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sticksandbones2023-10-04 03:16 pm
sticksandbonesmods) wrote in sticksandbones2023-10-04 03:16 pm
Entry tags:
- !event,
- !tdm,
- arknights: gnosis,
- arknights: irene,
- arknights: mizuki,
- baldur's gate iii: astarion ancunín,
- baldur's gate iii: taliira a'daragon,
- digimon survive: haru,
- elsword: add,
- elsword: elsword,
- fate: bb,
- i'm the grim reaper: brook,
- jujutsu kaisen: toge inumaki,
- murder drones: n,
- original: caoimhe ailbhe,
- original: felicity morais,
- original: kiera canorus,
- original: lancelot,
- original: luca aurelius
Event & TDM 005
SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS
WAKE UP
cw: immolation, sinkholes
When your eyes open, you’re lying in crisp, blackened grass. The sky is dreary, the world around you is still and silent. Were it not for the ash raining from the sky or the acrid tang of burnt flesh, it might almost feel peaceful. Familiar-feeling memories wash over you — a town burning, the cackling of an unknown beast, the shrill screams of friends and loved ones dying a slow, painful death—
Where did that memory even come from? You’d better shake it off and rise to your feet before the ash buries you, too. It isn’t real… right?
The town you’re in is dilapidated and charred. Something snaps under your feet, and when you look down, a bone lies pressed into the earth, perfectly broken into two neat pieces. You press on, toward the destroyed remains of houses — some missing roofs, some collapsed in on themselves, others still weathering the test of time — to where the trees are vibrant and orange, to where the grass has regrown and the buildings stand tall. You press on… and your foot catches in the mud, a hole opening up beneath your feet and dragging you in. If you’re quick enough, you might be able to escape the collapsing earth before it buries you alive in years of muck and decay. If not… perhaps you’ll be lucky, and someone from the nearby settlement will bail you out.
Hopefully you won’t have to wait long.
When your eyes open, you’re lying in crisp, blackened grass. The sky is dreary, the world around you is still and silent. Were it not for the ash raining from the sky or the acrid tang of burnt flesh, it might almost feel peaceful. Familiar-feeling memories wash over you — a town burning, the cackling of an unknown beast, the shrill screams of friends and loved ones dying a slow, painful death—
Where did that memory even come from? You’d better shake it off and rise to your feet before the ash buries you, too. It isn’t real… right?
The town you’re in is dilapidated and charred. Something snaps under your feet, and when you look down, a bone lies pressed into the earth, perfectly broken into two neat pieces. You press on, toward the destroyed remains of houses — some missing roofs, some collapsed in on themselves, others still weathering the test of time — to where the trees are vibrant and orange, to where the grass has regrown and the buildings stand tall. You press on… and your foot catches in the mud, a hole opening up beneath your feet and dragging you in. If you’re quick enough, you might be able to escape the collapsing earth before it buries you alive in years of muck and decay. If not… perhaps you’ll be lucky, and someone from the nearby settlement will bail you out.
Hopefully you won’t have to wait long.
KEEP MY HEAD TOGETHER
Somewhere on your body is an intricate, black mark that doesn’t come off no matter how hard you scrub. Perhaps there are two, or even three, or more. You don’t exactly remember getting these small, medallion-sized tattoos — it’s almost as though you woke up with them. Better make sure no one’s drawing on you in your sleep.
As the day progresses, the effects of these marks become apparent. Suddenly, everything hurts — a dull, throbbing pain as if you’ve been stabbed. Perhaps the pain is quick and sharp, like you stubbed your toe on the inn’s coffee table. Perhaps it slowly burns, like hot coffee accidentally splashed on your lap. No matter what the pain is, you feel it at less of an intensity than you would if you’d actually done these things. Later, you might meet with the person who shares a mark with you, and maybe they’ll tell you — they stubbed their toe, they spilled their coffee, someone randomly stabbed them, how weird is that?
These marks link you and your partner(s) — any pain they feel, you’ll feel, too, albeit at half the intensity they do. If you’re sharing that pain between three people, it’ll be at one third the intensity.
Negative emotions, though? Those, you get at full throttle. If those you share a mark with cry, you’ll cry, too; you feel their rage at being stuck here as though it were your own; you long for home, and you miss a mother that isn’t yours. Fight through your blurring sense of self, friend. Surely you’ll get used to it soon. After all, these will stay on your body for the rest of the month.
As the day progresses, the effects of these marks become apparent. Suddenly, everything hurts — a dull, throbbing pain as if you’ve been stabbed. Perhaps the pain is quick and sharp, like you stubbed your toe on the inn’s coffee table. Perhaps it slowly burns, like hot coffee accidentally splashed on your lap. No matter what the pain is, you feel it at less of an intensity than you would if you’d actually done these things. Later, you might meet with the person who shares a mark with you, and maybe they’ll tell you — they stubbed their toe, they spilled their coffee, someone randomly stabbed them, how weird is that?
These marks link you and your partner(s) — any pain they feel, you’ll feel, too, albeit at half the intensity they do. If you’re sharing that pain between three people, it’ll be at one third the intensity.
Negative emotions, though? Those, you get at full throttle. If those you share a mark with cry, you’ll cry, too; you feel their rage at being stuck here as though it were your own; you long for home, and you miss a mother that isn’t yours. Fight through your blurring sense of self, friend. Surely you’ll get used to it soon. After all, these will stay on your body for the rest of the month.
THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE
A week into October, a skeletal visitor comes rattling into the Grove, wearing a top hat on its bare cranium and a name tag on its ribcage: “Mr. Bone-Jangles”. Mr. Bone-Jangles cannot speak, but he’s very excited to take willing people into the burned town and lead them toward the far north of it, where a small army of fellow skeletons have put up a circus tent. Pumpkin-shaped flags decorate the scorched remnants of a street, and mysterious skull-shaped lights float in the air. Mr. Bone-Jangles joyfully motions to the tent, where a banner placed over the tent-flaps reads “MASKERADE”... you assume this is meant to be “masquerade”, but it would be rude to point out the spelling error. Skeletons don’t have brains.
Before you can even enter the tent, Mr. Bone-Jangles’ employees direct you to a smaller tent set up to the side, demanding with clacks of their jaws in morse code that you put on your costume and mask. Costumes are optional; masks are not. Luckily, all of these are free. The costume tent itself is entirely empty save for one giant mirror which, when gazed into, shows you standing in your outfit of choice. Once you exit the tent, you’ll be wearing that outfit, and the skeletons will hand you a wooden mask in any design you feel suits you, matching or not. Where did your old clothing wind up? Great question! They’ll be teleported back to your bed in a wrinkled heap, but you don’t have to worry about that until the party stops. And speaking of that mask… when you put it on between the party start at 10pm and end at 6am, it won’t come off no matter how hard you pull until 6:01am approximately.
The skeletons insist you don’t try to tug your skin off, though, and instead direct you inside the masquerade tent itself. It’s almost akin to being teleported to another dimension — a grand ballroom is decorated with classic Halloween decorations, a buffet of spooky-themed snacks is laid out on the tables, the music is almost too loud, and a lounge is set up off to the side for those who’d like to rest between dances. If you lack a dance partner, worry not — the skeletons are more than happy to waltz with you. And, if you’re of age, they’ll serve you any liquor you’d like.
Stay too late, though, and the skeletons will kick you out. They’re stronger than they look and aren’t afraid to toss you like a wet rag onto the burnt streets. Once the party ends for the night, you won’t be able to get back into the tent no matter how hard you try, so don’t leave anything behind!
Before you can even enter the tent, Mr. Bone-Jangles’ employees direct you to a smaller tent set up to the side, demanding with clacks of their jaws in morse code that you put on your costume and mask. Costumes are optional; masks are not. Luckily, all of these are free. The costume tent itself is entirely empty save for one giant mirror which, when gazed into, shows you standing in your outfit of choice. Once you exit the tent, you’ll be wearing that outfit, and the skeletons will hand you a wooden mask in any design you feel suits you, matching or not. Where did your old clothing wind up? Great question! They’ll be teleported back to your bed in a wrinkled heap, but you don’t have to worry about that until the party stops. And speaking of that mask… when you put it on between the party start at 10pm and end at 6am, it won’t come off no matter how hard you pull until 6:01am approximately.
The skeletons insist you don’t try to tug your skin off, though, and instead direct you inside the masquerade tent itself. It’s almost akin to being teleported to another dimension — a grand ballroom is decorated with classic Halloween decorations, a buffet of spooky-themed snacks is laid out on the tables, the music is almost too loud, and a lounge is set up off to the side for those who’d like to rest between dances. If you lack a dance partner, worry not — the skeletons are more than happy to waltz with you. And, if you’re of age, they’ll serve you any liquor you’d like.
Stay too late, though, and the skeletons will kick you out. They’re stronger than they look and aren’t afraid to toss you like a wet rag onto the burnt streets. Once the party ends for the night, you won’t be able to get back into the tent no matter how hard you try, so don’t leave anything behind!
DON’T CHASE THE DEAD
Turns out, the masquerade isn’t just for one night, but for every night for the rest of the month. On the second night of the masquerade and on from there, ghosts appear in droves, gathering at the party and in the burned town for a night out. No matter how hard you try, you can’t get their attention; they’ll merely pass right through you as if you aren’t there.
Some of the ghosts look eerily familiar to you, like people you knew in the past who aren’t here now. It could be your mother, your brother, a close friend, or maybe your old neighbour or coworker. Each is dressed in masquerade attire, each intends only to party until the sun comes up, and at that point, each ghost fades from the world as if dissolving away into nothingness.
They’ll be back the next night, of course. And the next. And the one after that. Until finally, the last day of the month rolls around, and the ghosts aren’t there. If you come to the burned town at 6am, you’ll be greeted by the sight of the skeletons packing up their tents and decorations. And if you stick around until 7…
Mr. Bone-Jangles takes off his top hat and takes a bow, waves one last goodbye, and then him and his skeleton crew take a dive into the sinkhole that was, somehow, underneath the masquerade tent the whole time.
Some of the ghosts look eerily familiar to you, like people you knew in the past who aren’t here now. It could be your mother, your brother, a close friend, or maybe your old neighbour or coworker. Each is dressed in masquerade attire, each intends only to party until the sun comes up, and at that point, each ghost fades from the world as if dissolving away into nothingness.
They’ll be back the next night, of course. And the next. And the one after that. Until finally, the last day of the month rolls around, and the ghosts aren’t there. If you come to the burned town at 6am, you’ll be greeted by the sight of the skeletons packing up their tents and decorations. And if you stick around until 7…
Mr. Bone-Jangles takes off his top hat and takes a bow, waves one last goodbye, and then him and his skeleton crew take a dive into the sinkhole that was, somehow, underneath the masquerade tent the whole time.
SPARK NOTES
CLICK TO EXPAND!
You find yourself in a burned-down town. As you try to leave, a sinkhole opens beneath your feet and sucks you in. Screaming for help is a viable option.
Everyone is now sharing pain and negative emotions. Please try not to get stabbed so that your partner(s) don't have to also feel stabbed. You can pair up with as few or as many people as you want, as long as you're paired up with minimum one other person.
Welcome to the masquerade! Mr. Bone-Jangles hopes you have a good time. Masks and Halloween costumes are provided free of charge, but be careful, because donning the masks between 10pm and 6am makes them unable to be removed until the party stops at 6. There's tons of food and drink, and liquor for those who are old enough to have it. Just don't stay past the party's end or the skeletons will yeet you out onto the street.
The masquerade goes for the rest of the month, and after day 1, it'll be frequented by ghosts who look like people from your past. They don't seem to notice you and will float through you if you stand in their way. At the end of the month, the skeletons pack up the party, the ghosts disappear, and the skeletons jump into a sinkhole underneath the masquerade tent. Goodbye! Happy Halloween! Mr. Bone-Jangles sends his regards.
Welcome to the fifth TDM & Event Log of Sticks and Bones! This log is game canon. The prompts are meant for all players, current and future, so have fun! Our applications operate on a rolling basis, so applications are open with no end date unless we suddenly cap players. If there are any questions, please direct them to the "questions" header below.
❖ None yet!
TDM TOPLEVELS!
❖ Vash (Trigun Stampede)
❖ N (Murder Drones)
❖ Rin Tohsaka (Fate/Stay Night)
❖ Rui Ninomiya (Gatchaman Crowds)
❖ Ain (Elsword)
❖ Hiyori Iki (Noragami)
❖ Taliira A'Daragon (Tav) (Baldur's Gate III)
❖ Genjiro Chibana (Handead Anthem)
❖ Haru (Digimon Survive)
❖ Samatoki Aohitsugi (Hypnosis Mic)
❖ Leon S. Kennedy (Resident Evil 4: Remake)
❖ Grusha (Pokemon: Scarlet & Violet)
❖ Woljif Jefto (Pathfinder: WOTR)
❖ N (Murder Drones)
❖ Rin Tohsaka (Fate/Stay Night)
❖ Rui Ninomiya (Gatchaman Crowds)
❖ Ain (Elsword)
❖ Hiyori Iki (Noragami)
❖ Taliira A'Daragon (Tav) (Baldur's Gate III)
❖ Genjiro Chibana (Handead Anthem)
❖ Haru (Digimon Survive)
❖ Samatoki Aohitsugi (Hypnosis Mic)
❖ Leon S. Kennedy (Resident Evil 4: Remake)
❖ Grusha (Pokemon: Scarlet & Violet)
❖ Woljif Jefto (Pathfinder: WOTR)
Grusha | Pokemon Scarlet/Violet | TDM
cw: description of panic attacks/injury flashbacks
[When Grusha wakes up in this unfamiliar place, with unfamiliar memories rushing to him so crisp and clear and real, he's immediately shaken. How could anyone not be? But even then, he determines there's nothing else to be done but to move forward. So he picks himself up from the charred grass, dusts himself down, and begins to walk.
Dazed, as if in a dream, he doesn't notice his foot catch until it's too late.
The sensation of falling is familiar. Too familiar. As the ground gives way beneath him his breath catches, and suddenly he's not here, but back there, piled up not under ash and dust but unrelenting snow. The shock of hitting the ground does something to snap him out of it, but not enough. Covered in dirt, he lays there, frozen, chest rising and falling rapidly, until that feeling - that memory - fades.]
ii. the beautiful people
[With everything else that's gone on, it's not too difficult to accept the presence of the skeletons. "This might as well happen", and so on, and so forth. That doesn't mean Grusha doesn't regard them with some wariness - ghost-types are tricksters and not to be trifled with - but he ends up at the 'Maskerade' all the same. He declines a costume but takes a mask, recieving one that looks like a saber-toothed beast.
Though the party is in full swing, he sticks to the side and to the liquor - the sharp bite of it reminding him that yes, this is, in fact, all real. His wallflowering, however, looks too similar to someone awkwardly waiting for a dance, and a friendly skeleton takes the opportunity to try to dance with him.]
Come on...that's so uncool...
[He seems less bothered by it than he is embarassed, though.]
the beautiful people
( unlike grusha, felicity wasn't so lucky. how ironic, to dress a witch up like some sort of nun- black with almost pastel windows, and an almost delicate-looking mask that seems unfitting yet perfect all the same. but as uncomfortable as this whole thing is, she can at least step in when some... encouragement needs some discouraging. as bad as she feels for the poor skeleton, it's only doing its job...! with a sigh, she shakes her head and addresses the skeleton. )
It's alright, I'll keep him some company.
no subject
...Thanks, you really saved me there.
[He nods, half the gesture getting lost in the depths of his scarf.]
Kind of a relief to see someone with skin around here. You a local?
[Well. As much as anyone can be, considering the state of the village.]
no subject
( even if it's just social conventions being upheld by a skeleton.
... which is a sentance to say, to be sure! but somehow felicity manages to avoid pointing out the obvious like that. though, the question does make her grimace a little. )
Not... exactly. I'm like you- I've just been here for a lot longer. I want to say... six months? Maybe more? ... The skeletons are new though.
no subject
[That's...no small amount of time. It's a lot, in fact. Something twists in his stomach at the thought - surely he won't be here for that long, right?]
Guessing you got some idea of what's going on, then?
no subject
( where does she even begin at this point? how do you tell someone they're the forest's playthings now? he's not even the first but as things progress, felicity finds herself more and more at a loss of what to say. )
no subject
Don't sweat it. It's not like it's your fault.
[Which, actually, he has no idea about! But it doesn't seem like she has anything to do with what's going on...whatever it is.]
But I can take it, whatever you can tell me.
no subject
( she inhales, grabs a fancy glass of some sort of definitely not alcoholic drink from a passing skeletal waiter, and just shotguns it. fuck it. )
The forest is, collectively, a sentient entity with greater power than any one things hould ever have. It is also an asshole and likes to torture people for kicks. We're trapped here as it's new set of playthings, but the Grove- the, um, remains of the town we're in- is a safe zone otherwise.
Sometimes it's- its just playing cards with one of it's avatars, and sometimes it's "you are actively going to die if you make a mistake, but it's okay because it's just like fixing a toy".
no subject
[Bottom text.]
I've got to say, I wasn't expecting that.
[Though, it's hard to say exactly what he was expecting, especially with that preface. He doesn't even know where to begin.]
Sounds like the forest is pretty temperamental. [To say the least!] You're saying people have died in here?
cw: burn mention
( ... lookin pretty lively for a dead girl walking, isn't she?
felicity rolls back the sleeve of the dress on one of her arms, revealing... a pretty nasty burn scar on her wrist. )
... It brought me back. But... yeah.
Sometimes people vanish after they show up here. I don't know where they go- but I hope it's back home, and I sincerely hope if that's the case that you're one of them.
no subject
I appreciate that.
[His tone is rather flat, but it's genuine.]
I guess we'll see if luck's on my side. [This feeling of powerlessness about this, he doesn't like one bit.] What will you do, then?
[They've only just met, but he doesn't like the idea of leaving her behind like that.]
no subject
So, I'm going to get to the heart of what's responsible for all of this, and I'm going to break it.
( felicity has a soft voice, but she speaks with a harsh tone. with all the fury, however, "soft" probably wouldn't enter anyone's vocabulary if they had to describe her at this moment, though. )
wake up / obligated to tag the pkmn char with my digimon char, hello
...
The boy holds out a hand.]
Here. [it does not look like he could help Grusha out of there but don't worry about it, he's stronger than he looks.]
omg hi
Thanks.
[He takes that hand, gripping it with a mitten, but he does hesitate before putting any weight against it.]
...You sure you've got this?
no subject
[He offers up no explanation, but he does seem confident... well, it'll be fine. Grusha isn't all that heavy looking. He grips that mitten firmly, planting his heels and pulling back with a surprisingly degree of strength—
But he's still short, so he has to take several steps back to make this work... and it's very muddy out here. At the last moment his foot slips, tripping backwards into the muck—thankfully not falling onto another sinkhole, but they're both going to end up on the ground.
At least the landing is soft? Haru barely makes a noise of complaint, so he's fine.]
no subject
You alright?
[He's pretty quick to get off of Haru, offering out a hand again to help him up. Though, after that, he's not sure he needs it.]
You know, for your size, you're pretty strong...what's up with that?
[It's not judgemental, but plenty curious.]
no subject
You're not that heavy.
[... yep! Mystery solved. Moving right along—]
What are you doing out here?