TDM 001

[sticksandbonesmods]

INTO THE WOODS

WAKE UP

Whatever you remember last, something interrupts - be it a fight, a test, a walk, or death itself. All you can recall is a childlike voice (or was it voices?) asking, "Do you want to play with me?" before everything stopped. Your eyelids feel heavy, and the surrounding air is chilled. When you wake up, you and the others find yourselves standing in a makeshift plaza on a foggy morning. In the very center is a well. The water within is cold and clear as can be.

Surrounding the clearing is a ring of what looks to be the foundations of buildings never finished, save for two rather large ones and a smaller one. Only the small building has any light shining from the windows. One is labeled as an inn but has no name, and the other is an imposing, large manor with a red dog quietly scratching at the door. Given the indents on the wood, he's been at it for a very long time. Beyond the buildings is the start of a forest, though it quickly fills up with a fog so thick you can't see through it at all.

The smaller building is simply signed as a general store. A thick figure stands in the doorway, layered in brown and dark red cloaks that cover most of his body, save for brown worker's gloves and his pants. Two blue lights shine from the shadows where his face would be, and they shift as they watch you... before he turns around and takes his seat at the counter of the store. It's open, but he doesn't seem too thrilled.

There's a gap in the fog in the south east corner of it all, and you can hear the flow of water if approached. Trying to force your way through the fog lets you move forward four feet before you hit an invisible wall, while trying to go up- be it flight or climbing- sees you thwarted twenty feet above the canopy with a similar experience. Those above will see only the tree tops and a dense, heavy fog, and a cloudy, cold sun-lit sky. Through your explorations, you can find the start of a gate almost opposite across the clearing of the river, with a somehow familiar sign hanging from it:

Welcome to Aldric's Grove.

THE INN

The inn is just as empty as the rest of the grove, save for the shopkeeper. Four rooms on the first floor are locked, and won't budge even under force, and their keys are missing from the clerk's counter. On the bright side, there are remaining keys, free to claim - keys to the store rooms, too. The kitchen is large, as one might expect from an inn, but the kitchenware seems a touch out of date, by anyone's standards. The pantry has enough to feed the lot of you for a time, fresh food and vegetables and dried or cured meats, alongside spices and herbs. One could bake if they were so inclined.

There's a lounge room as well, just before the stairs. All the furniture was pushed to the wall for what can be presumed to be cleaning, if the empty bucket and dry mop is anything to go by. In the center of the far wall is an empty fireplace, but there's no firewood to be found.

Upstairs are more rooms, accessible only with keys. It's not perfect, but it's at least a place to stay. There's a bed for two, a small table by the window, a dresser and closet, a very small stove and a private bathroom to each, but everything seems bare... at a glance.

The worst of it is that you know the layout. You've been here before- or... no, that can't be right. Surely you would remember a place like this. Right?

THE RIVER

"What you take from the river, you must return." That's what the Shopkeeper says, if you stop by the store before going to the river.

The water rushing over rocks can be heard even from the distance of the grove itself, but upon approach it only seems louder. From what can be seen, the fog has only receded enough to grant access to 30 yards of the river and it's matching banks- after that, only fog and unusually thick bramble patches remain and block off passage on land or water. At it's deepest, the water is four feet deep and the current seems gentle. Fish can be seen swimming through the water, and objects glitter beneath the sand and mud.

Along the riverbanks, scales, small bones and teeth and strange coins marked with canines litter the ground. Keen eyes will note that some of the bones and teeth are that of animals, and some are that of humans. Some, however, are impossible to identify.

Stepping into the water feels relaxing. It's cold yet inviting. The fish swirl around your ankles before darting away, and just for a moment, everything seems like it will be okay.

On the other hand, when trying to cut through the brambles, there's a low rumble from the surrounding woods. Persist, and a vine coils around your ankle, dragging you into the water. That feels less relaxing, most likely.

PLAY TIME

At some point, there's an unusual sound- earth moving on it's own, old trees parting from their nesting place and rearranging themselves behind the fog. And as the din dies down, the fog parts, showing a thick tunnel of trees and leaves. It might look like something out of a fairy tale, if not for the sickening noises of the bark and wood creaking and writhing slowly. Whether you want to go or not, however, you will find yourself compelled to walk down the road eventually.

The road seems like a brief fifteen minute hike and a near three hour trek at the same time, but when you come to the end, you find yourself still in the woods, still circled by fog, but not the same as the grove. Once enough people are there, the path closes behind you. Keen eyes may spot hollowed out logs, trees with holes beneath the roots or high up above the branches, and large patches of very tall grass. Within the center is a cage with a pinecone shaped button on two opposing sides. Before you can finish taking it all in, however, a soft, cheerful whisper of a voice speaks:

"Let's play! If you win, I'll give you something special. Promise! Here, I'll explain the rules:"

1. Robbers must hide within the arena, and not get caught. Upon being found by the jailer, they have the opportunity to flee. But if they get caught, they get brought to jail.

2. Prisoners cannot free themselves, but free players can by pushing both of the buttons on the cage. This will give everyone a three minute immunity to run and hide again.

3. Players must move every five minutes, or they get caught immediately.

"The game will end if everyone gets caught or if at least one person stays free at the end of the hour."

The voice doesn't elaborate what happens if everyone gets caught- if you lose. Instead, it's jailer steps forward from the shadows, staring at everyone with a featureless face. It resembles a moose-faced centaur made of rusted metal and wood, yet what should be creaky, slow steps are light and agile. You have five minutes to hide. But when it bursts into a run, searching forcefully through grass, leaving cracks in the earth beneath its hooves as it starts to run, there's an unsettling feeling in your stomach: what happens if you get caught at all?

In order to win as a group, 10 threads featuring a successful escape- be it from the monster or from the cage- must be submitted by the end of the month. You may only submit one thread per character, but two characters can use the same thread. If you want to get caught and suffer consequences, or try to fight the monster, please use the "FIGHT OR FLIGHT" comment beneath the submission toplevel. Should the characters win the game, they will get a prize after all submissions have been accounted for!

SPARK NOTES

CLICK TO EXPAND!

WAKE UP

A general welcome to Aldric's Grove! The shopkeeper has witnessed your arrival and seems... resigned. Rusty is trying very hard to get inside the manor. Otherwise, everything seems eerily still.

THE INN

A cursory glance at the inn! It's bare, barely furnished yet stocked enough to provide shelter and food. Several doors are locked and won't budge. But you know it. You know this place.

THE RIVER

The river is only barely accesible, though opportnity to try and explore anyways is possible. Bone fragments, scales and teeth from all sorts of species, including humans, litter the banks alongside canine-decorated medalions, and something glitters beneath the sand in the river itself. While in the water, there's an unnaturally soothing feeling.

PLAY TIME

The forest opens up a path through the fog to invite people to play with it. Once they reach the next clearing, the path closes behind everyone and a disembodied voice announces that we're playing cops and robbers. The cop is a large moose-faced centaur statue made of rusty metal and wood, and it packs one hell of a punch. Don't get caught!

OOC

Welcome to the very first TDM and Event of Sticks and Bones! This TDM is game canon. Questions may be asked below or on the faq, and everything may be revisted with bonus ac items as time goes on. Applications are now open, and all TDM threads will count for AC and Bonus AC.

UPDATES

❖ Rusty has a bed to lay on on the porch! Izuku should be so proud of himself.
❖ A portion of the arena of the game- alongside the hiding spots in that area- are on fire, or destroyed by fire. Kjell forgot they were in the forest when fleeing the jailer.
❖ One of the cutting boards in the inn kitchen is cleaved in half, and the counter has deep gouges in it. Yor was cutting bread.

SUBMISSIONS

QUESTIONS & INVESTIGATIONS ⚘ NPC CONTACT ⚘ PLAY TIME ⚘ FIGHT OR FLIGHT

(CODE)

Comments

[lostpsalm]

What a strange oversight. Everyone should be able to defend themselves...!

_{[ <-- not allowed to leave the house without a knife since grade school age ]}

[deem]

Usually Scanners need to rely on pods for that, but it does complicate our jobs.

[ How 4S made his way deep into the Forest Kingdom remains a mystery to him for this very reason. ]

[lostpsalm]

Oh. So the little thing protects you? Yet it's so...

_{[ small and nonthreatening. ]}

[deem]

Yeah, it's got plenty of ammo.

[ Why does he sound proud of that...? ]

[lostpsalm]

It shoots! <sub>I suppose it.. has a quiver inside...?

[ DELIGHTED? ]</sub>

I need to get back in practice! Let's do targets sometime!

[deem]

You want to do target practice with pod...?

[ 9S casts a curious glance up at his faceless companion, prompting a series of beeps and a slow, arcing wave of one arm.

With a 'huh', 9S turns to Rennuid and relays: ]

Well, I guess it finds your proposal acceptable.

[lostpsalm]

Great! Some time when we're not-- uh, if we're still--

Depending on how all this looking around goes, we may, or may not soon have the chance! _{Just, also need to make a new bow first...~. But that's easy. I've got my knife. The spiders will help, I'm sure...}

[deem]

[ He heard that. All of that.

What's with the spider bit...? ]

Sooo...you need a weapon first?

[lostpsalm]

Mhm. I didn't come here with much. I can shoot with magic, but it's not the same thing at all...

[deem]

It doesn't work as a ranged attack then?

[lostpsalm]

It does. But it isn't the same.

There's two things both need that make them different. Path, and power.

They follow different rivers. Arrows fly with the wind. Magics fly with... it depends on the magic.

The power for an arrow comes from your body and the bow. The power for magic comes from, uh...

[deem]

Huh... Guess I haven't had to worry about that kind of thing. A projectile's a projectile, when you're fighting.

[lostpsalm]

W-well! It really can matter a lot! At least.. if you're preparing for one or the other to fail you.

In a storm, no matter how strong, I can still shoot with magic. And if that magic was gone... if I had a bow, well...

[deem]

I can understand having a contingency plan. Scanners aren't meant to engage in close-range combat, but I'm safer having that capability.

[lostpsalm]

Exactly! ...mother would never have let me out the house to live on my own if I couldn't handle at least a short sword.



_{But I do hate them so much, sword calluses are the worst.}

[deem]

[ Another curious tip of his head. ]

What's a sword callus?

[ This time, he directly addresses the muttering. ]

[lostpsalm]

You don't...? That's right. Autlot. Do you not change?

_{[ rennuid looks down at his hands, then runs a contemplative fingertip over a prominent vein on the back of one. ]}

I don't have sword calluses anymore becauseIamaterribleson, but I do have calluses from using a bow! Look.

_{[ He comes closer to 9S, and offers him his right hand, palm up-- thin, spidery fingers with black nails, with some curious knobs and rough patches in the skin that can be guessed to match to keeping grip on the bow. ]}

You get them from doing something, over and over.

[deem]

[ 9S peers at Rennuid's hand with a thoughtful hum. Rather than manipulating, moving, or touching him, 9S simply moves around, examining this example of callused skin intently from different angles.

He can see what Rennuid means. The composition of the skin there is different. Denser? And there are raised edges or flat planes in particular spots he wouldn't expect. ]

My skin could be melted, or torn, or burned. It can be repaired, but it'll be no thicker or tougher than before.

[lostpsalm]

_{[ ...haha. Like Rennuid's some kind of immovable statue... ]}

...Mm. That's... a power and a weakness of aut-thuun. _{[ thuun being "flesh," he'd said earlier ]} It needs... living, using, to stay strong.

...I wish Mia were here. She would be great at pointing out the differences. My friend, she was a flesh-and-blood human, once? But her body became stone. So she would know just what to explain that's different.

[deem]

[ He's looking respectfully, truly...

What Rennuid claims would be utterly outlandish, had 9S never met Emil. But whatever Emil was, 9S knows he had a significant change of state. ]

...How can a human be petrified and survive?

[ The notion is distressing. ]

[lostpsalm]

_{[ o-oh no he made him sad. ]}

She's okay, she's okay! She can move, she can speak now! ..well, I guess, it's really up to Mia to say if she's really okay, she does not really like anybody to speak for her ever, but...

...she's doing better? It's a long story, there was this-- there was a fairy? She lived in the lake! And... it was really confusing as it was happening actually but the fairy was made of dead people but not really, she was just a fairy who knew the wants and wishes of the dead people and was trying to...

M-Mia's fine! It was magic!

[deem]

...a dead people fairy.

[ Forgive him Rennuid, he's stuck on this point. ]

[lostpsalm]

Her name was Abyssinthe, and she could take the face of anyone whose bones were in her lake!


It was all very sad.

[deem]

I'd think it should be, when you might see someone you care about.

[ He's been greeted with a room full of 2B units before, he...well he was rapidly losing his hold on rationality due to the effects of the Logic Virus, but it's distressing to think back on. ]

[lostpsalm]

...that was the problem, yes.

_{[ The really personal parts that happened with Mia's Complicated Family Drama he should... probably keep to himself.]}

I don't know if the fairy could help doing it, though. It was... her way. I don't think she had her own face.