Fact Checking Some Myths About Aventurine and the IPC
Especially in light of Jade's new myriad celestia trailer and the reveal of the other Stonehearts, I've seen a ton of wild claims about Aventurine--particularly how he's an unwilling member of the Stonehearts and needs to be saved from the IPC--that just aren't sitting right with me because they're based significantly more on the fanon take that Aventurine is an "innocent victim" than any actual evidence displayed in the game. So I wanted to take the time to collect some in-game evidence to see if we can sort out what Aventurine's actual relationship to the IPC is. Time to do some fact checking--this is a long one, buckle up!
Claim #1: Aventurine was sentenced to die by the IPC.
Verdict: There's no actual evidence that Aventurine was ever sentenced to anything.
This entire idea that Aventurine was actually successfully sentenced to die by the IPC comes from two pieces of "evidence" in the game. First, the scene with Dr. Ratio where those words are stated:
Leaving aside whether the IPC legally has the right to sentence anyone to anything by themselves (they're a corporation, not an actual governing body), this is the exact line that Dr. Ratio fans have been bending over backward to prove is "just an act" and that Ratio would never actually mean this (because if he actually meant this, it would make him pretty racist). So if we've already busted our asses to prove this line isn't true and was just Ratio and Aventurine acting... why would we be using this line as evidence that Aventurine was actually sentenced to anything?
We can't say "This entire scene was an act because Sunday/the Family was listening in!" and then go "Okay, but this one part is definitely true (despite there not being any other evidence in game to corroborate the statement)." Either this scene is acting, and this line isn't true--or the line is true, and Ratio's kind of a racist. Make up your minds, people. 😂
Actually, I can help make up your mind. We can prove that this line is likely a strong part of Aventurine and Ratio's deliberate act because Ratio's comment (which took place in 2.0) doesn't actually make any sense once Aventurine's story is fully revealed (in 2.1).
Ratio relates Aventurine's slave brand to the IPC, suggesting that the brand is proof that Aventurine is "doomed" and "sentenced to die by the IPC." Ratio even goes so far to say "Or was it from the Amber Lord himself?"
But from 2.1, we know that Aventurine's brand had nothing to do with the IPC, and his former slave owner was definitely not an IPC employee (as he refers to the IPC the same as Aventurine's sister did, "the guys in black").
Aventurine's brand came from being owned by a non-IPC-affiliated slaver--it had nothing to do with the Stonehearts or even Oswaldo Schneider.
So Ratio's entire comment linking the brand to the IPC makes no sense, and therefore his statement that the brand marks Aventurine as a "doomed Sigonian thrall sentenced to die by the IPC" also makes no sense.
Instead, I would argue that this line is a perfect example of the kind of exaggerated acting that Ratio and Aventurine were doing specifically to make the eavesdropping Family see Aventurine as an easy target. With this line, Ratio is emphasizing that Aventurine is a sitting duck without his Cornerstone, that he'll be weak and helpless--and that no one in the IPC will come help him, because they've already sentenced him to die. This is Ratio deliberately baiting Sunday into thinking that Aventurine will be easy, isolated prey without his Cornerstone--which is exactly what Aventurine wanted Sunday to think.
This line, which comes from a scene that we've already established is a deliberate act to mislead someone, cannot be used as evidence of Aventurine's real situation within the IPC.
"But then what about the trial scene with Jade?!" I already hear people saying. "Aventurine was definitely going to be sentenced to death!"
I'm not arguing that death wasn't a possible option for Kakavasha initially; it's clear that committing severe enough crimes can earn you the death penalty in Star Rail's universe. But I think we need to take another good look at this scene and see what really happened here.
First, we need to clarify that this scene with Jade was not an actual trial. The scene begins with a broadcast which clarifies that the suspect in the "Egyhazo-Aventurine Fraud Case" was just caught, and the IPC are conducting investigations into the "motive of the suspect."
So Jade's scene with Aventurine is not an actual trial (I mean... Jade's not even legally a judge!); it's an investigation with the goal of determining why Kakavasha would have tried to scam the Intelligentsia Guild and IPC at Egyhazo.
We can confirm that this scene with Jade is not an actual trial because she is even says "We haven't been able to find you any defense [lawyer], so you perhaps will have to defend yourself."
To which Aventurine responds that he easily could defend himself from the charges--but that it's pointless to do so. Why? Because he never intends to get to a trial in the first place.
He's there to gamble with Diamond (who he asks to see right on the spot, indicating that he's done his research in advance and knows who the head honcho he needs to talk to is). Instead, Jade says that he'll have to gamble with her, to which he agrees, and lays down his terms.
(He even says "I bet you won't send me to the gallows." We know that Kakavasha always wins his bets--he bet she won't send him off to a trial to be executed, and he once again won his bet!)
Jade, known for picking out "unpolished stones with great potential" and promoting them into positions of power to extract their value, agrees immediately, and literally tells Kakavasha to go change his clothes right then and there. She really said "I like your confidence; you're hired on the spot."
So... This was not a trial, Kakavasha never went on trial, and because he never went on trial, we have zero evidence in-game that he was ever sentenced to anything.
The IPC doesn't give a shit about the murder of some no-name slaver (I mean come on, think of how many other murders they've covered up at this point--do you really think they're holding one past murder of a no-name NPC over Aventurine's head years later?).
They might give a shit about the money they lost on Kakavasha's schemes, but Jade's entire schtick is one of equivalence--having Kakavasha join the IPC as a Stoneheart means he will ultimately generate infinitely more wealth for them than his schemes ever cost them in the first place, and that's the central piece of Jade's statement in this scene:
Is Aventurine's whole role in the Stonehearts exploitative, focused on his endless ability to win bets and generate profit? YUP. But that's ALL the Stonehearts' goal at this point--he's not unique in being "exploited" for his value. One look at Topaz confirms that.
So, ultimately, we have no evidence that Kakavasha was ever sentenced for his crimes, let alone that he was sentenced to die specifically by the IPC.
Claim #2: The Stonehearts will execute Aventurine if he tries to leave or fails his mission(s).
Verdict: There's no actual evidence for this either, beyond the obvious that most people in a powerful enough position in an evil corporation probably can't just up and quit their jobs without consequences.
I've seen this idea that the Stonehearts are planning to execute Aventurine--either for his past crimes, for failing a mission, or for trying to leave the IPC--many, many places, and unfortunately, I really think people are reaching this conclusion strictly on "The IPC is evil" vibes alone.
The IPC is evil; they coerce nice people like Topaz to buying into lifelong contracts; they're colonizers and exploitative capitalists, so of course they would threaten to execute poor innocent Aventurine!
Look, I won't defend the IPC. They are evil. But post hoc, ergo proctor hoc--just because one thing is true, doesn't mean the other statement naturally follows.
Just because the IPC is evil and exploitative (and probably does kill people to shut them up) does not automatically mean they're out to execute Aventurine for the slightest mishap.
I've seen many people say "He was going to be executed for his past crimes, so what do you think will happen if he tries to leave the Stonehearts?" But A) We just established he never went to trial for those past crimes in the first place, so we have no idea if he would have actually been sentenced to death anyway, and B) We have no evidence in-game that any of Kakavasha's past crimes would be back on the table if he were to try to quit the IPC. This is literally just fanon, based on the vibes of the IPC being evil alone. Probably informed by Topaz's "lifelong contract" situation giving people the impression that everyone who works for the IPC has to have a lifelong contract.
What evidence do we have that Aventurine is not at-risk of being executed for screwing up a mission? I mean, Aventurine himself says it. When Jade first states that Aventurine might be punished for destroying a Cornerstone, the only two possible punishments he states are:
If execution was on the table, wouldn't that have been the first punishment Aventurine listed?
And Jade's myriad celestia trailer also states that the only punishment on the table is whether Aventurine will be expelled from the Stonehearts:
And the biggest proof that execution isn't on the table?
The fact that Diamond himself agrees that Aventurine should not be punished even for the serious act of willingly breaking a Cornerstone. If Aventurine can do something as serious as breaking part of Qlipoth's will and body, something he was told to treasure more than his own life, and still get away with it... You can bet the IPC really does not give a shit about his old schemes anymore. Aventurine is way too valuable alive for them to be constantly threatening to kill him.
(But then what about Obsidian's statement that she wants a "bloodbath"? Surely that's evidence that he would have died if they voted against him?
First of all, "bloodbath" is a pretty common metaphorical term. I don't know about you, but any time people get into big drama at my work, this term comes up ["They were all talking shit; it was a total bloodbath"]. "Bloodbath" can mean any intense struggle; it's often not literal death.
However, I'm inclined in this case to say that the real reason Hoyo threw in this "bloodbath" line was just to double down on Obsidian's obvious vampire aesthetic. She's a "vampire." Duh, of course she needs to say something about blood. I think this line speaks more to establishing Obsidian's character as a violent, self-centered person than anything to do with Aventurine's actual situation.)
So, there is no actual evidence in the game that Aventurine is still being held accountable for his past crimes, or that the IPC is planning to execute him for messing up on a mission.
In fact, there are several pieces of evidence in the story suggesting the opposite, that multiple people, including the other Stonehearts, think he's kind of crazy for trying to get himself killed every mission he goes on.
When Aventurine was affected by the Harmony's power, the "future" Aventurine asks him this directly.
"Why does every one of your schemes put your own life at risk?" And players are told the answer to that isn't because of the IPC--it's not because the Stonehearts are out here forcing Aventurine to gamble with his life. When the "Future" Aventurine suggests Aventurine might be taking these risks because of the IPC, real Aventurine flat out says "You don't know me at all." He's not taking the risks for the IPC--he's taking them for himself.
Later, "Future" Aventurine even says that if Aventurine just used tactics like Opal's--which he claims Aventurine could easily do--then he would have been able to claim Penacony for the IPC without putting himself at risk at all. But Aventurine chose not to do that; he chose "death."
Because Aventurine is actually, at least slightly, suicidal. I don't personally think Aventurine would ever have turned a fully-loaded gun on himself and pulled the trigger, but he was actively seeking opportunities to die. Before Penacony ended, he was deliberately putting himself into situations where his life was at risk, taking unnecessary gambles with his life on the line--because then he would win either way. If he won the gamble, he would get whatever prize was promised, and if he lost the gamble, then he would have the "freedom" of death, to be reunited with his family. (It's important to note that the only time the word "freedom" is used in Aventurine's story through 2.1 is in direct reference to death--it is never used in reference to getting "free" from the IPC.)
Aventurine's plans were not self-destructive because of the IPC. They were self-destructive because he was self-destructive. And, in fact, multiple other members of the Stonehearts call out this behavior as a bad thing.
Jade describes Aventurine's ploy in Penacony as "overplaying his hand."
Topaz describes Aventurine's work habits as:
Then there's even Sugilite, who clocks Aventurine's suicidal tendency directly by stating that Aventurine's "death" scheme in Penacony wasn't for the IPC at all--it was entirely for himself.
If the Stonehearts were holding execution over Aventurine's head at all times, why would death be an "unnecessary [personal] extravagance"?
The takeaway from all the other Stonehearts' dialogue about Aventurine is that they actually think he goes too far and that his methods are more risky with his own life than they need to be.
Does that sound like a group of people who are planning to kill him on the drop of the hat?
Okay, okay, I can hear you saying "But that still doesn't mean he can leave the Stonehearts without consequences. They would kill him if he tried to leave."
To that I say: A) There's no actual in-game evidence for that statement; it's literally just "IPC is evil so they definitely would do this" vibes, but B) Is that statement really unique to Aventurine? Do you think Topaz could leave the Stonehearts without consequences? Do you think Jade could just fuck off and leave the IPC if she got the desire to?
It's pretty typical, I would think, that anyone who achieves a high-ranking in a stereotypical "evil capitalist mega-corporation" is not free to just abandon their high up position without consequences. The phrase "You know too much" comes to mind.
I'd argue that people are probably right--Aventurine probably could not leave the Stonehearts without something severe happening, at the very least a memory wipe--but that this is probably true of all the Stonehearts. They're too far up the chain. They know too much about the inner-workings of the literal planet-destroying world-domination company. They've had too much access to insider info to easily leave their positions.
Not being able to easily leave the position has nothing to do with Aventurine personally or his past crimes. It's just (at least likely) a basic fact of being too high up in the morally-grey-at-best super organization. (Well, then again, apparently no one even knows if Agate is dead or not, so maybe they actually don't even care lol.)
Claim #3: Aventurine didn't want to join the IPC; he's working with the IPC only because he's forced to.
Verdict: The game suggests in several places that Aventurine joined the IPC of his own free will. Whether he's still loyal to them is not 100% clear.
I think this is the biggest question mark I'm left with when reading other people's posts about Aventurine--this enduring idea that Aventurine never wanted to join the IPC and was only forced to do so because he was captured and death was his only other option.
But that is literally not what the game is telling us at all. The game tells us--in multiple places--that Aventurine orchestrated his own circumstances so that he could gain an audience with Diamond and win a position within the Stonehearts by his own gambles.
First, let's re-examine that scene with Jade. One of the first things Jade says is "What kind of person would come up with a scheme [the Egyhazo fraud] that doesn't benefit them in any way?"
The takeaway from this is that Kakavasha did not actually stand to gain anything from scamming the Intelligentsia Guild into digging for Tayzzyronth's remains in the desert at Egyhazo. All he achieved with this fraud was putting himself at risk of being caught by the IPC.
Does that sound like Aventurine to you? The guy whose mantra is literally:
So obviously, Aventurine stood to gain something from scamming the IPC at Egyhazo. What could he possibly have wanted to achieve by creating a scheme that seemingly didn't directly benefit him? Well, he says it himself:
Aventurine wanted to be brought before the IPC. He got caught on purpose. He once again gambled with his own life, betting that, instead of being put on trial for all his past crimes, he could convince Diamond (though it ended up being Jade) to invest in him. The game literally tells you, in multiple places, that Aventurine was taking another one of his stereotypically crazy, potentially self-destructive gambles to try to achieve something:
Aventurine wanted the IPC to invest in him. He wanted in on their power and wealth. No one in the IPC forced him to target their organization not once but twice with his "desert-digging schemes" when it is clear that Aventurine could easily make money elsewhere. No one forced him to suggest this gamble with Jade to convince the IPC to invest in him. No one forced him to, in the words of the game itself, "seek a Cornerstone."
Aventurine's character stories are the only indications we have (for now) about what his motivations for joining the IPC might have been:
They suggest he joined with the intention of gaining wealth and power to help his people and others who aided him in the past--only to find out that that was no longer possible, invalidating his original reason for joining and likely leaving him without motivation or will to really even stay in the powerful position he had worked to get into. Part of his suicidality is likely linked to this--that he set himself a massive, unbelievable goal in an attempt to gain power and wealth to finally help his people--only to be entirely too late. But in any case, these character stories make it clear that he did personally seek to join the IPC of his own free will.
(And I mean, hello? The whole point of Jade as a character is being the one who sees people's desires and then grants them--ergo, Aventurine's desire was, in fact, to join the IPC himself.)
If we needed any more corroborating evidence for this, just consider everything post-Penacony, when Aventurine has decided that he does actually value his life now and wants to live. Aventurine would have had so many chances to "escape" the IPC if he so chose. First, he could easily have pretended to actually die within the Nihility. He could have entirely fucked off with Argenti's help, created a new identity, and made himself a pile of independent wealth from gambles, all without the IPC ever knowing where he went. But he didn't.
Then, he had a second chance to betray the IPC and fuck off again with Boothill's help. Boothill had already knocked out Aventurine's bodyguards at the door--there was literally no one else around. A little blood on the floor and no one would have doubted that the IPC-hating, wanted vigilante Boothill had done away with Aventurine.
Hell, Aventurine knows the Trailblazer. One word to the Trailblazer, and Aventurine could board the Astral Express and be whisked off to the other side of the universe.
But none of those things happened. Aventurine made no effort to remove himself from the IPC--even though he knew he had broken a Cornerstone and would be facing possible punishment. He didn't even make a single mention of trying to "escape" the IPC at all.
Because he isn't trying to.
(And edit, an addendum, because I kept seeing this on Twitter too: A bunch of people were claiming that because Aventurine wasn't smiling when he got his Cornerstone back, that was evidence that he hates the IPC and doesn't want to be there:
Like... did they forget that every single time Aventurine makes his major gambles, he has such anxiety that he can never convince himself to believe he'll actually win, to the point that the "Future" Aventurine accuses him of clenching his trembling hand beneath the table? Is it really that surprising that someone who never actually believes he's going to win would have a shocked face when he does win here, especially after witnessing the literal power of an aeon restore something he thought was broken forever? Come on now...)
Would the guy who always wins his gambles bet that he would get a promotion if he absolutely didn't want his job?
People really, really seem to struggle with this aspect of Aventurine's character, going out of their way to ignore the game's text and suggest that he definitely absolutely would never, ever have joined the IPC of his own free will. People really hate the idea that Aventurine is a morally-grey character who makes choices that are actively harmful to himself, like willingly joining an organization that is exploiting him.
Knowing that the IPC played a part in the Avgin extinction, people literally cannot fathom that Aventurine would willingly join them.
But I think that denying this part of Aventurine's character is bad. There's no need to reduce Aventurine to an innocent, helpless victim who is being exploited against his will and who would never do a single evil thing himself. That's not who the game is telling us he is.
The game tells us, repeatedly, that Aventurine is a survivor who will do whatever it takes to succeed at whatever he sets his mind to--even up to murdering innocent people to survive himself. Up to willingly joining the IPC to seek wealth and power. He's not a 100% good person who is still being forced through an existence he has no control over.
He's a self-destructive gambler who makes terrible choices with his own life, and willingly joining the IPC to let the Stonehearts exploit his abilities is one of the most obvious indications of that in the game.
Please stop denying Aventurine his complex, three-dimensional character writing to make him your pure, innocent trauma woobie. I'm begging people.
Claim #4: Aventurine wants revenge on Oswaldo Schneider.
Verdict: There's no evidence in the game (yet) that Aventurine is even aware of Oswaldo Schneider's role in the Avgin extinction, let alone actively trying to seek revenge for it.
Personally, this one hurts me the most, because this is where I'd like to see the story going. I want it to be that Aventurine was partially motivated to join the IPC specifically to orchestrate an inside job and get the Avgins' revenge on Oswaldo Schneider.
But even I have to admit that there's currently no evidence for this at all in the story.
For one, we have no confirmation in-game that Aventurine actually knows Schneider's direct role in the Avgin extinction. Aventurine clearly knows that the IPC could have intervened (he was there; he saw they didn't do anything), but we have no actual confirmation in the game's text that Aventurine knows Schneider told his people not to get involved, leading to the massacre. The only reason we players know of this is relic text, which isn't available canonically to characters in the game.
It is very likely that Aventurine is smart enough to figure this out or do the research to learn it, but as of right now, we don't have that confirmation in game.
Similarly, we players are given no access to Aventurine's actual conversations with Boothill. We have no idea what they talked about other than this one statement:
It seems likely, based on this, that Aventurine did say something to Boothill about being willing to go after Oswaldo Schneider, but we won't know for sure until the game reveals more.
What we do know is that even if Aventurine does give Boothill information on Oswaldo, it might not really be because Aventurine wants personal revenge.
Oswaldo's Marketing Development Department is basically the sworn enemy of the Stonehearts' Strategic Investment Department. The two groups are in an internal cold war, vying for "votes" from the seven board members who are actually leading the IPC.
So even if we see Aventurine taking actions against Oswaldo, it might not be because of a personal grudge, but because literally Aventurine's entire department hates Oswaldo Schneider's guts on principle in the first place.
So it's very difficult to say what is going on with Aventurine and Oswaldo Schneider at this point, and in the end, we just need to wait for more information.
Phew, all right! That was definitely long enough. I've gotten it all off my chest. I hope I've managed to give people some more canon material to chew on for another look at Aventurine's character, which is rich and complex and definitely cannot be reduced to simply "pure innocent victim babygirl."
Maybe now I'll be a little less salty when I see misinformation spreading like a wildfire again on Twitter.
Maybe.
Ha ha, who am I kidding.
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𝐍𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐘. / breakdown on her abilities. based heavily on personal interpretation.
content warning for written examples of self injury, p.sychological torture, not being in control of ones own body, of insect references, self-c.annibalism, g.ore & fatal injury. can avoid the bottom section descriptions if too much! they are simply examples. ♡
do refer to THIS POST in terms of interactions with her as she's request-only.
the vast majority of this is highly personally sewn together and integral to how i portray her. anyone i write with is free to reference ANY OF THIS to respond to anything i either send you from my nancy or in threads, plotting, etc! i am leaning into the fact that her canon ability is not normal in the slightest, you can call it a type of witchcraft or pact with a devil of some kind - who truly knows what it is or how she obtained it but herself.
mutuals are free to take any example from here ( or similar ) and run wild with it in responses with my portrayal of her! this is more or less to provide ya'll some context & guide in a sense on how she works with how i write her.
and of course, subject to being continuously updated. :)
𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆. nancy's capabilities of tracking are unnatural - she does not often use traditional means in order to follow her targets from the shadows. her tracking ability allows her, for a period of time, to see through the eyes of her victims, visualizing a rough image in her minds' eye of where they are on the vast sawyer property. her hearing in this state is HIGHLY SENSITIVE - she can hear noises from quite a distance away if she's able to concentrate without interruption.
𝐋𝐈𝐌𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒.
with nancy's tracking, she can only properly use this ability either when she is nearby her victim, or when they are within the confines of the entire sawyer - hewitt territories. by that i quite literally mean: every single inch, every acre, every building, every tree line, every field on their combined properties she is capable of tracking on. this is accomplished with a consistent schedule of, over the span of a weekend every so often, she must go around the entirety of the properties and re-mark rune-like symbols to encompass their land, re-strengthen those boundaries. if she does not freshen them up, its like a scent marker: it fades away, and the weaker it becomes the weaker her tracking becomes, the more blurred the image in her mind's eye shows her.
𝐏𝐇𝐘𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 & 𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐎𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐄𝐑.
her tracking does take a toll on her when she uses it - the drawback and deterrent from her overdoing herself. her mind becomes foggy, vision twisting and spinning the world around her. she becomes temporarily disoriented and must allow herself a few moments to recollect herself. she will often try to find one of sissy's wildflower poison stations scattered all over the properties to help regain focus and clarity. unlike the familys' victims, nancy has developed a high tolerance to venom and poison in many forms, something she does in her spare time. a hobby if you will.
𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐒.
relatively minor in respect to when nancy dabbles in a bit of possession, victims to her tracking - upon her taking over and then 'returning their eyes' so to speak' - will feel a sense of disorientation and confusion, dizziness and a brief moment of uncertainty of where they are. it passes fairly quickly however, they will know something isn't quite right with what they just experienced. its unsettling, unnerving, to have someone seemingly take control of one of your senses.
𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍.
𝐋𝐈𝐌𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒.
proximity to or visual on a victim is crucial for nancy to be able to possess. the closer she is, the stronger her hold is to the host. HOWEVER, nancy is capable of possession in alternate ways, should the victim not be nearby or in direct line of sight. mirrors, reflective surfaces like water can be utilized by her - so long as she has a clear view through it. mirrors are claimed to be gateways to the soul / the dead, and for nancy's unnatural abilities, she can use mirrors as a gateway in order to possess someone long-distance if necessary, so long as they are within view of a mirror. for example: how she manages to possess thomas all the way from hers and the sawyer properties to the hewitts? because he spends most of his time in the basement of the hewitt home - where he has a mirror on one of the support beams. so long as he is in view of that mirror from her end? she can possess him. the distance, however, does make it difficult to bounce back to her normal self when she stops, so its something she does carefully.
𝐏𝐇𝐘𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 & 𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐎𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐄𝐑.
possessing someone for nancy is a far more daunting task than simply tracking them. it uses up more physical energy than she cares for, especially in situations where she uses the possessed to inflict harm - be it on themselves or others. should the host be injured in any capacity as she is actively possessing them, she will suffer mirrored internal wounds - not nearly as bad as the hosts', but enough to make an impact on her own body. it is why she will prefer to use stronger, larger, tanking types of victims to latch her claws into. it will also take a while longer for her to grow re-accustomed to returning to her own body - refamiliarize herself within her own skin and organ. ( this is usually the best opportune time to kill her, if i'm being frank about it. ) otherwise, mid-possession, the only way to stop her from using another is to directly attack her own body - doing so, with enough force, will knock her back into her own.
𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐒.
those who nancy takes on as host during her possession are otherwise completely at her dispense, it is incredibly difficult for the host themselves to break free of her grasp once she's garnered control. many physically strong and strong of mind have crumbled under her control. as for side effects they may encoutner, it is a feeling of disconnect from their bodies for a period when she's ripped out of them. they feel lost, unfamiliar - radio static throughout their bones, waves of pain from any sustained injury hitting them in one solid blow. air feels sharp, cold, harsh and unnatural filling and expelling itself from lungs. it is like stepping into a skin suit that is not yours, despite it very much being so. it is relearning how your own body moves, feels things, sees things.
𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐔𝐂𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒.
𝐋𝐈𝐌𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒.
unfortunately, the only limitation to this is her proximity to you. at least, initially. the hell basement below nancy's house is one section of the large, intertwined tunnels system the family utilizes to travel across the expansive properties, where only she keeps access to - no other family is allowed in most of it. it is where her special victims are kept - until she bores of them, until there's nothing left of them. for nancy's psychological torment to really take hold, she must have unrestricted access to the victims over a prolonged period of time. to allow them to settle deep within their being, soak into every fiber. she, however, can passively cause hallucinations so long as the victim is within range / barriers of runes she has around the property, in the basement, fields, etc. THIS POST talks about it a little more - but, main example of a place set up specifically for this is the Dire Field of Hell behind the tall overgrown trees and brush right behind car battery exit on nancy's map. maria in her main verses especially knows what this is like firsthand. and it is what heavily haunts her in her wilted flower / shine again verses.
𝐏𝐇𝐘𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 & 𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐎𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐄𝐑.
there are none.
𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐄𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐕𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐒.
when they are actively being possessed: victims are fully conscious of the actions their bodies are forced to make. they are capable to feeling every little movement, every injury they sustain, every taste sight and smell that attacks their senses. they are fully aware of what they are being forced to do and yet they, physically and mentally, cannot do a thing to stop it. so, if they are alone at the time of possession? it will be very difficult to make it stop unless you can get to her. self-inflicting injuries not limited to: clawing at their skin, ripping off flesh with their own teeth / self-c.annibalizing, gouging their eyesockets, cracking their skulls open on any hard surface or with any blunt tool, d.isembowling themselves, repeated stab wounds, and so on.
for an idea of what could happen. you are in charge of your muse - you may go as wild as you wish with any affects on them caused by nancy. :)
all to be added upon as she develops ( can skip if needed! ) :
𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐔𝐀𝐋.
ie. seeing insects, animals, unknown creatures stalking up to you, crawling across skin, burrowing through each layer until hidden beneath. it is looking up at her ( or others ) and seeing skin rot as smile grows unnaturally across her face, slipping off bone and muscle, slopping on the ground between you or worse, on you if she leans close enough. it is watching as your own skin begins to decay before your eyes, before panic hits, and you find yourself having torn yourself apart to try and make it stop. it is seeing shadowed figures and creatures swarming all around you, peeking at you from behind and under and over objects. it is seeing people whose faces you know so well - and yet, uncanny, not them at all, and often appearing to you in horrific fashion: with head in hands, d.ecapitated, or blood spilling from deepened gash in throat.
𝐀𝐔𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘.
ie. distorted voices beside ears, whispers of curses, of taunts, belittlement, coaxes for you to plunge blade into gut, or to set enraged eyes upon another poor soul trapped across the way - restrained, while you are not; unable to move, while you can. it is screams - your own - echoing in your mind, forcing revisits of the moments that made them rip from your lungs in the first place. it is hearing scurrying and movement when there is nothing around.
𝐓𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐄.
ie. of organs twisting and moving, unnaturally bulging as if about to burst, snaking about in abdominal cavity as if about to eject from throat. it is of tiny legs crawling over and under skin, pushing and settling between openings of wounds, burrowing itself inside. it is feeling skin ablazed and blistering in spite of no flame, of pain so unbearable you simply must rid yourself of flesh it originates from. to be added at another time:
𝐎𝐋𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘.
𝐆𝐔𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘.
𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄.
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