[EVENT] A STROKE OF SABOTAGE

[ironwood]

Characters: ALL
Date: April 16th-April 30th
Location: Keeliai, various
Situation: Just when you think things are working a little too well...
Warnings/Rating: To be added as needed.

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It starts small - a few greenhouses have seen their crops wither, and the kedan frantically scramble to find the cause. By the time they do, it’s too late. Three days later, the problem seems to occur in every single one of the major greenhouses and hydroponics stations; plants withered and dead, and several kedan sick and showing signs of Dust poisoning after contact with the water supply. While there were no deaths, all had to go to the Healers Guild and several had severe enough reactions that their stay was more than just a brief treatment and overnight observation.

The initial response from a few of the more superstitious kedan is that the run of bad luck has culminated in the ruin of their efforts. More level-headed kedan will be inclined to take a more scientific approach. Kyde and a number of chemists are called in to take samples.

As one might expect (or not, as the case may be), Dust had been somehow integrated into the water that feeds the hydroponics and greenhouses, which wound up killing the plants and sickening the kedan. While it hadn’t made it into the main water supply for the city, there was clearly enough of an organized effort that it affected the public greenhouses and hydroponics systems. Every piece of equipment that comes in contact with the water will have to be flushed to prevent another die-off. It's a big setback, and the process will take several weeks to complete, reigniting concerns about food shortages.

The culprits even left a calling card - painted on the walls or tarps is a message: MALICANT WILL RISE.

Tensions are high everywhere in the city, and morale is low as the culmination of the kedan and Foreigner’s hard work was ruined and, while they aren’t back to square one, there is an enormous amount of work ahead. Going forward, there is an urgent call for the development of better filtration systems to keep out toxins while still distributing essential nutrients, and better security. The kedan will be looking toward Foreigners for assistance in these matters.

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OOC: Various starters are included in the comments below for different facets of the plot, or you can make your own! Please direct any questions to the April Game Itinerary post. Thank you!

Comments

OTA!

[purrns]

Normally, it's as himself that Adrien keeps an eye on the Cultists- following them quietly, remaining unassuming. But this- all of this had slipped him by. He hates he missed it. He knows he can't be present for everything they say, he can't catch every tiny detail- but he feels bad about it all the same.

Still, it's as Chat that he;s currently dealing with the problem. He can be found sitting on rooftops, still as a statue, watching the coming and goings of people. It's easy to miss him. Of course, once he sees a theft happening, he's off like a shot- bouncing over the rooftops, shooting out his baton to cut the thief off, landing easily in front of them.

He doesn't really have much of a pun, either. No real banter. He just gets the item back, returns it to the owner, and brings the thief in to the KPD. He'll come out of his dark mood eventually, but with the sudden loss of Marinette (again) he's a lot less cheerful than usual. Someone might be lucky to catch him to talk before he heads off to work again.

[schrodingersghost]

Danny had made a point of patrolling ever since this had started. Or gotten noticeably worse, anyway.

Funny thing about being a ghost. Even kedan criminals seemed to be inclined to drop things and run after a little constructive spookiness.

Spotting Chat on one of his circuits around the shopping areas, Danny drops down from the sky and takes a seat right beside him.

"Hey, what's up?"

[purrns]

"People are getting really antsy. Have you noticed?"

There's a distinct lack of puns and overly goofy grins here. Chat doesn't really feel the need to put on the whole act around Danny. Danny is safe. He can be himself around him, even if that 'himself' is currently not all that super fun to be around. His tail twitches over the side of the roof, unsettled.

"All that Malicant stuff is really riling everyone up."

[schrodingersghost]

"Yeah. I've already scared off a couple groups tonight."

Danny looks out into the dark street below.

"I can't really blame them. I don't know much about the whole Malicant thing, but this whole thing right now is creepy. And when a ghost is saying that, you know its bad."

[purrns]

"That'd good. Hopefully, they'll get the message soon and quit."

Chat at least manages a chuckle, an acknowledgement something punny was said.

"Tell me about it. It's really spooky. I mean...you don't think it's possible, right? That he could just...come back?"

[schrodingersghost]

Chat, think about what you just said for a moment. Danny doesn't even bother to say anything.

[purrns]

Chat stands there for a moment in silence. And then the penny drops.

"...I rescind my last comment and we can pretend I didn't say anything horribly offensive," a pause. "You can make a bad cat joke if you want."

[schrodingersghost]

Danny waves the comment off.

"Nah, don't worry about it. Trust me, that is not the worst thing I've heard." He frowns. "But did you seriously forget about the whole ghost thing for a moment there?"

[purrns]

"I absolutely did. I guess I just...forget the ghost thing sometimes. You're just Danny to me."

He at least offers an apologetic smile for that. He really sucks at separating identities. Especially for an actual superhero with an actual secret identity of his own.

[schrodingersghost]

It takes Danny a moment to process that. Because even after all this time, something as simple as that was really what he wanted most of all.

Acceptance. Being able to be just Danny to people. Sometimes it seemed like almost everyone he knew only liked half of him. His parents liked his human half and hated his ghost half. Valerie was like that too. So many people in Amity Park thought Danny Phantom was cool, but Danny Fenton was just a weird loser.

It was hard, sometimes.

Danny gives Chat a crooked grin in return.

"Don't ever apologize for that. There's not a lot of people who can say that."

And it meant something to him.

[purrns]

And this, Adrien knows only too well. Adrien had to be polite, restrained, perfect. People who knew him only as Adrien only got half the picture- just as those who only knew him as Chat knew this...too larger than life to be real persona (purrsona) he had made for himself. Neither side were really him. He was a mixture of the both.

He offers Danny a lopsided grin in return. Or rather, he tries, but it morphs into something much more genuine.

"I know how that one goes. But that's why you got me. Lucky you."

[schrodingersghost]

"Don't you mean that's why you got me?"

Another grin right back.

[purrns]

He can't help but chuckle at that one/

"That too! We got each other."

[commandandcontrol]

Lucky!

"Hey! Hey, wait!" Sonja runs over to Chat as soon as she spots him as he returns the item to the Kedan, before he can run off.

"Hi! Chat Noire, right? I don't think we've met yet, I'm Sonja."

[purrns]

Chat turns to flash her a charming grin. He might be out of sorts, but he can at least play the game still. Pretend it was better than it was.

"Oh, hello there. You've got the right cat. What's up? Need some heroing?"

[commandandcontrol]

"Oh, no. No 'heroing.'" She didn't mean that to sound dismissive, but it was kind of a silly thing to say, wasn't it?

"I just wanted to meet you, finally. My name is Sonja."

My name is Sonja and I'm trying to run the Foreigner's Guild? Please pledge your undying loyalty to boost my ego. Good first draft, but it could use some tweaking.

[purrns]

"Oh, a fan," fans were things he got as Adrien, generally, people usually focused on Ladybug back home, well deserved too, in his opinion. "Well, I always have time for a fan."

He offers up a rather flourishing and over-the-top bow.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sonja!"

[commandandcontrol]

Wow, he was a card, wasn't he? But alright, she supposed she's a 'fan.'

She made a polite bow in turn. "And you."

"I was hoping to touch base with you maybe, about the new guild reorganizations."

[purrns]

Oh noooo, not again. He pulls a face at that. Of course, as Adrien, he's already pretty much made his choice. But he can't really pick two even with a dual identity.

"Oh...that. I didn't really pay that all that much attention. I'm more of a free spirit, y'know? Got to do my own thing. Cats got to cat."

[commandandcontrol]

"Mmmmmm... no. That's not gonna be enough for the Foreigners or the Kedan. Trying to stay off the books is just going to cause the Foreigners Guild trouble, and it could develop into a full-blown crisis if you do something wrong."

Be a free spirit when it didn't directly impact her and everyone she knew.

[purrns]

...Well. Crud. That excuse won't work. Chat shifts, his ears pinning back, his tail flicking nervously.

"Oh...that. Okay um," he tries to think of a good excuse, and fails, miserably. "Okay, look. Maybe I've already made a choice, but it's me-me, as in not-wearing-a-mask-secret-identity-me. And I'm pretty sure I can't be in two at once, so-"

[commandandcontrol]

"So there is definitely a secret identity thing going, then?" She hadn't been sure of that, actually. Maybe he just slept in the sewers.

"Frankly- unless you're planning to drop the identity, 'Chat' still needs an affiliation. There's nothing that says you can't be in two places at once, since you kind of... are already in two places at once."

[purrns]

"Un-fur-tunately for you, there is."

Wow, Sonja, wow. Does he really look like some sort of sewer hobo?

(He does, he absolutely does)

"Really? Because I'm pretty sure that constitutes as teaching. And I'm still fifty-fifty on the whole...revealing myself to everyone thing. I might do it. Eventually."

It's makings more and more sense to do it. People are figuring it out anyway, now.

[commandandcontrol]

"I think there's a lot eyes on us right now," Sonja said. "And we can't be seen as undermining the new system. If you can speed up that decision, I think it would benefit us, a lot."

She bowed again. "Well, thank you for hearing me out, at least. Obviously, I can't make you do anything."

[purrns]

Chat lets out a nervous laugh.

"No pressure, huh?"

He returns the bow, smile still on.

"Don't mention it, sorry I can't help you out. I'm sure plenty of people would be up to support the Guild."