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sticksandbones2024-03-01 09:09 am
sticksandbonesmods) wrote in sticksandbones2024-03-01 09:09 am
Entry tags:
EVENT & TDM 010
WOULD YOU STILL LOVE ME IF I WAS A WORM?
WAKE UP
Nothing ever stays the same in this place. The people who came here before you know that, and have known that, and are used to that. When you and the other new arrivals start to stumble out of the fog wall and the surrounding woods, it’s an expected thing. They see you. They knew you’d be here eventually. Perhaps someone will be kind enough to explain how you got here, and why you have such a splitting headache, and why you feel so paranoid. Perhaps the sudden sense of foreboding and doom is too much to handle. It feels unnatural. It feels like the emotions aren’t your own. And when a butterfly with eyespots almost too realistic lands on your hand, it’s nearly impossible not to scream.
“Don’t touch the fog wall.” That’s what you’re told, and whether it reaches you through the fog-induced paranoid haze or not is left up to your will and your will alone. That sense wears off within half an hour, at least, though there are still more questions than answers in this place.
For instance: What is that in the river, that monstrous crocodile with too many eyes that seems to be stalking everybody who comes too close? “The Behemoth”, they call it, and it only wants as much to do with you as you want to do with it. Come too close, and it backs up to continue watching you from afar. Attack it, and it fights back, unkillable and gargantuan in strength. Offer it meat, and it cautiously takes the food from your hand before diving into the river’s depths.
Alternatively, you might wonder what that stone creature on the church’s roof is, or what the story behind the shadow-people are, or why there’s a two-story tall, many-limbed moose monster wandering around that no one seems bothered by. Where is this?
This is Aldric’s Grove. And for better or for worse, it’s your new home.
“Don’t touch the fog wall.” That’s what you’re told, and whether it reaches you through the fog-induced paranoid haze or not is left up to your will and your will alone. That sense wears off within half an hour, at least, though there are still more questions than answers in this place.
For instance: What is that in the river, that monstrous crocodile with too many eyes that seems to be stalking everybody who comes too close? “The Behemoth”, they call it, and it only wants as much to do with you as you want to do with it. Come too close, and it backs up to continue watching you from afar. Attack it, and it fights back, unkillable and gargantuan in strength. Offer it meat, and it cautiously takes the food from your hand before diving into the river’s depths.
Alternatively, you might wonder what that stone creature on the church’s roof is, or what the story behind the shadow-people are, or why there’s a two-story tall, many-limbed moose monster wandering around that no one seems bothered by. Where is this?
This is Aldric’s Grove. And for better or for worse, it’s your new home.
CAT-TASTROPHE
cw: forced animal transformations
Although time blends together in this place and makes it difficult to tell the exact date, it’s easy enough to tell that it’s early in March when everybody wakes up feeling and looking… different.
You recall going to bed in your usual body. You recall, as you fell asleep, hearing a childish voice whisper in your ear, “I’m booooored. Let’s race!” You almost certainly do not recall being an animal no bigger than a large dog, almost unable to leave your bedroom because door handles are difficult to open with paws or claws or anything else. It’s lucky that the windows are easy enough to nudge open with snouts and beaks so that you can leave your bedroom and see what, exactly, is going on.
You aren’t the only animal. Everyone here is, too, creatures of different shapes and kinds, though all of them hail from Earth itself. The Guardians and shadowy merchant siblings are just as miffed as you are about this. “Here we go again,” they say, just as the last of you arrives at the Grove’s centre — and then it all goes dark. When you next open your eyes, you’re deep within the woods, where colourful flag markers on trees and a winding, long path indicates a race.
A long race. One that will last at least eight hours, assuming you use your time appropriately and don’t take too many naps in the trees along the path. Fret not: To ensure everyone participates in the race as expected, the Creature in the woods has sent an entourage of monsters after you, with too many eyes and gnashing fangs and claws the size of tree trunks. They’ll chase you down and try to eat you if they get their talons on you.
Use your time wisely, unless you want to meet an untimely demise.
Although time blends together in this place and makes it difficult to tell the exact date, it’s easy enough to tell that it’s early in March when everybody wakes up feeling and looking… different.
You recall going to bed in your usual body. You recall, as you fell asleep, hearing a childish voice whisper in your ear, “I’m booooored. Let’s race!” You almost certainly do not recall being an animal no bigger than a large dog, almost unable to leave your bedroom because door handles are difficult to open with paws or claws or anything else. It’s lucky that the windows are easy enough to nudge open with snouts and beaks so that you can leave your bedroom and see what, exactly, is going on.
You aren’t the only animal. Everyone here is, too, creatures of different shapes and kinds, though all of them hail from Earth itself. The Guardians and shadowy merchant siblings are just as miffed as you are about this. “Here we go again,” they say, just as the last of you arrives at the Grove’s centre — and then it all goes dark. When you next open your eyes, you’re deep within the woods, where colourful flag markers on trees and a winding, long path indicates a race.
A long race. One that will last at least eight hours, assuming you use your time appropriately and don’t take too many naps in the trees along the path. Fret not: To ensure everyone participates in the race as expected, the Creature in the woods has sent an entourage of monsters after you, with too many eyes and gnashing fangs and claws the size of tree trunks. They’ll chase you down and try to eat you if they get their talons on you.
Use your time wisely, unless you want to meet an untimely demise.
BURIAL OF ANCIENTS
The Creature is a big fan of participation awards. Whether you won the race against your peers, came in second or third or fifteenth, or died during the challenge, it matters little when the fog starts to pull back. That’s your reward for being forced to participate in a race you didn’t want to be part of in the first place, aside from the regular reward of going back to your normal body: you get to explore, and you get to explore a lot.
To the east and west where the river bends, the fog is no longer a blockade impeding progress. You can travel far in either direction by river raft, chart unknown territory, and get lost in the woods for as long as you desire. Though it will take three days to travel to the new “end point” in either direction, an offering of shells and fruits can be given to the River Guardian to be granted a travel boon that will decrease your travel time from three days to one. You’ll still have to camp out along the shoreline, but asking for that boon will ensure you aren’t gone too long.
Taking the river to the west leads you through an ever-darkening forest, marked on the banks and trees by blue-glowing mushrooms. The canopy here is so thick that the sun doesn’t shine through, making it twice as difficult to tell how much time has passed — and to see where you’re headed in general. At the end of the journey, the black fog wall comes back into view, as the river begins to widen into the beginnings of a lake. A lake, which you cannot yet reach, as you dock the raft and hop onto the shore.
Following the path leads you to a wide-open clearing with more of those glowing fungi and a strong smell of moss. In the centre of it lies a humungous skeleton half-embedded in the soil, so enormous in stature that one wonders how such a creature ever roamed this land. The inside of its skull alone is enough to build a moderately-sized house within, and have a lovely view of the lake behind the fog wall to go with it.
If you approach the lake’s edge, you can hear a soft song from within, beautiful and hypnotizing. It makes you want to walk into the fog wall. It makes you want to enter the water and drown in its depths. And if you don’t, if you get control of yourself, hundreds of sickly black hands slam into the wall again and again, desperately trying to reach you.
…
The next time you come out this far, all three Guardians are here, arguing with the thing in the lake in a language you can’t comprehend.
To the east and west where the river bends, the fog is no longer a blockade impeding progress. You can travel far in either direction by river raft, chart unknown territory, and get lost in the woods for as long as you desire. Though it will take three days to travel to the new “end point” in either direction, an offering of shells and fruits can be given to the River Guardian to be granted a travel boon that will decrease your travel time from three days to one. You’ll still have to camp out along the shoreline, but asking for that boon will ensure you aren’t gone too long.
Taking the river to the west leads you through an ever-darkening forest, marked on the banks and trees by blue-glowing mushrooms. The canopy here is so thick that the sun doesn’t shine through, making it twice as difficult to tell how much time has passed — and to see where you’re headed in general. At the end of the journey, the black fog wall comes back into view, as the river begins to widen into the beginnings of a lake. A lake, which you cannot yet reach, as you dock the raft and hop onto the shore.
Following the path leads you to a wide-open clearing with more of those glowing fungi and a strong smell of moss. In the centre of it lies a humungous skeleton half-embedded in the soil, so enormous in stature that one wonders how such a creature ever roamed this land. The inside of its skull alone is enough to build a moderately-sized house within, and have a lovely view of the lake behind the fog wall to go with it.
If you approach the lake’s edge, you can hear a soft song from within, beautiful and hypnotizing. It makes you want to walk into the fog wall. It makes you want to enter the water and drown in its depths. And if you don’t, if you get control of yourself, hundreds of sickly black hands slam into the wall again and again, desperately trying to reach you.
…
The next time you come out this far, all three Guardians are here, arguing with the thing in the lake in a language you can’t comprehend.
SHIMMERING COSMOS
To the east, another three days out (or only one if you ask for that boon), is a forest of sequoias that reach into the very heavens, and moose tracks the size of your inn rooms. Out here, there are no glowing fungi to guide your way, only the distant sound of the ocean and the smell of salt. The closer you get, the stronger both of those become.
At the end of the river where the fog wall yet again impedes progress, you hear a waterfall. It’s overwhelmingly loud, nearly impossible to talk over, but if anyone is with you, you’ll have to manage somehow. Behind the fog — only a scant few feet away — is the edge of a cliff, and a sheer drop into the sea. In the far distance looms the silhouette of a lighthouse, unreachable, and in the sea itself just barely visible behind that black wall, within a spiralling whirlpool…
…is the sleeping, peaceful figure of a serpent, scales glittering with stars. It doesn’t respond to if you call out to it. Perhaps it can’t hear you. Perhaps it doesn’t care. It is the stars fallen from the sky and the cosmos you haven’t seen since you’ve been here, immune to your plight, because what is a mortal but an ant to a God?
Even though the Cosmic Serpent can’t be reached, a sense of calm washes over you the longer you stay close to the sea. Before you head back home, why not take a nap against one of those tree trunks? Just be careful you aren’t asleep too long. A “nap” to you might seem like a small coma to everyone waiting for you to come back to the Grove.
At the end of the river where the fog wall yet again impedes progress, you hear a waterfall. It’s overwhelmingly loud, nearly impossible to talk over, but if anyone is with you, you’ll have to manage somehow. Behind the fog — only a scant few feet away — is the edge of a cliff, and a sheer drop into the sea. In the far distance looms the silhouette of a lighthouse, unreachable, and in the sea itself just barely visible behind that black wall, within a spiralling whirlpool…
…is the sleeping, peaceful figure of a serpent, scales glittering with stars. It doesn’t respond to if you call out to it. Perhaps it can’t hear you. Perhaps it doesn’t care. It is the stars fallen from the sky and the cosmos you haven’t seen since you’ve been here, immune to your plight, because what is a mortal but an ant to a God?
Even though the Cosmic Serpent can’t be reached, a sense of calm washes over you the longer you stay close to the sea. Before you head back home, why not take a nap against one of those tree trunks? Just be careful you aren’t asleep too long. A “nap” to you might seem like a small coma to everyone waiting for you to come back to the Grove.
SPARK NOTES
CLICK TO EXPAND!
WAKE UP
Welcome to Aldric's Grove. New arrivals walk out of the fog wall feeling paranoid because they touched the fog wall. There's a biblically-accurate crocodile in the river. Surely this is fine.
CAT-TASTROPHE
Everybody gets transformed into an Earth animal and thrown into a long race in which they'll be chased by monsters the entire time. Sounds fun, right? ...no?
BURIAL OF ANCIENTS
To the west is a dark forest marked with glowing mushrooms. Travel far enough out via river raft and you'll reach the edge of the lake and find the ancient bones of a humongous creature. Getting too close to the lake and listening to the thing behind it singing makes you want to walk into the fog wall and drown in the lake. If you don't do this, hands slam against the fog wall, trying to reach you. Sometimes the Guardians wander out here to shout at the thing in the lake.
SHIMMERING COSMOS
To the east is a forest of sequoias, with moose tracks between the trees the size of an inn room. The further you go, the closer you get to the cliffside, where you can hear a roaring waterfall just beyond the fog wall. Through the fog is the sleeping form of the Cosmic Serpent, and the lighthouse in the far distance.
OOC
Happy March! TDMs are considered game canon. If you'd like to plot with people for this event, head over to OOC plotting. We encourage exploration considering the sheer volume of setting updates this time, so if there's anything you want to explore in more depth, hit up this log's investigations toplevel.
UPDATES
❖ None yet!
SUBMISSIONS
Mjr. Motoko Kusanagi | Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex | New player!
Making my way downAround Town[Of all the places Motoko definitely wasn't yesterday, a forest definitely ranks high on the list. And the town that follows is almost painfully small compared to the skyscrapers and lights she's grown accustomed to. Still, it's pretty, in a way she's not too certain of yet. Something...quaint, maybe. Innocent like her cities could never be. Not when she knows what's underneath the lights, hiding in plain sight in front of them. Here, though...here it looks like if the neighbor's dog came home late it would be all over the town in an hour.
At least the headache is a quick fix. She's got enough to make her head spin as it is without that on top of it. The deja vu, though...that's harder to fight off. There's something in every step, every stone, every shadow that feels like it should remind her of something, but it dances away just as it comes into the edges of sight, frustratingly intriguing, infuriatingly curious. Another rabbit hole, but this time she's Alice.
And what is she supposed to do with that?]
No evidence of a hack or a virus...firewalls and attack barriers are intact...what the hell is this?
2. Actual Cat-tastrophe (before the race)
[If her eye could twitch, it certainly would be. A particularly irritated looking cat with dark purple fur and pinkish-red eyes apparently disagrees with her circumstances. Loudly. And often. To anyone who will listen, regardless of the fact that it only ever comes out as a hilariously tiny little "meow." Which, honestly, only makes her even more irritated. Attempting pets may be dangerous, but who can resist an adorable little friend like that? Even if she seems a little angry. And pointy.]
3. You do you fam
[aka the wildcard option!]
meant to tag earlier but works been Murder sorry- also, 2!!!
... Mood.
No worries! Totally get that believe me @_@
Because that's absolutely what this is.]
I take it you don't usually look like that either.
no subject
( she takes a tentative hop forward, but it doesn't feel right. )
This is... weird. The Forest's pulled it's tricks before, but it's never changed us like this.
( her fluffy little rabbit face wrinkles with distaste and she looks around. everything looks so much larger now, and it's terrible. and now that she thinks of it... she's a pray animal, isn't she?
well.
she hates that. )
You sound unfamiliar.
no subject
Apparently it decided to learn a new trick. [Old dogs. Or old trees.]
So do you.
no subject
( she shrugs noncommittally, before watching the major for a moment. )
Get a feeling for the tail first- it will help you balance, alongside your whiskers. Those are where a lot of your nerves are, so they'll be very sensitive- anything you can't fit the whiskers through, you can't get through.
IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN OLD LOGS WHAT AM I EVEN DOING HOW DID I MISS THAT OPPORTUNITY
Kusanagi. [There's not really a point to mentioning that she's just barely arrived, is there?]
I'll be fine. It's not the first time I've switched bodies. Just the first time it's been a cat.
HINDSIGHT IS 20/20
( THAT... SURE IS A WAY TO START, BUT OKAY FELICITY. she's pretty sure she's at least got a higher chance of being believed due to the fact that they are now a rabbit and cat respectively at least. )
This has included dropping us in a volcano, attacking with monsters, and whatever else it feels like.
;o;!!!!!!!!!
She's going to wake up, right?]
Opinionated, aren't we? Although if this is the welcome it has, I'm not surprised.
Re: ;o;!!!!!!!!!
( world's brattiest teenage witch, everybody! though she'll tell you it's justified. )
... I'll warn you that it's entirely possible to die in these 'games'. You'll come back, but... it still isn't pleasant. There's no telling what it's going to do with us like this, either.
no subject
Does "it" have a reason or does "it" just enjoy throwing tantrums?
no subject
no subject
It couldn't have been a little more creative?
no subject
( so like.
be careful what you wish for, sis. )
no subject
[She's right, but that doesn't mean Motoko's not mad about it.]
I don't know if I'm convinced this isn't all some dream.
no subject
( a dream, though, huh... felicity is quiet. she also does- but she thinks after the first death, one would wake up, right? ... kusanagi will figure it out on her own eventually, if she lasts.
theres a snap in the bushes. )
no subject
Who's there?
no subject
felicity feels so, so very small. )
Go through the bushes! It'll confuse our scent!
1 !
Unfortunately, it isn't either of those things. [Hey hi he overheard you.] Those, at least, are manageable, at least where I'm from. Welcome to Aldric's Grove, in any case.
[He sounds tired. He looks tired. There are bags under his eyes and they simply say "I have lived off of caffeine for three straight days", but that has less to do with the Grove and more to do with Gnosis as a person.]
Re: 1 !
How ominous. Do you have any good news or do you enjoy ruining peoples' days?
no subject
[He smiles. It's a joking one, at the very least. He doesn't want to ruin days today and that's what matters.]
The good news is: You're alive, it's Spring, and we have plenty of supplies for survival here, as well as a doctor and a few other people familiar with medicine. The people here are good, at least.
[Which is a fun way of saying: The supernatural things are not.]
no subject
I'm almost afraid to ask what the bad news is.
no subject
[Thanks Gnosis, that's super comforting.]
That's the shortest possible version I can deliver. If you're good at survival, you'll fit right in, at least. The crowd we've gathered so far are from desert wastelands or apocalyptic conditions. This is almost a vacation compared to where I'm from, from time to time anyhow.
no subject
[If nothing else, at least people trying to kill her isn't new.]
I suppose we'll see, won't we? It's been a while since my last apocalypse. Anything you can tell me to help even the odds?