#panevent02

Arm bandaged, duct tape forcing the headphones even stronger against their face, and eyes that were constantly red, Baskar made for a sorry individual. But so did a lot of other residents on the island. So they didn’t feel like they were very different from most. There was a healer around, but either they hadn’t run into them yet, or they had no interest in healing small - and already bandaged - wounds. 

It was okay, they’d stay in the back for a bit, they’d keep away from people for a bit, they’d–

EVENT 02. PART 1: THE DRONES

After the General Meeting, a group of four prepared for a trip into the wilderness. Their goal: to explore outwards, see what they could find of the rest of this strange place. They used walkie talkies at first, reporting back to the others on the beach some findings: lots of trees, an incline, huge volcanic boulders, a waterfall. A plateau. More caves. Something else...then the walkie talkies cut out, as to be expected. The exploration team was out-of-range.

Two days passed.

It started late evening, with a hum that at first only Baskar Klein could hear, given their ability. Something akin to a hum, a buzz in the air with a slight tic tic tic underneath it.

In the morning, a light mist hovered over the forest; and instead of the usual sunrise, the sky remained darkened and mottled over the tree canopy, like angry clouds. What appeared through the mist, however, was much worse than a storm: giant hornets.

A whole swarm - hundreds, perhaps thousands. They flew out of the wilderness like a flying army, invading all the spaces people inhabited. Each hornet is about as long as a person's arm, with a big wingspan. This was, without a doubt, an attack.

You didn't need too close of an inspection to realize these hornets were not prehistorically large living insects. Instead of eyes and mandibles, each hornet's head was affixed with a staticky, reflective, small TV monitor as their face.

Their stingers though, seemed ready to strike.

[tw insectoid image under the readmore]

While given the stress of the day and the constant noise of the buzzing - and now the digging - in all honestly all Baskar wanted to do was to lay down in the water, submerge their ears far enough so they were completely covered in water, and pretend the world didn't exist.

The down-side to that plan was that they'd be willingly running away from danger and thus from helping people.

Which went against everything they stood for. So they ignored the constant noise - though they were constantly frowning - and tried to offer help where they could. And not spend too much time watching the hornets dig at the medical centre. Unearthing something.

Una had called Baskar brave some time ago. But right now, they felt anything but. Lost and scared was better. They were walking through the inhabited area hoping to meet someone who could help them, while most people were hiding or… or… Baskar could hear them, but the buzzing was much louder, persistent, constantly there. Either close by or far away, not that it really mattered, there were so many of them, and so much reaction to them as well. Their disorientation had resulted in being stung by one, leading to a memory. Of a person they didn’t recognise, crawling through the mud. Their hearing was normal for a moment, but that didn’t make the scream that ended the vision any less horrifying. The sight of a hornet with a hundred tiny cameras, different from those they’d seen before. 

Adarsh had managed to drag himself to the medi-centre, finding it filled with people when he claimed a spot on one of the beds, too tired to really register much of what was going on. He didn’t need medical attention, but he could use a nap and clearly his bungalow wasn’t free from being knocked into. As Akhila had already accidentally found it when in need of help for another person. Here he could rest, regain his strengths, maybe shine some more when he had the energy to flex his new power. 

He wasn’t sure how long he’d slept, but when he woke up again, the place was empty. 

He blinked awake but found no trace that anything was amiss. Else he hoped they wouldn’t have just left him to fend for himself. His head felt a lot clearer, meaning he’d gotten a few hours at least. 

Pushing himself up from the comfortable bed, he walked through the place. He couldn’t hear any buzzing nearby, or any kind of noise really. Every man for himself in this place clearly. 

His eyes shot to the door when he heard it open. 

And the sight for a moment was too much for his brain to process. He had to still be dreaming. A very good dream, definitely, but definitely dreaming. To say he hadn’t fantasised about Alex since their kiss and hot moment was an understatement. 

He was unsure where this new fantasy came from. But two Alexes certainly was something. 

“Uhm…” 

Too many errors. 

The place seemed in disarray, which was fair, given the amount of huge robot hornets and what little anyone could do to stop them. They were flying by in droves, or coming at people in groups of three or more. Some people were hiding, some were trying to stop them, mostly it seemed as if these things had all gotten a plan told to them before setting for the beach, and then somewhere upon arrival half of them had forgotten the directive. Meanwhile, Adarsh, resident healer, was trying to do his part. He had a moment to shine here, a situation in which he could both test out his ability, and gain some good will among the populus. There really wasn’t a better moment. 

He felt the results of the healing however, the exhaustion that slowly seeped into his bones. He’d rest at the medi-centre later. Right now he went places where there were plenty of people, where he had the possibility to use his powers. 

And the hub certainly managed to take the cake. And it seemed safe for exactly three seconds before the chaos started. The buzzing rippled through the air as suddenly a large group of the robots flew overhead and descended towards the place. 

EVENT 02. PART 2: DEEP EXPLORATION

With the effects of the hornets' punishing sting on five different people, one reveal becomes evident: one of the explorers (the influencer BabyMama or 'Beema') is still out there, possibly alive, definitely injured. The fate of the others? Supposedly undetermined, likely dead. But Beema needs saving. If it was you out there, wouldn't you want rescuers to save you? On top of that, it seemed one vision provided a vital answer to the behaviour of the hornets: a glimpse of the multi-eyed gigantic hornet, its head not just one TV, but hundreds. Hidden in some electronic wasteland of a cave, possibly near Beema's hiding spot. This robotic behemoth seems to be the epicentre of the hornet's origin, or at least a place to find some answers. Meanwhile, the hornets various attacks around the small village is cut off by a united click-whirr, shared between all the hornets. They all rise into the air and hover, buzzing in unison like some terrible mechanical song. You are witness as the hornets pivot towards the back of the Medicentre, landing in a swarming clump. Collectively, they begin to dig. They begin to dig deep. You're now faced with a choice: head into the wilderness to find Beema, or the hundred-eyed hornet? Or, remain in the village, to find out what these hornets are trying to dig for.

OOC INFORMATION