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apocalypsehowcomm2023-04-16 08:35 pm
- !event,
- cornelius hickey (the terror),
- cortana (halo),
- edalyn clawthorne (owl house),
- john sheppard (stargate: atlantis),
- manji (blade of the immortal),
- mercy graves (original),
- rodney mckay (stargate: atlantis),
- zz_bruce banner (marvel comics),
- zz_johnny summer (lavender jack),
- zz_power (chainsaw man)
Event - The Ballad of Thomazine Younger
(cw: references to blackmail, plague, fire, being buried alive, altered mental states, spying, and cannibalism; implied eye injury)
The local legend of Thomazine "Tammy" Younger, Witch Queen of Dogtown, has been regaining traction in local gossip of late. The stories all revolve around the same nuggets of probable historic fact: there definitely was a Thomazine Younger who lived in Dogtown at the time it was abandoned by most of its population in the 1800s, and she definitely had a reputation for witchcraft she used to extract tolls from any merchant or freighter passing by Fox Hill. Beyond that, the stories are varied and contradictory–some say she was the ringleader of a coven who would turn themselves into rats to thieve from neighboring Gloucester and spread pestilence; others that she could turn solid earth into mud to swallow up the wagons of those who refused to pay her off. Depending on whom you believe, Tammy engaged in such varied hobbies as sending unholy fire to burn entire fields of crops, spying on her neighbors with her magic eye, twisting the minds of brothers and sisters so they no longer knew one another, or luring travelers without goods for her to steal into her home to slaughter and eat them. Some even say she was the cause of Dogtown's mass exodus, blighting the land so that none but witches could survive there.
The resurgence of her urban rural legend coincides with something a bit more troubling: sightings of an old woman in a ragged dress on the outskirts of Dogtown. She's been seen just inside the fence line on the northern edge of the park, prowling around the general area of Fox Hill, staring and making arcane gestures at anyone who sees her before disappearing into the undergrowth. Eyewitness accounts from locals and ADI employees patrolling the area differ in terms of the specifics: in some accounts the specter of the Witch Queen is a tall, emaciated creature practically in rags; in others she's a stout, moon-faced matron with tears of blood dripping from her eyes, or a bent old crone with fingers too long and too many. Always, though, she disappears before anyone can come near enough to see her up close or confront her.
How she disappears, though, is less consistent. Sometimes her exit is precisely what one would expect of a ghost, when she disappears in the blink of an eye or her form twists before your eyes until you aren't certain whether she was there at all or if you mistook the gnarled trees for a vision of something more sinister. Other times, her exit is more…human. That is, she might simply turn and walk away deeper into the undergrowth until she's lost from sight, or slip behind a tree. One confused ADI patroller even claims he saw the ghost of Tammy Younger trip over a root before scrambling back to her feet and limping away at speed.
There's something pervasive and potentially dangerous going on here…but something about it doesn't quite line up.
(cw: alcohol, dolls, potential for injury)
ADI is keen to end things quickly with potential ghosts running amok, particularly one with a known history in Dogtown. There's a serious concern that regular residents of Gloucester are going to start taking matters into their own hands and trying to start exploring the park when they ought not to be.
The decision is made quickly to send ADI personnel into the park more actively to search out Fox Hill, one of the purported locations of Tammy Younger's hauntings. Volunteers will find themselves paired up and sent off. Curiously, the locations that were previously mapped by others aren't appearing properly. Like Dogtown is warping and twisting around at will for the moment. It's unclear why this is, but it seems… safer than it should? The obstacles and strangeness seem to have faded away for the time being, replaced by a quiet and picturesque woodland. It doesn't take long to find Fox Hill. It takes far less time than it reasonably should, in fact, but getting to the top of the hill is… a challenge.
There are hidden dangers on Fox Hill. Pit traps that seem to go down very deep, indeed, nets that spring up when you step in the wrong spot and leave their quarry trapped in some tree or other. Maybe you're one of the lucky ones that somehow triggers an avalanche of small boulders and… are those marbles? Every conceivable way that one could lay a trap to prevent someone from mounting the hill has been employed. Clearly, someone or something doesn't want you getting up.
Along the way, volunteers will spy evidence of the ghost. There are discarded liquor bottles everywhere–the legend does say she'll take her payments in drink or blood–phosphorescent trails, and small, sinister-looking stick dolls. Those trying to analyze these things will find that the liquor bottles are from the present day, the phosphorescent trails are a sort of paint, and the stick dolls… well, those look like what you would see in a horror movie that involves witches.
(cw: stalking, potential child endangerment)
The nights in Gloucester seem to be returning to a state of restlessness as rumors of ghosts quickly turn to rumors of ghost sightings. Pale and spectral figures lurk at the edges of people’s sight, follow victims, and seem to come out of nowhere and vanish just as quickly without a word. Between the recent evidence and a known slew of sightings a couple months ago, ADI is keen to put more than a few people on this to get out ahead of it. People are encouraged to search in groups no smaller than two, but won’t stop anyone who decides they hunt alone. After all, it’s a well-known fact ghosts rarely like to be seen by more than one set of eyes. Especially these ones.
People out investigating may find their paths fairly quiet most nights. However, separate from your partner for a bit, fall behind, or go it alone, and you might just notice a pale figure vanishing around a corner or standing eerily at the end of an alley. Sometimes things you follow even seem to vanish into walls or thin air. They very rarely say anything, but they can be heard. Boxes and small items knocked over, trash cans rattled, fire escapes landing just ahead of you to get in your path, it seems the ghosts are mostly interested in being seen, not interacted with. Too bad they got you on the case.
Those dedicated, skilled, or perhaps powerful enough to exert a little fear of the law or simply fear of things that actually go bump in the night may swiftly discover a few key things: Ghosts caught up to quickly enough can be seen slipping behind doors, scaling buildings, or using creative escape routes to get away. Clumsy ghosts seem prone to bumping into things as sure as the next person…and those fast enough to catch up to some gangly, terrified, legs are quick to learn the legs, torso, and the whole rest of the ‘ghost’ is very real. Very real, rather young, and often quite terrified of the adult now catching them. Hopefully no one used actual powers on these miscreant teens.
(cw: spiders, allusion to swarms, sleepwalking, compulsion)
'How did I get here?'
It might be one of the first thoughts to occur to you as you wake with a sudden start. But lucky you, you have a friend! Or… an enemy? You have another (apparently) human being nearby who's probably looking just as confused as you are. The spider web tattoo you earned after your ride with Gus the Bus tingles uncomfortably, like many delicate little feet are swarming across it before dissipating.
It may take a few moments, or possibly more, for you to realize you're somewhere you may not wish to be. These trees, the thick and eerie forest around you… this is Dogtown. Somehow, you've walked yourself into a veritable minefield of danger, avoiding everything that might kill you (or worse). Until now. You're conscious, stuck with someone you may or may not know well, wearing… well, if you're lucky, you're wearing your regular clothes and didn't walk in here in your pajamas.
Good luck finding your way out.
- GENERAL - Players are welcome to play background NPCs for themselves when they are needed in a thread. If you need more information on general behavior for these types of NPCs, please feel free to ask! In general, the information provided in the prompts should be sufficient and ordinary people will act like… ordinary people! You're welcome to make up any details for your specific scene. Also, please remember that character deaths are permanent and plan accordingly! For this event, in particular, the Meddling Kids™ are very dedicated to their efforts to remind the world about Thomazine Younger and bring her story to the world, so they're not going to break their ghoulish character until something truly frightening happens to them… or characters try to hurt them. Or… succeed in hurting them. Please don't murder too many young people now.
- GHOSTS OF YESTERYEAR (16-20 April) - While the ghost of Tammy Younger's appearance may vary, she usually appears as one of the three specters described in the prompt. Notably, when her ghost does not align with one of those three descriptions or when her proportions are twisted beyond what's humanly possible is when she's most likely to disappear in an obviously supernatural fashion rather than walk away like a real, solid person. Regardless, even at her most corporeal Tammy seems to be quite good at evading capture, as though very familiar with the current layout of Dogtown.
- OUTFOXED AT FOX HILL (19-20 April) - The path into Dogtown seems to have been chosen for the characters to lead them to Fox Hill. It's the only path that appears to exist during this period. Trying to leave Fox Hill will take you swiftly out of the park. It doesn't matter where you start from, what direction you're going. You end up coming to the fence or leaving the park. This effect will only be in place until the THOSE MEDDLING KIDS prompt concludes. The traps on Fox Hill are all designed to be nonlethal, but they can certainly hurt you, and players are welcome to come up with whatever traps they might like their characters to encounter. There's nothing particularly supernatural in any of the things found up there, and atop Fox Hill is only a stash of spray paint and half-drunk bottles of liquor.
- THOSE MEDDLING KIDS (20-24 April) - The pale figures reported are quickly found to be teenagers in bodysuits or paint (at least they didn’t use sheets) and very much still alive while the ghosts seen going through walls can be quickly explained through pretty decent mobile projectors. A couple of the teens will be caught wearing costumes that match the appearances of "Tammy" in Dogtown. Teens will flee and resist capture from most normal means, but won’t fight too much if caught other than to get away. They really do seem to be kids that went a little too far with a prank. Those who might end up on the wrong side of a stray power or two will be downright terrified of their pursuer and likely to either turn to another adult in the group for safety or shut down entirely. Maybe you should be more careful next time. Either way, the local authorities will take it from here.
- AND YOU MUST ASK YOURSELF (16 April - Ongoing) - Characters will only be affected by the compulsion to walk into Dogtown if they rode in and were marked by Gus the Bus. Gus continues to be available and around in Gloucester should you wish to have your character captured and marked by him. Details about Gus are included in the March 2023 TDM. Gus has also been added as a feature to the Dogtown Searches page and description in the Locations page.
Players can have their characters turn up in any explored square in Dogtown or one of the unexplored squares adjacent to them. Please just submit a search request for the unexplored square that you'd like your character (and a friend) to discover!
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At that moment Raine remembered their manners, and they glance towards the door.
"By the way, do.. you.. want anything to drink? I almost forgot to offer."
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Maybe he would have been better without an arm.
"I doubt you have sake, but got any hot tea instead?"
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Raine lowered their head, eyes cast to the side as they contemplated what exactly this all meant in the grand scheme of things- the way they knew what it felt like to never have peace. To never feel like they weren't being watched, and scrutinised.
Their attention returned to Manji as he spoke of their drink options.
"I'm actually not sure what sake is," they hum, and stand up. "And I- I don't drink tea very much. But I think I have something downstairs. I've also got the apple blood Eda mad but I'm.. not sure what exactly it tastes like. Or what it's made out of."
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They walked to Eda's dresser, and opened it enough to where they could take out the bottle. They briefly looked it over and shut the drawer. They grabbed two mugs- one that looked like a cauldron and says Witche's Brew and another more plain mug that says Not Wine.
Raine uncorked the bottle, and poured some of the apple blood into both. They sat the bottle down, and handed Manji his mug.
"Here you go," they sat back down. "I.. Hope you enjoy it?"
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Once he's handed the mug, Manji swirls the drink. Giving in a sniff before he takes a sip. "It's not bad. Is there actually blood in this?"
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"No," they reply, disappointment in their gaze down at their mug. "Apple blood comes from the apple butcher, and there aren't any here. I checked."
They take another sip of the Apple Blood. Maybe they could get used to it.
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"What I'm more confused about is why apples here don't need a butcher," They respond. "Or. Why they look so small here."
They took another sip, still not quite accustomed to the taste.
"Though, to be fair most human world things are strange."
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"I mean, it makes sense.. you're human, but some humans that are off-worlders aren't from Earth. Like John."
Raine thought about it for a moment, before they added:
"In the Boiling Isles we end up with a lot of Human Realm junk. It bleeds into our world, as some of our things bleed into theirs, so many things now that I'm here, are almost familiar. But.. we don't have cars, or busses, or the internet. Kind of. And it's not this version of the human world where the junk comes from."
They shrugged. That was all complicated stuff Raine figured Manji wasn't interested in.
"What's it like where you're from? And how come you've got abilities that other humans don't? Most humans can't attach limbs that aren't theirs to their body."
CW: Body horror/mention of worms
"As for what home is like? It's quiet. Everything here is so loud and bright. It seems like there is always something moving, flashing, or beeping. Everything moves so quickly." He's learned the hard way how fast the cars can move.
"And attaching limbs to my body is only something me and maybe one or two other people can do. Got myself a curse from some old lady and I only know of one other person that she's cursed with immortality. I have holy worms in me that can repair my body nearly instantly. They can't tell the difference if it's my own limb or someone else's I'm trying to reattach."
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Raine shifted in their chair as they processed the worms portion of what Manji had said.
They could guess which Fear had snatched him up.
"Worms are an interesting curse. I've heard of similar ones at home, but not in a way where the worms do anything positive..."
Raine tapped their chin.
"Has being here had an effect on that in any way? If. You're fine to talk about it."
They pause, and then add.
"Because if you're not, I've got something else I want to ask you."
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He takes a sip of his drink and thinks about if he should give an honest answer or not. "I have no problem talking about it." His struggle is explaining it. "And the effect it's had? I'm tired. I'm tired all the time." The worms were always working, always repairing the damage time does to a body. Stopping his aging by constantly replacing aging cells with new ones. "And if I try to go too far without scaring people? Well, the results can be messy." He won't go further into that unless asked. "I hate that I finally feel the most like myself after I scared and maimed a kid and even that I know won't lasts forever."
It was nice not feeling worn out for a little while, but it didn't feel worth it. Not for the cost the kid paid.
"But what's your other question?"
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It probably wouldn't be much like when they were kids, but the bard would take what they could get.
"I'm sorry it makes you feel under the weather. I.. things definitely feel different here for myself as well." They paused.
Raine understood Manji's last comment. They understood it more than he probably realised. They'd had the thing they'd honed, perfected from years that acted as their way of interacting with the world, their way of life, their way of self defence. Stripped from them, and warped in a way that felt like it had been replaced by a parasite. Gone was the free flowing energy, replaced instead by a sluggish and polluted energy, poisoned by the creatures it now fed. It felt.. almost disgusting to cast magic at times.
"The way playing- actually playing feels for me is.. it's like that. When music has been connected to how I cast magic for most of my life, it feels a bit strange to not be able to do it naturally. Like a part of myself is permanently missing. It's.. horrible. I wish there was a way for things to change. To get that back."
Raine quieted down again, and stared at their half empty drink.
"Have you ever considered trying to.. look for answers yourself? And I don't mean go into Dogtown, or, something like that. I mean in the ADI. Investigate places they don't want us to."
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It is something he's considered. That this could be his future or it could be some strange, alternate future that isn't related to the one he left behind. "And even if she is around I don't think she dabbles in traveling back through time. I also suspect she'd be in Japan. This world is so strange and new it's difficult to figure out how I could travel that far to get home." And he's seen video clips of what Japan looks likes now. It's not a place he fully recognizes as home anymore.
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"Manji.. I uh.. I meant," They looked over their shoulder at the door for a moment, before they turned back to Manji, and their voice softens. "I meant the ADI. I've been looking into.. keeping tabs on specific things. Things that I think they have information on that could help us, but they're withholding it for some reason."
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"Spying is much more than doing things quietly, but I see your point."
Manji was quite loud. And brash. And prone to sounding rude.
"I was just simply gauging your overall interest. Not, asking you to do any work."
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They paused, hesitation overtook them and they furrowed their eyebrows. They wanted to trust Manji, and he seemed interested, so maybe they could test the waters.
"Not without suspicion."
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"I won't talk if push comes to shove."
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"Okay. I don't think I'll need to do that, but I'll keep that in mind. Im trying to not get caught in the first place, though."
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