feb. 20th, 12:15pm
“ …𝐈𝐓 𝐈𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐀𝐍 𝐈𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐒𝐄𝐋𝐘 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐘 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐍 𝐋𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐄… Last night, on February nineteenth, we lost one of our own. Trevor Ahn, son of Apollo, head of NL’s infirmary, and mentor and friend to all, passed away last night in the line of duty, protecting the very people he had spent years healing… ”
The speech goes on. Marina Ren keeps her composure in front of the cameras and microphones placed before her at this press conference, held in a spacious meeting room in the Demicenter’s office floor. Inside, she’s still reeling, still grieving, mind running a million miles a minute as she tries to process and work through what’s happened to the campus and the demigods she’s sworn to care for. None of that shows on her face, however, as the lenses zoom and the lights flash. She’s a leader, a professional, and she cannot break.
cw: death mention, coma mention
Trevor was famous in his own circles before ever stepping foot at Nemean Lion. Despite being a healer, he was one of the more well-known demigods to the public, beloved in his own right, and she knew it was going to be yet another type of challenge to hold this conference and let the world know.
This life, being a demigod, will always have its dangers. No matter what they do, out in the world, there will always be a threat. She’s tried to make this place a safe-haven, but with the ever-looming threat of monsters, and with so many answering the call to heroism, Marina’s faced with the truth that she can’t protect them from everything.
It’s a unique and peculiar kind of devastation for someone like Marina. But she can’t let it slow her down or give in, all she can do is work harder.
“We will be closing the campus to the public for a few weeks, in order to give our community here time and privacy to grieve as they need. We ask for understanding and patience. We will remember Trevor, for who he was as well as for the legacy he left behind, always with fondness.”
feb. 20th, 2:03am
“I need you all to understand what happened is not your fault,” Marina starts gravely in a private room of the Infirmary, looking at the demigods before her. Minzhe Wu, Theo Choi, Dahlia Shin, Cecilia Bae.
Their faces display an array of different kinds of trauma, tragedy, and hurt, and it stings Marina to know she can’t just make that go away.
“If you’d like to stay here at the Infirmary overnight, we’d be more than happy to accommodate you here. However, if you’re more comfortable in your rooms, you’re welcome to head back to the apartments. Just make sure you’re properly discharged— make sure any injuries are fully healed, restore what strength you can now before you get proper rest.”
“And… Ginny?” Mizhe asks weakly.
Marina nods once, taking a breath. “She’s still unconscious. But being treated as we speak, and she’ll be monitored heavily. She exhausted a lot of power today. As you all know, it’s natural that the body can begin to give out if you overexert your powers. And, Ginny, she…”
“She blew through them,” Theo mutters, all eyes turning towards her for a moment.
Marina sighs once, but she can’t really disagree. The daughter of Chronos had entirely depleted her capabilities, and then some. The use of Cece’s power had allowed her to dig even deeper than the well could even go.
“I hope you all understand the importance of honing your powers, of training to defend yourself. Hero or not, it’s imperative we know how to protect ourselves,” Marina tells them, and it’s something she’ll be trying to teach the rest of campus from here on out as well. “I’ll need to speak with you all to create a full report on what exactly happened out there, but please, understand… I want nothing more than to take care of you all the same way we always have. I know you’ve experienced something terrible— everyone here has. But it doesn’t change the fact that we’re here for you, that I want… That this place will continue to do what it can to protect you.”
The other demigods nod, internalizing her words in their own ways.
“I’ll meet with you all individually tomorrow,” she says. “Get some rest.”
Having been dismissed, the demigods start to move toward the door. But at the lead, Dahlia pauses, making everyone else stop behind her as she turns to look at Marina again, something clearly troubling her.
“There was something… wrong,” Dahlia starts, biting her lip for a moment, unsure exactly how to put it. “More than that, it was… it was off.”
Marina’s brow creases. “What do you mean?”
“Look, I-I know we fought hard and we did what we could. But beyond that, Marina, it was… Theo and I should have been able to handle a griffin—”
“Dahlia, you can’t blame yourself—”
“No, it’s not just that. That monster, it was… It was way stronger than it should have been. Abnormally strong. Theo, you felt it, right?”
The daughter of Ares’ face is mostly ashen still, her features set in something like a saddened scowl, but she nods. “I thought I was making it up in my head,” she mutters. “I thought… But you’re right. It was too much.”
“No matter what we threw at it, things that should have incapacitated it, it wouldn’t go down. I-I don’t know how, but that griffin was more powerful than it ever should have been. There was no chance,” Dahlia finishes definitively, and even though that statement should take some of the weight off their shoulders, it doesn’t. Nothing makes this easier.
Marina considers all of this for a moment, taking in their accounts and the fact she knows. Dahlia’s right, a monster like that, it should have been perfectly manageable for the two heroes. It was why she confidently sent them there in the first place. For something like that to overtake them, there had to be merit to her statement.
“I believe you,” she answers finally. “If we’re assuming then that something must have happened to that griffin before you all ever came face to face with it, then perhaps we’ve got a new problem on our hands. And it’s my job to get to the bottom of it. But I will,” Marina tells them.
Maybe it’s reassuring, maybe it’s not. But they all try to believe her too.
mar. 5th, 3:20pm
“You’ll be discharged today,” Marina tells Ginny Daniels when she walks into her Infirmary room, a soft sort of smile on her face not many see often. “I can’t say I entirely approve of your extended stay here— I mean, I’m sure some of the campus would have liked to know you were awake at the start of this week. But, you deserve your privacy.”
Ginny, fully awake and standing as she packs her bag of extra clothes and various other entertainment and recreational items Jae Eun had delivered for her, only nods back with her own smile, trying her best to seem normal.
“Everyone has been instructed not to let what happened that night leave the walls of this campus. Or, at least, your hand in it,” she says, choosing her words carefully. “They’ve also been informed and urged to use the resources we have here— the counselors, the Infirmary. I really hope you take that advice.”
“Sure, yeah, I can do that,” Ginny responds with a breathy laugh in a way that makes Marina doubt it, but she can’t force it either.
Marina just smiles again, knowing she’ll have to keep an eye on the daughter of Chronos for a while. “Good, then. I hope your body and stamina feel alright now. I’ll see you around campus?” It’s a question, but Marina would make sure of it either way.
“Yeah, totally. I’ll… see you around,” the younger girl starts again, zipping up her bag.
Marina makes her way to the door, but stops once more and turns back. “Hey, Ginny?” she starts, making sure to catch her eye. “I’m glad you’re back with us.”
Ginny isn’t sure what to say or what to feel or even how to properly be herself again, but she smiles once more, hoping to believe that as well.
apr. 23rd, 10:54pm
The DemiCenter is open at all hours, so technically there’s always someone in the building, at least at the front desk. Oftentimes, demigods stay late in the offices for various work, but today, nearing midnight, Marina’s the only one on the floor.
There’s an empty coffee cup beside her, and she stretches her neck one more time in her chair to try to get rid of the ache in her shoulders. It’s become too familiar at this point, given that all she’s done since the Masquerade Ball is try to hunt down answers. She’s about to call it a night when a notification pops up on her screen, and she opens it to read.
Her memory goes back to that day after Trevor’s passing, the speech she’d given at the press release.
“We have reason to believe some monsters are becoming unnaturally stronger than usual. We urge all citizens to continue to follow protocol by staying safe and as out of harm’s way as possible during any monster sighting. Reports will be taken extremely seriously, and we will do all we can to continue to protect our community. Stay safe.”
She’d given a warning to demigods and mortals alike without being able to fully explain why. With no real evidence or even clue to follow, she’d had nothing to do but search for answers herself, spending several sleepless nights in the past two months looking for anything that could lead her down the right path.
But now, as she pours over the screen of her laptop staring at a response she’d been waiting for, Marina allows herself to breathe easier for just a moment. She finally has a lead.
OOC INFO:
after a doozy of a plot drop, we are now back in present time again, and the campus is doing its best to heal while Marina does her best to find answers. some things to note:
the rp is back in present time, however feel free to continue threads from the Masquerade Ball or create any threads that would have taken place in the last two months between the Masquerade Ball and now
NL has informed the demigods and the public that there is reason to believe some monsters are now stronger than before, though they don’t know which ones or why
the demigods have been instructed not to speak about the time loops to any mortals
security has gotten a little tighter
hero work has become even more strict and precautious
there is a strong emphasis on all demigods partaking in training in order to defend themselves and also hone their powers
if you have any questions please let us know! we know this one was crazy, but we’re very happy you all clearly had fun writing with it and we’re glad you all helped us pull it off! for now, the campus and community are going to try to have some easier times, but more things are coming on the horizon…