EVENT & TDM 036

[sticksandbonesmods]

WAKE UP

Whatever you were doing, something doesn’t add up. For starters, you were most certainly not in this strange little village with a mishmash of cultures and strange animals everywhere. You might have been holding your weapon, yes, but maybe you weren’t- maybe you don’t even have one, and the heavy wooden beam or old pipe in your hands is foreign entirely. But as you stop to think, you also realize you were mid-swing, and someone stands before you; another fresh face being urged by whispers untraceable to fight? Or one of the villagers, alarmed and primed to defend themselves before your time seemed to stop and your mind awoke?

Even stranger, once you get that sorted out, is that the wildlife- all animals mixed with plants- are all nervous at best, actively frightened by something unseen at worst. Squirrels whose tails resemble hyacinths more than fluff and fur run through the trees chittering and shrieking, foxes and dogs with reeds and leaves and petals gently growing from their haunches bolt from place to place, alert and stanced for an attack before running off again. Getting too close to a warren may lead to something biting down on your feet.

Should you journey the distance to the beach- or use the Ark gate generously provided- even the Emerald Sea churns and roars violently, the cliffside whirlpool practically a hurricane beneath the sea. Something is amiss in Aldric’s Grove, and you are only the latest victims.

A LANTERN IN THE HANGING TREE

There’s something that wasn’t there before, one day. A dark, gnarled tree with a gaping hole in it- except the hole is pitch black, and a barrier stops you from entering despite the opening being large enough to walk into. Hanging from the almost-bare boughs are metal lanterns, all of them unable to be lit. As fog rolls in, so too does poor weather. It’s almost always raining, if not outright storming. Sometimes it lets up, but not for long.

The fog brings something else though. Golden lights wait in the fog, and approaching them sounds… incredible, actually? They do not move or give chase, but you may find them unavoidable regardless. Walking into the lights brings you to a memory, a scene from someone’s life… but not your own.

As it finishes, you might be where you’d just been standing, but there’s a slim chance you now stand before the owner of the memory; as if you’d walked there in a daze while lost in thoughts that aren’t your own.

With each light met by a villager, a lantern in the tree lights.

GUIDING BONDS IN THE DARK

It’s dark. It’s painfully dark even though your eyes are wide open. As you fumble around, hands outstretched for anything at all, your fingers catch on a metal curve. Instinctively, you slip it on your wrist- and as your sight returns, emotions that aren’t yours slip into your heart and mind. You aren’t alone, but maybe you will wish you were. A silver chain connects the bracelet on your wrist with your companion’s own before vanishing again, and if you try to put more than six feet of space between each other an invisible tug between you stops you. Removing the bracelet blinds you again, but if given the opportunity, wearing more than one overwhelms your mind to the point that you may as well be wearing none at all. Your powers are null, your weapons are not with you. The two of you are alone.

You find yourselves in a dark cavern of dirt and root. High above, a silvery blue light shines.You can hear rain hitting leaves and bark, water trickling down roots. Should you try to climb up, the roots shake you off themselves. Behind you is a solid wall. Ahead of you is a path to take, twisting and winding with ever shifting false routes and a chill in the air. There’s only one way forward.

As you traverse the labyrinth it will quickly become clear you aren’t alone. Something trudges through the caverns with heavy feet, stalking everyone within. Unlucky travelers will find themselves cornered by a minotaur looming over them, ready to fight and give chase- but it can be distracted by other travelers, or killed… temporarily, and it will come back with a vengeance.

Even outside of the minotaur there are other threats however. As you go from hall to room to hall, familiar scents and sounds creep in, all meant to invoke something you dread. Soon enough those scents and sounds will take shape, hunting you down just as fervently as the bull. Lingering in any space for too long also incites rising temperaments and lower inhibitions that you may struggle to shake off. Why would you? Smacking your partner for being a coward is so much more enticing. … Not just a smack. After all, about half-way through, when monsters born of your memories start to haunt the labyrinth too, you found your weapons, after all.

Your goal is to get to the center of the maze, while the maze wants to crush you with the minotaur, with memories of fear and regret, with its own rush of root and dirt while your emotions feed into each other, crashing against each other’s minds like ocean waves against a cliff. And should it succeed, should air leave your lungs one last time, you will not awaken in the Garden. This is a game, after all. No, as your companions filter into the center two by two, they will find you just barely breathing, strung up from the root, and the roots strung up in you. Plants grow from your flesh and blood, squeeze your lungs and heart. They may fade in a couple days, or you may well be corrupted by the Fallen Sun’s touch. You frame a single opening in the dreariness, but the sound of rain is louder than ever.

Little by little you make your way through, exiting from the gnarled tree strung in lanterns. The bracelets drop from your wrists and crumble to pieces. You’re free.

SOMBER RAINY MORNINGS

It’s been a trying month, and the rain does not stop. The lights do not dim, the lanterns in the tree do not flicker. All you can do is try to cope, in whatever way you can. And when something tugs at your mind again and the scent of dirt floods your nose, something roars in the distance.

The clouds in the sky are cut in half as a serpent made of the cosmos flies above, an iridescent rain falling from its body. Those corrupted in death will find themselves trying to avoid it, for its waters purify the rot in their bodies. Others may simply enjoy the warm beauty as the world seems to settle into a calm. The lantern tree seems to bloom and heal before vanishing into a flurry of petals, leaving only a few broken lanterns behind on the ground. Nene, the girl with flowers growing from her hair picks one up with a far-off gaze before returning to her cottage, leaving the rest behind.

Flowers begin to spring to life, embracing the warmer days of summer in the wake of spring, and gradually the wildlife begins to calm down.

For the first time in weeks, a sunny day awaits and the sky is stained with rainbows.

Spark Notes (Click to Expand)

summary

WAKE UP: New arrivals in Aldric's Grove arrive holding weapons, covered in blood, and most likely pointing them at someone. Surprise! On top of that, all the animals are on edge, and some might attack you if you agitate them or get too close.
A LANTERN IN THE HANGING TREE: A tree appears one day with hanging lanterns. Getting close to a golden light means that memories of others will enter your mind, and with each person who touches a light, a lantern on the tree lights.
GUIDING BONDS IN THE DARK: Within the labyrinth, everyone is connected by a bracelet and are therefore sharing emotions. Getting more than six feet apart will stop you from moving further forward, but without a bracelet, you'll be fully blinded in the maze. Your weapons and magical powers aren't with you, and threats loom around every corner.
SOMBER RAINY MORNINGS: To potentially cure the Corruption that some characters may have endured by dying in the labyrinth, the Cosmic Serpent rises from the sea to spew purifying rains across the Grove. Flowers bloom where the corrupted ground was healed, and you're given a break - for now.

out of character

Happy May! This is a reminder that TDMs are game canon. Current players in the game may redeem TDM AC this month (meaning: if you tag a new player/character and the thread reaches 5 comments from you, your AC is that entire thread for the month if you want). We'll find a better way to clarify this rule in the future and we're sorry for anyone it's confused in the past. Have fun with the event!

updates

Any potential updates, such as characters damaging something important or whatever else, will be put here.

submissions

❖ Questions
❖ May Plotting
❖ Past Life Plotting (Closed to Game Members)
❖ Investigations

code

Comments

[warchiseled]

[Mydei let out a slow, steady breath.

He turned his head to glance at where the voice was coming from, eyes narrowing on the figure in the tree before he allowed himself to drop his arms. The red crystals slowly cracked and turned into dust, raining down around him and covering the ground.]

Who are you? Where is this?

[chonomai]

( she takes the time to observe his stance, and those... crystals. her crow, perching in a nearby tree, does not warn of demon activity, or she might have suspected those to be blood demon arts.

her playful smile takes on a rueful tone. )

I am Shinobu Kocho, and you are the latest victim of what can only be described as an interdimensional kidnapping. This is Aldric's Grove, our home for the time being. I've been told the woods are where our enemy lies, but it is foolhardy to charge in recklessly.

[warchiseled]

[Those sure were words that had never been strung together in his presence before.

Who in their right mind would try to kidnap him?]

... My name is Mydei.

[She gave him her name; it was only polite to do the same.

Even if he looked like he was the personification of ???]

I fear you will need to explain that a little more, Lady Shinobu. What do you mean by "interdimensional kidnapping"?

[chonomai]

( oh, with his demeanor, she hadn't expected such respect. it's not entirely unfitting, given that she had kept a mansion and was essentially a general, so she issues no correction. instead, she shifts as if gesturing to the village around them. )

Almost all of us are from different worlds, different universes- and in some cases, the same world but a different era. A fallen God has reached through time and space, plucking us from whenever he pleases- even from death, in some cases. Some, from my understanding, have been trapped here for three years now.

[warchiseled]

[Somehow... this explanation made as much sense as anything else he had heard.

The Gods were always using mortals as toys, after all.]

I see.

[He glanced around them slowly, taking in the trees and village before looking at her once more.]

Any reason for this? Or just entertainment?

[chonomai]

Entertainment, sadism and an irrational resentment.

( said so primly, at that! though, her face falls into a grimace. how to explain this...? )

The full reason is... hard to swallow. I'm willing to tell you, but it is very overwhelming. If you'd like to wait until you've adjusted some, I understand.

[warchiseled]

Hmph.

[He's lived his whole life in a series of bad news.]

Please, I would like to understand the circumstances of where I've been, as you say, kidnapped to.

[A last flick of his wrists lets the final trickles of the crystals fall off of him. He crosses his arms over his chest to have something to do with his arms. Considering she was in a tree and he was on the ground and they were talking across nature like this.]

Thank you, regardless, Lady Shinobu. I appreciate you taking the time to explain it to me.

[chonomai]

( shinobu lets herself drop to the ground, like a leaf gently floating down as the butterfly wings of her haori flare out, before she closes the distance properly. compared to him...


she is very short.

she's not bad about it its fine. )

From my understanding, this town was once preyed upon by our captor, a fallen god who'd been mistakenly set free- though it could not leave the forest, it could trap it's playthings alongside it. For years, it tormented the town and killed people off slowly. Eventually the village came to a decision: they were going to die regardless, but it could be on their terms, and they would not empower their tormentor with their final moments becoming it's power.

They cast a ritual that would when finally killed, scatter their souls across dimensions, far from it's reach.

It has called the souls of it's lost prey back... through us.

[warchiseled]

[Throughout how life, he had always thought that the Strife Titan's madness would be the worst thing he would witness a God do.

The torment, abuse and horror Nikador bestowed upon the world was the tantrum of a God gone Mad.

This one seemed bored.

Which... Was worse.]

Has anyone that has been brought to this place left?

[chonomai]

As far as I am aware, no- but I've only been here for a few months now. ... Though, if you see a woman with long white hair and a lily in her hair... at the start of this month, something strange happened. It was as if she'd been changed, somehow. She might know something.

( she tilts her head in thought for a moment, frowning. )

Miss Lily helped me a lot when I first arrived, so I hope that she's okay. She hasn't told me anything, though.

[warchiseled]

[His head hurt.]

Does that happen often here? People changing?

[Every new piece of information she gives him, leaves him just looking like ??????]

[chonomai]

Not that I've noticed, but again, I've only been here for a few months. There's a lot I haven't seen, I'm sure.

[warchiseled]

I see. Thank you for the information, Lady Shinobu.

[Now, what the fuck he was going to do with it was an entirely different question.]

You said there was a village, correct?

[chonomai]

Of course.

( yeah, good luck with that, buddy. )

There is, though admittedly, "village" is putting it kindly. There's about 44 of us, if I last counted correctly...

( it's really more of a hamlet. )

The people seem to be kind for the most part, though you'll meet a few who may look very strange if you're not used to it.

[warchiseled]

[44 is a small village! Where most people and left for war!]

In what way?

[He had met a lot of people in his time with the Detachment, he doubted much would surprise him.

Unless there was some kind of sentient plant or something. That would be surprising.]

[chonomai]

Several people have horns or animal features, though they are still human. There are also demons, though both here are on watch from their respective hunters, myself included, to ensure they don't harm humans.

( even if akaza has been... behaved, and mystery died on her blade for the village. )

Oh, and I believe 'demon' to be a discriminatory term for one of the men with horns, who is not one.

[warchiseled]

[Alright...

So...

Totally normal and definitely not weird.

He had met people with animal features before, though he doesn't think he's met demons. Do Black Tide creatures count as demons? They were corrupted Titankin... So maybe? What really qualifies a person to be a demon?]

So you are a protector then, Lady Shinobu?

[chonomai]

I am, yes. I am the Insect Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, the highest rank one can be as the pillar of the way of Insect Breathing. Breath Forms are guiding breathing techniques that influence the way we move and attack.

Several of my fellow Hashira are also here! Kyojuro Rengoku of Flame, Tengen Uzui of Sound, Sanemi Shinazugawa of Wind and Muichiro Tokito of Mist. They're a colorful lot, but... Mm. ( she thinks for a moment. ) Rengoku, at least, is personable. The rest... can be if it suits their mood? But they will be good allies regardless.

just now that Mydei is looking at her like ???

[warchiseled]

[Those were a lot of words used in a sentence that made no sense to him.

But that's alright, different tribes had different techniques for their warriors to follow. If anything, it fascinated him to meet someone with such a vastly different perspective and knowledge of their art.]

What does that entail, exactly? This... way of the Insect Breathng. If you are able to tell me, of course.

hes only little (hes one of the oldest people in the grove if u count the timeloops)

[chonomai]

I focus my breathing to mimic the movement of insects as I observe them, which regulates my blood flow and influences my movement. This can help me practically float... or to launch myself at an enemy with the force and precision of an angry wasp, among other things.

Take a swing at me, and I can show you better than I can possibly explain it.

[warchiseled]

[That was definitely something new. He has not heard of other tribes that had harnessed such a power or technique, but he was definitely curious, and it was clear on his face.]

If you're sure, Lady Shinobu.

[As if he was ever going to say no to a fight, or a spare... or in this case a demonstration of power.

Mydei himself was fast. One second, he had been casually standing there, and the next, he was rushing at Shinobu, ready to strike her with his fist.

Though he wasn't truly trying to harm her. This was a demonstration after all, not an actual fight.]

[chonomai]

( oh, he could match her fellow hashira- though she's fast, she's not the fastest. she smiles serenely, inhales and

when he meets where she'd been standing she leaps back in a blink of an eye, practically floating several feet in the air like a butterfly before she is behind him just as quickly, like the surge of a dragonfly, a gentle tap to his chest with the sheathe of her sword marking where she would have stung had this been a real fight.

the sound of wings buzzing can be heard for a moment in her movements, but it's gone just as quickly. )

Most of my opponents don't make it past this much. An insect is known for their venom, after all.

[warchiseled]

[There is an excitement in his expression as he turns to face her.]

That is truly incredible, Lady Shinobu.

[He lowers his hands so they are no longer in a fighting position and turns his full body towards her. It was definitely impressive, not just her speed but her movements.]

I have never met someone with an ability such as yours. At least, not taught the way you have learned. You have the steps of someone who follows the Titan of Trickery, and a speed that matches that of Lady Cifera.

[chonomai]

( titan of trickery? lady cifera? neither ring a bell in any sense, but he clearly means it as praise- so she'll take it as such, even if she does pout a little internally about being compared to a trickster. she's very up front about her poisons! )

I'm flattered. Truth be told, I'm not sure I could teach another the way of Insect Breathing. It requires a certain size, speed and weight that not everyone meets.

[warchiseled]

It would not surprise me. It seems like a specialized skill.

[He is probably far too large to be able to learn such a skill. A shame, really. But he's not upset about it.]