying to watch without trying to watch for some when there is something worth paying attention to but one might worry they are rude by doing so. The staff at least are now fully over it, perhaps because dealing with so many people locally who have issues because of the nearby asylum they are used to such oddities occurring from time to time. It's easy for people to come up with some excuse for why this is happening: a sick man, knocking things over. Or maybe the girl had done it and that was why the man was pointing at her while saying you as loudly as he was.
The man starts to move, but this time his motions are erratic. Like he can't quite move them as he wishes to. Struggling. Arm raising, but then freezing up. Someone more familiar with Haven might recognize it as someone attempting to take an action which would break Sanctuary. He is trying to kill. Or one might also guess that it is merely a person possessed struggling against the being that is controlling them.
Jiae looks up, teeth clamped around the side of a second, annoying plastic container that shields the scissors from her grasp. She stops biting it, covering her face with a hand to regain decency from a meal.
Jerkily, limbs shaking and face moving more and more back from confusion toward rage, the hulking man rounds on the small woman talking to the air near him. He takes a stumbling step toward Ritsuka.
The moment that the man starts to move in a manner that's especially threatening, it is no longer the patient stillness that there was before, Ritsuka reaches for the man's arm, and at first reflexively, and then purposefully attempts to grapple the man, to pin, and then to knock out. She is quick, and there is no kindness or compassion in her eyes now, just something very very cold.
Emily sighs a little, not seeing more than a lunatic in the scene like most of the onlookers do. A glance at her phone again. "Fuckin' hell", she curses under her breath yet again, talking to no one in particular other than herself as she watches Ritsuka take on the man, body tensing and a somewhat indecisive look affixed to them.
William tilts his head towards Jiae in confusion, like he didn't understand whatever she was whispering to him. Only keeping track of the huge man with the corner of his eye as he walks towards Ritsuka. Though when she is the one to take the first movement, his head turns in her direction, eyebrow perking, though there's not much surprise in his face besides that.
He glances around towards the rest of the store, the people around just being bystanders watching everything unfold, and he even considers Emily as one of them
Emily is indeed little more than a bystander, her arms still crossed and her gaze on the fighting couple, occasionally glancing to Jiae or William
Jiae holds the scissors in a fist grip, eye'ing William insistently with rounded brows.
Jiae grimaces.
Jiae probably isn't gossiping in the aisle, given the wide range of brows and finger points towards William. She sits between a crouch and a stand, starting to move, stopping to whisper, then starting again.
Emily moves closer to Jiae and William as she watches the events unfold, as if wanting to listen in on them.
William gives Jiae a little nod, his expression unbothered in contrast to hers, there's maybe even a bit of a hateful note being the stare, now, what elicited it, he did not disclose it out loud. The whispering continues, but he does step closer to Ritsuka and the man, though, in the condition he's in, it doesn't seem like he'll be of much help, he probably looks like he could be knocked to the ground by a gust of wind
Jiae waves in Emily as she stands. "That lady playing with food I guess, keep it away if it gets up?" She raises the sleeve on her arm, and looks at the unmarred flesh with red dread.
There is a thing someone expects when they see a large man, hulking and with arms like timber moving to grab a woman Ritsuka's size or any woman for that matter. Anger, fury. Even with the shaky quality to him, it looks from the outside like a farce. And yet, as the man sends a blow toward Ritsuka and they both grab each other's arms things take a decidedly odd turn for those watching. The man bellows, heaves with all his strength, and... Ritsuka is pushing the man back, throwing him down to the tile floor. The exertion on his face tells a story of rage lending impetus as tries to heave himself up even as she moves to keep him down. It isn't enough. Oh, he pushes back ever so slightly; and a stray foot kicks the shelving in his thrashing with enough force to set it rocking and to send yet more medicine spilling and crackling into the aisle. But it isn't enough to avoid getting pinned down.
Around the store those who were previously tuning out what was happening are once more engaged, looking toward the sight. There isn't as much to see now. The aisle being what they are, the angles aren't quite right to see a man on the floor. He had been visible earlier because of his hulking size, but not now. Not while tackled.
Time hasn't stood still as William and Jiae have been whispering to each other. So as the struggle goes on Ritsuka gains advantage further. The thwack of her fist slamming into the man's head is met with a brief instant of awareness coming back to him. Confusion. Worry. Then - BAM - lights out for the big man, one moment awake, the next his entire body slumping.
The soft lights of the store continue. The rattling of the bottles of medicine rolling echo out. Some come to a stop against Ritsuka. Others continue on to bump into Emily.
Jiae says, calling out, "You going to remove spirit or am I?"
"Did he knock over alcohol too?" A pharmacist without a good view asks. He lifts himself up a bit trying to get a good view, looking like he might come closer. Some people -- apparently not Jiae -- know to deflect from the fact that something supernatural is happening and as one of the workers there the pharmacist is no stranger to the impication of the misting breath and the oppressive cold that has stolen over the place due to the presence of the angry spirit that had been within the hulking and now quite unconscious man.
The soft pop of flesh, like a chewing noise, stutters weakly as Jiae rolls up her sleeve and saws up an eighth of length along her upper forearm. She whimpers quietly, almost pitifully, falling to her knees and beginning to draw a wide circle in the current of blood going down her arm.
Ritsuka rises up to her feet, she hears the voice, the question and she does answer "Go ahead." Two very simple words as she stares off somewhere into space, at something, that only seems so visible to herself. Those looking at her can see that her eyes have grown cold and detached, apathetic. Tense still, but tight. She then does add, turning to her staff "Can you get a Diazepam injection from upstairs? Let's get the man to calm down for when he wakes up." Then, she does, finally, glance around the shop, and looks to Jiae. Her eyes do linger a good moment.
Jiae begins a glyph. Circular in full patern, drawing a cross from width to length. She pants slightly, more from the sense of loss in her arm than the activity causing her some manner effort. It is a process that will take time.
Emily grows pale as she sees the blood, muttering "fuckin' hell..." under her breath. She quickly turns away not to have to see it and marches down the aisle to its very end, crossing her arms and telling any customers trying to get closer: "Aisle's closed...", as if she were staff here and not wearing a dorky elf costume that marks her as having come from the Sleepy Dragon Inn.
An unusual sight, an inappropriate sight for such a public place, begins to take shape on the tiles. Under the soft lights showing the true hues, spread out in the blood of someone, a circle begins taking shape. There are people in the store. Attention on the area. Yet the blood is already dripping as the seemingly crazed woman begins enacting something far more appropriate to a private place. There are, of course, people in the store. Some of them, likely, unaware. Its a fragile moment. The store has settled slightly, but all it would take to set things off again was someone to round the corner, look into the aisle and notice the circle of blood taking shape in a public place to realize that things were well away from the reasonable norms.
An unusual sight, an inappropriate sight for such a public place, begins to take shape on the tiles. Under the soft lights showing the true hues, spread out in the blood of Jiae, a circle begins taking shape. There are people in the store. Attention on the area. Yet the blood is already dripping as the seemingly crazed woman begins enacting something far more appropriate to a private place. There are, of course, people in the store. Some of them, likely, unaware. Its a fragile moment. The store has settled slightly, but all it would take to set things off again was someone to round the corner, look into the aisle and notice the circle of blood taking shape in a public place to realize that things were well away from the reasonable norms.
Jiae in casting the ritual actually cast a ritual just now rather than RPing; she had low life force and has fallen unconscious as a result. Given this we will proceed as if the ritual has concluded successfully, banishing the spirit, but in the process, someone has fallen unconscious.
Jiae in casting the ritual actually cast a ritual just now rather than RPing; she had low life force and has fallen unconscious as a result. Given this we will proceed as if the ritual has concluded successfully, banishing the spirit, but in the process, Jiae has fallen unconscious.
William watches as the man goes out cold, and as Jiae begins drawing the circle with blood in the ground. His gaze moving towards the other customers and pharmacy staff the moment he stops to think what the whole symbol might look like on the outside. He wasn't on his best state, or with his best judgment, his mind was just as tired as his body was.
His hand is driven to his forehead as he bends slightly, groaning to himself before moving to do exactly the same thing that Emily was doing, encouraging the people outside, trying to get it as empty as possible, muttering to himself, rather than to the rest of people around "Now do whatever it is before the cops arrive..."
Ritsuka reaches around for her communicator, and she just straight up speaks into it, her tone, just a touch more quiet- and then decides against what it was that she was going to do. She quickly paces over to Jiae and kneels down besides the woman. Her hand quickly reaches for the neck, placing two fingers somewhat at the side to see if she has a pulse.
Emily glances over to William as he helps her empty the aisle and stifles a sarcastic remark as she sees him slump to the floor, simply bending down to offer her hand to him, albeit rolling her eyes a little.
William reaches for his head again, another groan, this time more pained. His legs seem to shake for a brief moment before he slumps forward, his knees meeting the ground while he still was trying to get people to leave- His breathing growing heavier, more ragged, legs clearly weak, only his arms having prevented his face from meeting the ground, and even those presenting some shakiness to them
Emily and William are guards against people noticing what is happening. Or at least Emily is. Her words push away customers easily throughout the ritual and still after. Yet the other side of the store has William providing a different sort of distraction. When a customer passes by as if to move that way and William tries to block him, the weakness of his feeding sickness strikes him. "What do you mean I can't go this way," a middle aged woman says. "Its just..." And then she is falling silent and looking quite horrified aa William collapses to his knees. She bends down. Thankfully the fact that William is now collapsed is drawing attention from the bloody floor.
Spirit now banished, its the aftermath that is the biggest issue. Three people each in states of distress: William on his knees with feeding sickness, Jiae having given too much of herself to the ritual, and then there was the original victim. Beyond that, there is the burnt out ashes of blood the ritual had left behind.
Making sure that Jiae is breathing, too, Ritsuka withdraws her hand and then does reach for her phone and calls a number. "Lucienne, I have a bit of a situation at the pharmacy. Mind coming to help clean up? Some might need to be kept under the Crown." She explains, looking worriedly at Jiae, and then glances over to William, to whom her eyes grow more analytical with. "Two need a move to the clinic, anyone you can send to help?"
For future reference to anyone with ritualism, the spirit you see here is me; do not attempt to banish me. It is apparently not at all healthy for you.
William slowly gathers the strength to get one of his knees off the floor, putting his foot down while he tries to still his breathing, though it is admittedly still quite loud and heavy, more than a healthy person should be. The hand from Emily is unnoticed, and so is any attention from the bystanders- What gets his attention though is the little he listens to from Ritsuka, barely hearing it really, not even getting the full meaning or the complete picture of the conversation, but he manages to say "I'm good- I just need to rest at home... No clinic for me" He forces himself to put the other foot on the ground once again, standing up slowly, shakily, almost to an extent that is painful to watch, and with a stance that seems like he's about to crumble back to the floor any moment. Definitely not a good sign for someone who got here driving, a danger on the road.
Emily having apparently already abandoned her post at the other end of the aisle to try and help up William sighs as her hand is ignored or not even noticed and after some hesitation tries to grab his arm to support him.
It takes some time, but soon enough aid begins to arrive. One of the is a woman in a dark suit. Standing at 5'9", she cuts an imposing figure, accentuated by the tailored elegance of her attire. Her clothing carries a faintly Victorian influence, with dark, muted colors that exude sophistication. The perfectly fitted suit drapes around her slender frame with an air of timeless grace, emphasizing her pale skin and the dark fall of her long brown hair. Finely detailed lapels and understated buttons complete the look, giving her an aura of composed authority. Piercing gray eyes survey everything around her, taking in details that might escape others' notice, yet her expression remains unreadable. Trailing after her are men and women from the Order as well as ambulances. Haven is not stranger to the paranormal. Unlike the others dissuaded by Emily and William she brushes past the two. She walks to Ritsuka as Orderites trail in behind her and begin the cleanup. "
// We're wrapping up and those outside Jiae are welcome to leave as the Orderites now begin handling things.
Ritsuka smiles to seeing the woman, it is a friendly kind of smile and a familiar one. "Thank you for coming, Lucienne," she says, making to dip her head, of course. "Just an oni ghost possession, the girl here banished it, but paid a little bit much with it to do it instantly. It was trying to flee, so it must have costed her tremendously. Best we set her in into the hospital for a day, I'll visit her tomorrow and check in on her and I'll figure out the rest with her after that."
William finds some support not offered to him but instead forced upon himself, he goes to complain, but his body right now is in no condition to fight against it. Turning his head slowly to find it's Emily doing it, and with something in between a scoff and a huff remarking "I'm good... I don't need help... I'm just tired, is all" His eyes glancing at the arriving orderites and at the woman talking to Ritsuka with a moment of consideration. One last thoughtful look at Jiae before assessing his own situation and almost sighing out "I need to get to my car... And home..."
"Instantly?" Lucienne gives the comatose woman a second glance. "Yes, best we do." She glances also toward the remnants of the blood circle, now ashed. "Zealous in her commitment to stopping the Oni."
Lucienne looks back to Ritsuka. "It's a good thing you were here. I'd hate to imagine what might have happened to her if you weren't."
Emily glances back at Ritsuka and Jiae as well and seems satisfied that the situation is being handled. "Yeah, maybe ya are goond on ya knees...", she answers sarcastically, trying to keep William supported. "But you are in no fuckin' condition to walk, let alone drive... an' now move it...."
One of the Orderites, recognizing the weakness in William for what it is, comments, loudly enough for those near to hear. "Feeding sickness. Another one of them, taking things too far." There is a grudging anger in his tone. "Don't worry. We're here to help."
Ritsuka says "I'll bring her over to the hospital- Actually. I'll bring her home. I- can't do much for her today, I need to be somewhere- twenty-two minutes ago, and I will need to get the locks set up for her. "
Ritsuka does give a look to the Orderite neat William, and if they notice it, she makes to make a brief nod, but that is it.
William groans at Emily, rolling his eyes slightly before pointing towards his black car outside, his finger slightly crooked and the arm not entirely lifted up, more like hanging from where it should be "You drive then... I'm not leaving it here..."
Orderites take the man Ritsuka knocked unconscious away on a stretcher to receive medical aid at the hospital.
Ritsuka crouches down to grasp Jiae into her arms, carrying her, and for her stature - well, those that know understand, but she should not be able to carry someone with such ease with her build- and then. She makes a nod to Lucienne and she walks, steps, shadows take up a corner of the store, and there is brief, golden hue that begins to surround her as she disappears with Jiae, leaving everything else behind to be caught up on, later. For now that is.
Emily groans, perfect echo to William's. "Hell...", she curses under her breath, but continues, "...fine... hand over ya fuckin' key and any scratch was already there BEFORE..." She starts to move to the exit and further to the car, one arm under William's shoulder and the other grabbing his arm to place it over her own shoulder for support.