sticksandbones | EVENT 015

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EVENT 015

BUY MORE CRYSTALS

COME RAIN OR EVEN MORE RAIN

Today, progress has been made in the Grove. The sun shines brightly on the cleaned-up remains of what used to be the “Burned Town”, now lovingly just called “north” for lack of a better term. At night, a small handful of stars finally shine in skies that have been empty for millennia, and birds sing loudly throughout, overjoyed now that they’ve felt the stirring of the long-dead Sky Guardian. All is peaceful. All is right with the world.

…and then there’s the sound of familiar, watery laughter from the Lake Guardian himself, having returned to the Grove for whatever reason he could possibly have, standing by the well and performing a jaunty dance on his scrawny legs. He spins around the well once, twice… and then the skies darken and the clouds swell, and suddenly it’s raining buckets, soaking you and everyone else to the bone immediately.

“It’s a gift for freeing me!!” Callan shouts joyously, unaware of the fact that gifts are usually nice things and not biblical floods. “Enjoy it!!”

Well, it seems like this will be the rest of your month. The rains don’t abate at all, but they do come with one gift that actually seems worthwhile: Any plant that stays out in the rain for long enough will suddenly spring out of the earth at gargantuan size. Enjoy your giant crops — they’re still edible! — and your flowers the size of pillows, everyone.

FURNITURE STRIKES BACK

If staying out in the rain isn’t exactly your thing (who could blame you, really?), you might consider heading back inside and spending some nights in. It’s been a while since everyone had a break without being exposed to water for way too long, and what better way to spend a night than curled up in bed in a nest of blankets?

As you drift off to sleep to the serene sounds of the river flooding, there’s a sudden loud bang, like someone slammed a door. You open your eyes and don’t see a thing… so back to bed you go, only to hear it again. This time, as you lurch out of bed and desperately try to figure out who the hell is slamming doors this late, you’ll see your door opening and slamming itself. Opening again, and slamming. Soon after, the windows follow, and as you rub your eyes, your bed suddenly bucks and throws you to the floor.

Cool. Phenomenal. What just happened?

Perhaps you go to the inn couch to try sleeping there, but alas, the old couch has had enough of you and will summarily flip you back onto the floor, losing its cushions in the process. If you turn your anger toward the furniture, it will — strangely — attack you right back, chasing you down on bizarrely-animated legs that furniture simply should not have. The coffee table might bite, or the cabinets might start flinging cups at you.

If you are patient, however, and if you clean the furniture off — wash the pillows, scrub that mustard stain out of the cushions, sew up a hole your dog chewed into the mattress — it will stop throwing a tantrum. Finally, you can use furniture for its intended purpose.

GET (GEM)STONED

A bit of raw chaos in Aldric’s Grove is not uncommon; perhaps furniture unionizing and non-stop downpours are the least of your concerns in quite some time. After all, you’re not trapped anywhere. You aren’t underwater, you aren’t playing in some twisted life-or-death game, no one is making the passage of time here any worse than usual…

Of course, if chaos is preferable to true horror, you can always have more of it. On your bedside table or under your pillow, you’ll find a drawstring bag containing a small handful of polished gemstones. As you hold them in your palm or between your fingers and inspect them under the light, you’ll feel something within you stirring.

Perhaps you’re holding rose quartz, the gemstone that symbolizes unconditional love, and you suddenly feel empty and loveless. Perhaps it’s amethyst, the gemstone attributed to calm emotions, and yet you’re feeling the most anxious you’ve ever felt in your entire life. Whatever the gem may be, its meaning is now inverted, and you get to suffer the effects of it.

Luckily, this curse — a gift from, who else, the Fallen Sun — can be broken quite easily. Simply clutch the gemstone in your palm and perform an act that embodies its true meaning, and everything will be back to normal. You’ll be holding a mundane rock to do whatever you want with, including throw it into the forest in hopes that it hits the Fallen Sun in his big, stupid head.

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW

When the rains stop at the month’s end, the clear skies yet again show the stars, and it’s a beautiful sight to behold. It’s no galaxy, even with every light in the Grove off so you can see them all — but it’s special nonetheless, especially to those who have been here under an empty sky for so long. The moon itself feels like it casts joy down upon everyone, and a sense of overwhelming peace settles like a blanket over the entire settlement.

Should you visit Ydalir or Heimr at all, they will both encourage you to spend a night camping out, providing you blankets to lie out in the grass with. While it isn’t much, Ydalir has pulled an old telescope from her mirror for those of you who want to nerd out a bit. Snacks, tea, and hot chocolate will be provided to anyone staying out for the night, too. For better or for worse, you’re all here together, so why not bask in a moment of peace?

SPARK NOTES

CLICK TO EXPAND!

COME RAIN OR EVEN MORE RAIN

Callan is giving gifts as all Guardians do. His gift... is a whole tempest. Luckily, the plants will get massive from this. Enjoy your giant produce and flowers!

FURNITURE STRIKES BACK

What could go wrong if the furniture went on strike? Surely it won't toss you out of bed or buck you onto the floor or try to bite you. ...oh, well, if that's the case, you might want to give it some TLC so that it stops.

GET (GEM)STONED

The Fallen Sun's "gift" to the residents is a lovingly-customized bag of rocks. Each stone represents some kind of meaning, but that meaning will be inverted and make you feel the opposite effect from it. To break the curse, all you need to do is clutch the gemstone and perform an act that it originally embodies.

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW

Finally, the rains clear up, and Heimr and Ydalir are encouraging everyone to stare at the night sky. It's beautiful with those few stars in it, isn't it?

OOC

How is it already August?? We don't know either. OOC Plotting Lives Here if you'd like to plot anything out! If you need rocks randomly assigned to you for the gemstone portion, head there and drop us a comment, we will give you rocks.

UPDATES

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(CODE)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

There are many safe paths, even if they're a little small sometimes. You just have to have the golden glasses! They're twisty, windy little things but you could feasibly visit all three shrines and the church if you so desired.

[Alcaid makes a funny noise between a chirp and a hamster speaking in tongues, which is to say they are happy to receive pets from Mizuki.]

I’m fine. Besides, this is way more productive than sitting around my room feeling sorry for myself, you know?

[Dipper looks at the marks Mizuki makes, nodding before heading off in the direction of their first stop.]

[After a moment he suddenly gets the idea to try something. His telepathy is usually limited to people he knows so...]

Hey, can you hear me?

[ Cute... Mizuki beams a bit at Alcaid, then follows Dipper as they officially embark on their journey.

When Dipper goes poking around to try and communicate with Mizuki in his head, he'll be immediately met with... just a whole ocean's worth of noise. No real words, just the sound of being underwater and... music? Singing. If it's in a language, it's not one that Dipper knows. Occasionally, there's a growl or gurgle thrown in, but it sounds lovely, if... also very overwhelming. Fortunately, it's a little muffled for Dipper, but it's a bit like if someone were in an orchestral hall with three different beautiful songs being played at the same time. Somehow, they're harmonic, and yet, so dizzying.

Mizuki's voice will, at least, cut through the noise. ]

Oh? Dipper? Is that you?

[Huh. That's some interesting mental feedback he doesn't think he's ever gotten before. Kind of reminds him of the Pthumerian ocean... but a little more active? That seems like something that would overstimulate him easily.]

Yep! Sorry if that was sudden, I wasn't sure if it would work or not. I have some telepathic ability, so you should be able to reach out to me now if that makes it easier.

[Especially if they get separated or something makes it so they can't see each other for Dipper to see his signing.]

You're just full of surprises, aren't you~? What other fun secrets are you hiding??

[ Surprisingly, the singing does get quieter when Dipper talks, a gradual hush of the noise. Other than the constant, ever present sound of the deep ocean. But that sound alone is almost suffocating if it's focused on too long. ]

You don't have to apologize, it's alright. I appreciate it, even. I'm still not super fluent with my sign yet.

Haha, probably a lot less than you think, since you've seen the inside of my brain. My uh, my powers are very mind-like? brainy? There's a very fine line between the dreamscape and the mindscape, after all.

[What he's good at doing and what he probably has the potential to harness is a wiiiiiiiide gap, and its not one he's so sure he should close. He's coming around to it, though, if just to keep the Dream Mess from last month from happening again.]

Oh! Okay, good. I'm glad. I know that stuff can seem kind of ...invasive? I try to be mindful of that.

Ohh, okay. That makes sense. My stingers contain potent neurotoxins and pheromones that cause hallucinations. So we're both kind of mind-y!!

[ S...sort of... Mizuki is quite literally just the moon tarot card personified. ]

Is it? That's weird. I prefer this. It's what I'm used to~.

Oh yeah, in theory I can do something like that, too? It’s only ever happened when something’s knocked my powers out of control, but “Inducing Hallucinations” is on the docket.

[Beasthood!Dipper could use it to actively fuck with the people it was hunting but that is not something he brings up. Instead they will continue to bond over having weird powers, yes. Wholesome eldritch kid bonding.]

Cool, noted. And yeah I’ve …unfortunately dealt with some monsters that could take full advantage of powers like this to do some pretty reprehensible stuff. That’s why I guess I’m always a little hesitant about testing what I can do.

Oh? Really? I haven’t. [ said the god of a hivemind who doesn’t know he’s the god of a hivemind— ] But yeah, I try not to use my hallucinations unless I’m using it against an enemy. Even then, I try to use it sparingly, or if I know I’m gonna eat that person. It tends to drive people mad, I’ve noticed? Ehe…

I get it, though. I don’t think anyone would look down on you for it here, for what that’s worth. We all know you’re a good kid. And if they can forgive me for being Seaborn, they’ll definitely forgive you for having cool as heck powers~!

It feels like …having powers like this means having a lot of responsibility to use them the right way. It’s a lot of pressure. I’m not so sure I would call myself a good kid, but. Thanks, for that.

[It means a lot that no one here apparently thinks he’s awful. Especially when it feels like he’s constantly staring down the worst case outcome when he thinks about Bill. He absently rubs at his arms. He no longer has the scars from the forks, but he’ll never quite shake off the feeling of having them.]

Hey, can I uh, ask about the Seaborn thing? I’m not exactly sure what it is. It’s okay if not, though. I’m just curious.

If you're ever unsure, it's probably for the best to just assume to keep it to yourself. That's sort of the philosophy I've been having to utilize, but even then, if I'm being honest, I'm not that good at it. There's a reason I need a commander to function.

[ He shrugs a bit. It's not a big deal for him since he's never had an issue with it, personally. Then again, most of the people he's had in his life have been... genuinely good people. So this is all kind of new territory for him. ]

Hm? Of course, We don't have anything to hide. [ The voices, the other ones, are suddenly back! And they are much, much louder than before. Clear. Crisp. Like there's actually a handful of people speaking directly into Dipper's ear. There voices are still sing-song and melodic, but they choose to speak English now: ] W h a t w o u l d y o u l i k e t o k n o w ?

Is this the same idea as "Its easier to ask for forgiveness than permission?" I mean, I guess that's pretty fair.

[Then again, keeping that kind of thing to himself means he's got nothing to compare his decisions against, which means he might not know if he's doing right or wrong and sometimes!!! Sometimes that choice is very hard! Sometimes he can lose his grip on that without realizing. Like when his sister caught him constructing personal nightmares for someone he was super pissed off at.]

[Anyway, that all stops when the We Many pipe up and Dipper goes very still from surprise. He isn't sure what he expected, but it sure wasn't that! The gears are starting to turn, though, as he pieces some stuff together.]

Whoa! I uh. Wow. Um. Hey, there.

[Oh god he's been put on the spot.]

I guess, I'm just curious ...Seaborn are in the river, right? And there were some in the tank with me while I was recovering. Are all of you guys like, connected?

Sort of the opposite of that, actually. [ He simply means that “If you don’t know if you should do it, then you probably shouldn’t do it.”

Anyway, yes, We Many are here. They’re always here, though, so that’s unsurprising. Weirdly, the other voices sort of just… sound akin to Mizuki? Perhaps because Dipper is in head. Mizuki’s never really been able to discern what thoughts are truly his and which were not, after all. Which is why Mizuki seems not at all fussed about this. For Dipper, though? It might be a lot easier to tell… ]

Of course. We’re often referred to as a “collective”. We’re hiveminded with one another. We can share information easier this way.

[ Dipper might be able to passively note this, as there’s the occasional singing in the background. It’s still in a language he doesn’t recognize, but the inference can be made all the same. ]

Edited (It’s 7 am time for typos) 2024-08-16 12:27 (UTC)

[Oh, huh. So, Mizuki is suggesting he leave well enough alone when not sure of the moral ramifications. What a strange, novel concept he hasn't considered. Interesting!]

[Anyway there's this thing going on right now that has Dipper's attention. The word "hivemind" had crossed his mind but having Mizuki, or perhaps the We Many, basically confirm it is sure startling. Is there a point where they end and Mizuki begins? Is it less cut and dry than that? Is it- well, no, it's definitely different than Oscar's situation, because there isn't a full assimilation but rather several joined together, which is what Dipper is putting together after the moments of listening to them.]

[Frankly it is kind of horrifying! To think of being in this situation! But Mizuki doesn't seem bothered? Or even worried...? He has a lot of questions but he tries to vet them before just blurting out something insensitive. While he does keep his thoughts clamped down while he does this, it should be clear to Mizuki though that Dipper's got like 756947038495 thoughts cycling in his brain for a few moments.]

Is this something Mizuki is cool with? Like- I'll admit, I don't have a lot of experience with this sort of thing, so this might sound really ignorant, but I do have experiences with ...millennia-old eldritch superghosts absorbing the souls of people into a single entity until those identities disappear entirely. This doesn't seem like that, but like, Mizuki's my friend so I am a little concerned? Maybe this is all super normal for you guys and I'm being a worrywort.

I guess I'm also friends with a guy who is a cursed sentient sword and a grass demon and like, that was just who he was! [Fern was a little murderous sometimes but he was normally a pretty cool guy.] I think I'm rambling so I'll shut up now, sorry, sorry!

Pfft- Of course I'm alright with it. We Many is the only reason I'm alive today. That, and I like to think someday We will be able to coexist with everyone.

[ Mizuki shuffles up to Dipper to walk by him and gently nudges him. ]

We... mmh... It's hard to explain? I can do my best, but... the "Mizuki" you've known is still Seaborn. Always has been. Me being a part of the collective isn't a bad thing, to me. Other people might disagree, but... I don't mind. It's nice to have Us always here with me. It's not lonely.

[ There's a brief pause before the voices, melodic and intimidating, seem to speak against Dipper again: ] W e a r e t h e c o s m o s , t h e s e a , t h e s k y . W e a r e o n e w i t h a l l . B u t n o t a l l - c o n s u m i n g , a s t h o s e a g a i n s t u s m a y t h i n k .

[Oh, he will settle down a bit once he is nudged. He listens very intently to what Mizuki says and then of course, he listens to the voices of We Many.]

[Eventually he nods. Understanding enough of the situation that he isn't worried. Well, he will always be worried. He is worry personified, but that's like, baseline Dipper Worry and not something worse.]

Okay, man. I just wanted to make sure. Thanks for sharing it with me, though.

[He offers him a bright, friendly smile.]

It feels like I know you a little better now, and that's cool.

We're fine with sharing. There's nothing really to hide about Us. The issue is that people don't always agree, so it's hard to gauge when We can talk about stuff or not. Everyone here seems to have been okay with it, though. Sans Irene - but you never met her.

You're free to ask questions about it if you would like to know more when we're not exploring through the forest.

[Dipper can kind of see why people would be not okay with it, honestly. There's a lot of crazy implications that most normal people would be flipping out over. Dipper, had he been a few years younger might have had a way more drastic reaction, but he has since met many kinds of people with different ideas of identity and its ultimately not up to him to make a generalizing assumption about Mizuki's situation. Mizuki seems perfectly cognizant and is fine and happy with who he is, so that's all Dipper needs to know.]

[Of course, should that change--]

I'll definitely take you up on that later.

[Anyway its true, they do have an adventure to go on!! Let's hit the first star shrine, shall we?

Edited 2024-08-22 18:11 (UTC)

As the two of you walk and talk, the path seems to grow a bit wider. Keen eyes may notice little stone lanterns hidden between roots and bushes, shedding a soft light that chases the corruption and fog away, leading all the way up to a little white marble shrine nestled into what appears to be an old weeping willow tree... if willow trees grew tiny white flowers that seemed to shine in the night. The way the lanterns are positioned make it seem like it's going up a set of stairs to it, and the little shrine shines brightly, a soft cool blue.

What will you do?

[ Mizuki will just wholeass walk up to the flowers with 0 whole fear and reach out to grab one of the stems. He'll sort of gesture to the flower, then to himself, silently asking if he can pick it. He wants to bring it back to Moder to eat- ]

[Dipper is also taking a moment to sketch out the shrine, the tree, and the little lanterns for his journal but also. He has a camera so he'll be taking some actual photos. Mizuki do you want a selfie...]

[Ah but the real reason he's here is to check for any writing, especially if its in the language that matches his decoder.]

The flowers smell incredibly sweet and the glow may remind them of Revati, if they've met the little hedgehog. There's no reprecussion to picking a flower, but the tree does not answer... not entirely, anyways. Mizuki will feel curious eyes watching him.

The lanterns are very small, and very pretty. The light here also feels like Revati's aura. There's no writing on them, but if the approaches the temple he'll recognize part of it from his decoder. It comes in two parts- the original language, and then a series of corresponding images.

Something's watching him now, too!

And launching itself directly into his stomach at mach speed with a gleeful cry.

SOMEONE'S HERE! SOMEONE'S HERE YOU'RE HERE YOU'RE HERE!!! HELLO!!!!!

[ ?? Plucks the flower and puts in his bag while that's happening. It's probably fine - if there was danger here, he's pretty sure he'd have picked up on it, right? ]

[Screams at a volume only dogs can hear]

[ Haha..... ow- ]

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