EVENT 30

[sticksandbonesmods]

I CALL MYSELF A SHELL

A USED UP BULLET CASING

The air is cold, the sky dreary. Ever since your return to Aldric’s Grove, the chill in the air is as bitter and sharp as a knife. The scent of stew from the General Store’s windows is comforting, almost as much as the teas Ydalir is handing out if you pass by her tent. Nene puts baskets of her fresh produce on every doorstep or before the doors of people’s rooms in the inn, and Evan and Rillian join her sometimes, the two also handing out sweaters or cloaks. It’s not going to be as bad as last year, but a bitter winter is coming. It’s best to be prepared, isn’t it?

As the winter approaches, plantimals busy themselves to prepare as best they can, too. Pinecone squirrels harvest away nuts while one by one birds move as close to warmth as they can — and that may well just be Sehul and Aurora’s domains. The river water is clear as ever and even colder, with only the blessed trees and bushes still flowering and bearing fruit.

Yet nothing prepares anyone for the green mist, knee-high at the lowest, waist-high at the highest. It smells earthy and grassy, almost floral like a garden,and it pours out of the research hall.

There’s a chill in the air. Something… strange is happening, yet again.

THE AFTERMATH OF SOMETHING LETHAL

The mist is not the only thing that follows. In your homes, walking around the slowly rebuilding town, resting in the inn — all over, there are ghosts, and they all look painfully familiar. After all… it's not every day you get to see your face without a mirror.

Ghosts of the former residents of the Grove have followed where the mist flows, fragments of history that are part of you given form. Some look pristine, like they’d simply gotten up and got dressed like any normal day. Others look bloodied and wounded, clearly killed and still persisting. None seem bothered by their state — if anything, the lot are curious about the changes that have been made to the Grove, or about you.

Of course they know you. They know your pains, the life you’ve lived, they’re part of you after all… though some ghosts know the full extent better than others. You must have something you want to say, don’t you? Or… maybe you’re approached by the ghost of another soul, with something else in mind.

AN ECHO OF INFLICTED EVIL

cw: a brief instance of animal death

Within the heart of it all stands a woman almost eight feet tall, maybe more. There is an unearthly glow to her green eyes, and she wears a black gown that looks like it’s meant for a funeral and a garden party in the same day. Draped in her arm is a basket as she talks to various blooms, and occasionally she may… pluck at a passing by animal, placing a silvery light within the basket as the animal comes to a stop and finds its final rest.

She looks at each resident of the Grove as she walks, poking and pulling at things that cannot be seen — from the air, from the buildings, from you-

And then she keeps on walking, pausing only at the fog barrier.

“... What a troubling scene this sets. And the rot in the roots… beastly, isn’t it? What a shame that I cannot be here in full to set this straight.” She hums thoughtfully, before finally she stops and sits down.

“Come along now, then. I’m sure you all have questions.”

So, will you talk to Morrigan the Lady Death?

... SO COMES SNOW AFTER FIRE ...

With talking to Morrigan comes a task: close the door once more. Once this is done, the Grove settles again, a blanket of quiet settling over the little village finally. Time passes, and once the first snow starts to fall, Heimr calls everyone to the inn. White snowdrops are painted along the banisters, the door frames and windows, and warm spices and savory smells waft through the air.

Renard is dishing up different plates as you come in, and he smiles radiantly with a wave. Later on he might show off some of his creations, or hand you an instrument.

Music flows through the dining room as Ydalir feeds the fire, and some of Callisto’s meads and wines — flavored or simple honey — eventually turn up on the table. It’s nice not to be alone, right?

Unfortunately it might be ruined when Heimr sets out what looks to be a deck for UNO. And a stack of other board games. But UNO is the killer, here. UNO may just ruin your carefully-crafted friendships with everyone here. …please don’t let it do that. You’ve already been through so much together, and there’s so much more to come.

Spark Notes

summary

A USED UP BULLET CASING Fall is here and winter is fast approaching. The residents of the Grove are trying to help take care of player characters after the past two months of hardships... but one night, a green mist spills out of the Research Hall.
THE AFTERMATH OF SOMETHING LETHAL All throughout the Grove, the ghosts of your past lives linger waiting to speak to you- or to the ones you love. They know your life, though the intimate details may vary, and can be touched. And linger they will! They're very curious, you know.
THE ECHO OF INFLICTED EVIL Morrigan the Death wanders the town, poking and prodding at the magics in play. Whatever she's found, however, they have decided can wait. After all, you probably have questions, don't you?
... SO COMES SNOW AFTER FIRE ... After the Door to the Afterlife has been closed- presumably by you, someone's got to do it- and Morrigan has presumably also left, Heimr decides it's time for another community meal. And this time, he brought board games! Please do not kill each other over Monopoly.

out of character

Welcome to November! Thank you very much to Jami for allowing us to use their past life plotting and location for this event, and to Aspen for helping facilitate it ICly!. This has been a long time coming, and now you get to meet another force of nature: Death!

AC will be check-in for November and December before resuming regularly. September and October are the last TDM of the year, and we encourage you to reuse them as desired if current players wish to test new characters, or if new players want to break the ice! We check the TDMs regularly.

updates

Any potential updates, such as characters damaging something important or whatever else, will be put here.

submissions

❖ Questions
❖ November Plotting
❖ Past Life Plotting (Closed to Game Members)
❖ Investigations

code

Comments

[namuthing]

Trust me. He did.

[Genya's sigh is not just a weary one, but a contemplative one as well.]

It's not really my business to get into, but I saw a few of the things he went through. Not the kind of thing any kid should have to shoulder the burden of, that's all I'll say.

[He knows he probably doesn't need to say this to Min-Gi, but...]

Cut him some slack, if you can. He gets defensive pretty easily, and - [He trails off.] Actually, never mind. You probably didn't even know it was him you were talking to.

[outofsynth]

[What.]

I don't know what you're talking about.

[Min had kind of guessed that maybe Genya hadn't had the most ideal life even prior to turning up in this place, but he hadn't found him to be super defensive. He'd got along pretty well with him. Though the mention of him not realizing who he'd been talking to does bring up possibilities...]

[namuthing]

[Wellll, since he already brought it up.]

You know the guy that was yelling at you in the Netbooks, back in that fucked up village?

[Another vague motion.]

[outofsynth]

[..........]

Oh.

[He's not sure how to feel about that actually. He would not have guessed.]

[namuthing]

Look, don't hold it against him. He's got a short temper, and he didn't know it was you, either.

[He flaps his hand a few times.]

Kids, right?

[outofsynth]

Yeah. Kids.

[He suddenly feels a lot like a kid himself.]

I would've been nicer if I knew it was him.

[Which is the Min-Gi version of an apology.]

[namuthing]

Hey, don't be so hard on yourself. [Genya's smile widens, something more amused than just plain polite.] You almost look he does right now.

[Apology noted. Not that this particular Genya needed it.]

If it's any consolation, he's probably sorry, too. And would feel the same if he knew.

[outofsynth]

I don't think I'm gonna tell him.

[Because obviously he will never figure out whose handwriting that was, right?

Although...]

How do you know if we didn't?

[namuthing]

What, you mean made up? I only know so much about you guys. Only what's happened.

[He looks just a little sheepish.]

Sometimes there's not a lot to do in the afterlife. Closest thing we've got to a play is watching your lives. Or messing with each other.

[outofsynth]

[Oh, that's...

He doesn't love that.]

Isn't that kind of invasive?

[namuthing]

Probably. If the roles were reversed, I'd be pretty pissed about it.

[His shoulders slump just a little. He feels bad about it, honest!]

But you also weren't ever supposed to find out about it, eiter None of us expected to meet any of you any time soon. We were just spirits on high, watching you live your lives and hoping that things somehow didn't get worse for you.

[outofsynth]

That's pretty creepy...

[He sure hates thinking about that! He wants to interact with his past self even less than he did already.

Maybe he shouldn't have expressed that thought out loud though.]

Not that I'm pissed off! It's just kind of weird to think about.

[namuthing]

[Well good news, Genya is laughing at that. Not his usual harsh bark, but a gentle little rumble.]

I mean, in case you haven't noticed, this whole place is creepy and weird now. Wasn't always like that, by the way. It used to be nice. Normal, even. Or normal enough, I guess.

[outofsynth]

Yeah. It kind of is.

[He seems reluctant to voice the thought given it used to be this Genya's home, but the laugh encourages him to offer up a weak smile of his own.]

Sorry you had to come back to it like this.

[namuthing]

Y'know, someone smarter than me would probably say something like "it's not my home anymore, therefore it's not my place to judge."

[He scratches the side of his head, then shrugs.]

But I'm not that smart. Honestly, I'm just happy to know that everyone gets a second, or sometimes even a third, chance. Maybe it was fucked up, what you guys had to go through before now, but you're here. And maybe we all have a chance of getting through this.

[outofsynth]

A third chance?

[It's weird enough to think about his own life as a second chance, even with all the evidence that it is.]

Maybe. It still feels messed up that we're stuck here though.

[namuthing]

Not everyone gets a happy ending. You've heard about that, I'm sure.

[He doesn't say it out right, but the fact that he's including himself in that number is pretty heavily implied.]

Not sayin' it isn't, though. And if there's anything we can do on our side to at least give you the option to go home, we will.

[outofsynth]

[Oh.

Min looks uncomfortable, understanding slipping in.]

I guess it's good people have the opportunity to build up their lives here. I just wish we'd been given the choice.

[namuthing]

Trust me, so do I.

[Maybe not for himself. He has a rough idea of the bitter end coming for him, and thinks it'll be good for him to be here, with people he knows. Still, he also knows that there are others, Like Min-Gi, that have had pleasant enough lives up until this point.]

Maybe we'll figure out a way for you to choose. I know it's probably a little too late but... Thought that counts, right?

[outofsynth]

I don't know if that applies in this case.

[He sighs, trying not to look too frustrated with someone he knows had no say in them turning up here.]

I know it's not your fault. We were just starting to take off back home, so the timing is... not great.

[namuthing]

With uh... The whole music thing, right?

[He can only draw guesses from what he knows about his version of Ryan and Min-Gi. Being able to peep in on others' lives is strictly reserved for those he has direct ties to. Or at least, he thinks that's how it works. Maybe he's just never tried.]

[outofsynth]

Right.

[Min's assumed until this moment that being able to see their lives only occurs to their own past selves, but now he's left with some hesitancy.]

Taking off is probably overstating it, but we're playing shows. Smaller ones anyway.

[namuthing]

It's important to you. Doesn't matter how big you were making it, it was still something you wanted to be doing. And not, y'know, this.

[He may not understand the idea of having a career in music, but he can at least empathize when it comes to being torn away from the things that mattered.]

You'll figure out a way back to it. I'm sure of that.

[outofsynth]

I hope so.

You're right. Success would be nice, but the important part was we were living our dream together. I really want to get back to that someday.

[namuthing]

It sounds pretty special. I hope you're able to get back to that, too. Think you two deserve that, and more.

[His cheeks warm as he says it, and he quickly turns his head away.]

I mean. I guess.