Piscivore
TNPer
Across Eras, broadcast media channels were interrupted. On the Gusnet, search engines, video streaming services, and Fluttr accounts were hacked or manipulated to link to a video feed. The unprecedented intrusion represented a massive effort in time and resources, all apparently driven to one end; to draw attention to a live broadcast originating in McMasterdonian territory.
The video stream opened on a podium set up in the midst of a crowd, many of them holding Flemengovian signs or wearing bits of lavender. The throng began cheering, and Malik Fayeed appeared, approaching the podium. Those nearest him were shaking his hand, patting him on the back, grabbing at his clothes - perhaps a little too enthusiastically, because he winced and rubbed his shoulder at one point.
A caption appeared, superimposed by an outside source, reading "The Butcher of Westmark".
He arrived at the podium, and he began to speak. The themes of his speech were familiar, a new future for McMasterdonia and the like, when he abruptly vomited all over the lectern. He put his hand to his mouth and his torso convulsed again. He began screaming, an inhuman high-pitched wail.
The sound suddenly cut out, apparently overridden at the source. A gentle soothing male voice, recognizable to those familiar with Sadakhan media as the narrator for several highly regarded nature documentaries, began speaking. Onscreen Fayeed was being held up by a pair of supporters, trembling as he clawed furiously at his left shoulder.
The venom of the Hapalochlaena Arborum, native to the unmapped forests of Tlalocan, is one of the most deadly neurotoxins know to science. A single sting will kill a full grown human within minutes, while actually enhancing the nervous system of the victim to a painful degree.
Fayeed stopped clutching as his shoulder; his arms were now curling into his chest like a dying cockroach. The people in the crowd were in chaos, silently screaming, running around, crying. Fayeed's mouth was open, his eyes unfocused and streaming tears, his face frozen in a rictus of pain.
The toxin affects the peripheral nervous system first; this has the effect of signalling the muscles of the limbs to involuntarily contract, soon paralyzing the victim. Incontinence and involuntary ejaculation may occur as well. Death follows after prolonged agony, sometimes as long as . . .
The live feed stopped, replaced by a static image of the Archbishop's face superimposed on his standard. A woman's voice, amiable and pleasant, said: "To the faithful who yet follow this uridim, this sagtahar; take this message to your master, make sure your 'holy man' hears."
"'Every breath you have drawn since Westmark has been a gift of our mercy, our forbearance.
"Understand no matter what heartfelt prayers you offer to your imagined god, you exist now not at its whims, but ours.
"The only path to survival of your people is the surrender of yourself and your lieutenants to our justice, mercy, and forgiveness.
"Do this and your movement shall not perish by our hand. If you do not, we will be the fever that burns the world to expunge your sepsis from it.
"We implore the international community to deal with the existential threat this cult poses, not only to Sadakoyama, but all of Eras."
The stream ended, freezing on the flag of Sadakoyama.
The video stream opened on a podium set up in the midst of a crowd, many of them holding Flemengovian signs or wearing bits of lavender. The throng began cheering, and Malik Fayeed appeared, approaching the podium. Those nearest him were shaking his hand, patting him on the back, grabbing at his clothes - perhaps a little too enthusiastically, because he winced and rubbed his shoulder at one point.
A caption appeared, superimposed by an outside source, reading "The Butcher of Westmark".
He arrived at the podium, and he began to speak. The themes of his speech were familiar, a new future for McMasterdonia and the like, when he abruptly vomited all over the lectern. He put his hand to his mouth and his torso convulsed again. He began screaming, an inhuman high-pitched wail.
The sound suddenly cut out, apparently overridden at the source. A gentle soothing male voice, recognizable to those familiar with Sadakhan media as the narrator for several highly regarded nature documentaries, began speaking. Onscreen Fayeed was being held up by a pair of supporters, trembling as he clawed furiously at his left shoulder.
The venom of the Hapalochlaena Arborum, native to the unmapped forests of Tlalocan, is one of the most deadly neurotoxins know to science. A single sting will kill a full grown human within minutes, while actually enhancing the nervous system of the victim to a painful degree.
Fayeed stopped clutching as his shoulder; his arms were now curling into his chest like a dying cockroach. The people in the crowd were in chaos, silently screaming, running around, crying. Fayeed's mouth was open, his eyes unfocused and streaming tears, his face frozen in a rictus of pain.
The toxin affects the peripheral nervous system first; this has the effect of signalling the muscles of the limbs to involuntarily contract, soon paralyzing the victim. Incontinence and involuntary ejaculation may occur as well. Death follows after prolonged agony, sometimes as long as . . .
The live feed stopped, replaced by a static image of the Archbishop's face superimposed on his standard. A woman's voice, amiable and pleasant, said: "To the faithful who yet follow this uridim, this sagtahar; take this message to your master, make sure your 'holy man' hears."
"'Every breath you have drawn since Westmark has been a gift of our mercy, our forbearance.
"Understand no matter what heartfelt prayers you offer to your imagined god, you exist now not at its whims, but ours.
"The only path to survival of your people is the surrender of yourself and your lieutenants to our justice, mercy, and forgiveness.
"Do this and your movement shall not perish by our hand. If you do not, we will be the fever that burns the world to expunge your sepsis from it.
"We implore the international community to deal with the existential threat this cult poses, not only to Sadakoyama, but all of Eras."
The stream ended, freezing on the flag of Sadakoyama.