MINI-EVENT: RETURN FROM THE MOUNTAINS

[sticksandbonesmods]

You are tired.

Without the truck to come get you — where did those people go? Were they even real? — you have to walk, hike up to the mountain peak, only to go back down. Did no one tell you that just the base of the mountains to the Grove itself is a seven-day walk? Perhaps someone would have, if they were here to tell you.

As all of you escape Roseroot, leaving behind the horrors slaughtered en masse, poor Astrid is suddenly blinded, his eyes turning completely black as something whispers in his mind. “Please. Please, you have to help them. You have to help them. Please, please, you have to—” As quick as it came, he regains his vision, his eyes clearing back up, and the message cuts off. Whether he shares this information or not with the rest of you… that’s up to him.

Either way, to get over the mountains, you have to hike. The winged, the flighted ones, those who can float, they might be able to take people up to the peak faster, but the blizzards rage atop it. Is flying really safe? You have only a few supplies between all of you — do you look for firewood and rest along the path? Do you traverse the mazelike caverns and hope one of you spits you out at a higher peak? Do you take shelter underneath the crystals growing on the mountainside?

If you look at those crystals for too long, they seem to reflect your nightmares back at you, but sleeping beneath them gives an incredible sense of calm.

At the mountain peak is the scene of something nightmarish itself — a group of people, some humanoid, one shadowy, a few monstrous, all collapsed. Each of them sleeps beneath the bulk of a golden dragon, tucked up underneath their bulk for warmth, while the unconscious dragon itself is mostly-buried under the snow. In the air float three charms, one of the sun, one of the moon, and one of half a sun. And just under those, maintaining some sort of magic — though even the magically-inclined may struggle to tell what exactly it is — is a leucistic deer-centaur holding a staff with a dreamcatcher head, wearing furs and leathers and braving the blizzard in his unconscious state solely to keep whatever this magic field around the peak is running.

As soon as you step further into this field, your memories come back en masse. These people are yours. They are your Guardians, your friends, your almost-family, and they disappeared one day, and you did not remember them. When you go to wake one of them up, your mind is pulled into theirs, a fragmented web of memories spanning before you.

Do you fix them? Or do you leave them here forever to suffer with a fragmented mind?

Spark Notes

out of character

Per the plotting, please remember that it is ONE character per player for the NPCs minus the Lord of the Mountains — meaning for example that Amity cannot have White Lily fix Ydalir, Sidney fix Callan, and Mafuyu fix Heimr. However, players are free to select what NPC they want to help, even if multiple players are currently helping that NPC. Guess comments will be screened and replied to as they come in to avoid cheating when someone gets one right, and all will be unscreened at the end of the event. :)

If everyone lumps into a few NPCs and others don't have interaction, I will lift the rule saying one character per player in the Discord and make an announcement.

Participation in an NPC thread will be good for Bonus AC regardless of length. Please do not use these for main AC. You can get main AC off your toplevels on this event if you choose to do so.

Please refrain from general threading with the NPCs on this post; bar Lord of the Mountains, other NPCs should be threaded with on NPC Contact if it's irrelevant to the event proper. In the case of LotM, he is the exception to every rule — everyone is free to try solving his memories regardless of if you have another character solving another NPC's memory puzzle, and general threading with him is allowed.

I maintain the right to cut a threading-thread short at any time; this is to avoid overwhelm and flooding the post with irrelevant details to the event. Guess threads will not be cut until all guesses are correct at minimum. (This is more in defense of my wordiness than a slight at you guys, I know how I get so this is a rule that exists to protect Me lmao.)

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Comments

[eidxiety]

[Ain is just like :) under his coat over here, sharing with Ras like a blanket. Thank you big and fluffy coat that makes up like 60% of his body mass when worn.]

We ask each other questions, and give answers, that's all. For example, I ask you a question, and you answer, and then you ask me one and I answer. We go back and forth like that. It's a good way to get to know people.

[Like his cursed-ass notebook post from last month.]

I'll start. What's something you like about yourself?

[divinechains]

Oh, um... hm. I have very few things that I do not like about myself, honestly. Goddess Diche had crafted this vessel for me, and with it, granted me life. I suppose I am rather attached to it. Changing anything, like my hair or my skin or some such makes me nervous thinking about. I do not think Diche Herself would mind, but it still causes me discomfort to think about it...

What... sort of things do you find comforting?

[eidxiety]

Hm... Music, I guess? Usually hearing people speak softly, or watching people do monotonous or boring things is helpful. Oh, and animals. I've got a lot of pets now.

What new thing would you want to try doing when you got the chance?

[divinechains]

[ Leaning closer: ] Should I speak softer, in that case?

[ Is this helping?? He's doing his best. ASMR Ras channel when- ]

...That is a good question. I have not thought about such things. Perhaps... I would like to learn how to swim.

[eidxiety]

Haha, no, it's okay. I don't need to be comforted right now.

[Don't you, though.]

Swimming isn't very hard. I'm sure your beefcake could teach you~. [Ain.] It's your turn to ask me a question, Mr. Floaty~.

[divinechains]

My... beefcake...? I do not believe I have any cakes... let alone one made of beef...

[ Help. ]

Oh, yes. Apologies. Um, what is your world like?

[eidxiety]

I'm talking about the big muscular guy you showed up with. The one with the nice chest.

[Ain..............]

...my world is nice. There are a lot of different places out there. Like, a city with lava running in canals through the streets, because it's near a volcano. And, a big city made of white and gold where the most important object in our world is housed. I bet it was very pretty before it was completely emptied out. In general, it's a lot of beautiful architecture, and a lot of empty buildings. I think I already told you about the El exploding and the resulting calamity.

[...]

Do you like boys? [AIN]

[divinechains]

Oh. Vildred? He is not a cake. [ Unlike the cookies. Who are apparently cookies. ]

I see. That does sound lovely...

...

Um. Yes? I do not tend to discern gender, however. I like humans as a whole. Do you discern gender??

[eidxiety]

[It's okay, we can explain beefcake later.]

Um, yeah? I like boys. Romantically, I mean, and sexually — but not girls. So you're bisexual?

[divinechains]

I... I see. How strange. [ It's really not- ] Hm? Bi...sexual? [ Bi means two, right? ] I do not know. I have never had one partner, let alone two.

[eidxiety]

Haha, we have words for things... the cookies also found our words strange. "Bisexual" is being attracted to two genders, or multiple genders. Honestly, I think most people just use it to say "everyone" these days.

[The tip of his tail wags.]

It has nothing to do with multiple partners. That's called polyamory! I'm gay, which means I like only men, or the same gender as me — if women are gay they're lesbians — and I'm in a polyamorous relationship with my partners~. Does that make more sense?

[divinechains]

[ There's such a long pause. Ras tries to process all of this, truly, but it eventually ends up with just a lot of questions that all seems to fall to sound of the sea that is Ras' thoughts.

Eventually, after a moment: ]

No.

[eidxiety]

...okay, what's unclear?

[divinechains]

Why... do people not just love everyone...???

[eidxiety]

Well... I don't know, all brains are different? I don't want to have sex with women or anything, that's all. You're not the first person here to be confused about this. But between you and me and probably everyone who's ever known me, I'll go soft like, immediately, if I see a woman naked, haha~.

[ain,]

[divinechains]

Oh. That's... [ Hm. ] I guess I'm just having a hard time wrapping my head around that.

[eidxiety]

Haha, I don't get why people like women, so I guess we're in the same boat~.

Have you ever been in love with someone before and thought something like... "wow, I don't love anyone else, this person is the one I love"? I imagine sexuality and gender attraction like that is... sort of along those same veins, maybe?

[this doesn't apply to ain, who would bone all his friends,]