acatalepsy_ooc | test drive meme # 4

I ▫ main	IV ▫ premise			XI ▫ applications	XIV ▫ activity
II ▫ logs	V ▫ rules	VII ▫ bestiary	IX ▫ canon updates	XII ▫ taken	XV ▫ drop/hiatus
III ▫ ooc	VI ▫ faq	VIII ▫ setting	X ▫ mods	XIII ▫ reserves	XVI ▫ players

test drive meme #4

It happens in the blink of an eye.

One moment, you are home. Perhaps you are with your family, perhaps you are at work. It's a completely normal day . . . and then, suddenly, your stomach drops. You are overcome with a sudden sense of vertigo. You cannot see up, or down, or where you are.

All you hear is a voice -- light, bubbly, warm, soothing, in your ear:

Don't worry, darling. This won't hurt a bit~ ♥

For those who recognize the voice, it will sound a bit strained. Possibly tired. But the moment happens so quickly it's hard to pin down, and once that moment is over, you fall flat on your face. It's bright, warm, and humid. It takes a few seconds for you to gain composure and catch your breath. You think, for half a moment, that a hand is on your back, rubbing between your shoulder blades in comfort, but when you open your eyes, no one is there. You are surrounded by ancient stone buildings, with carvings you do not recognize etched into the stone. There's a sense of nausea, overwhelming and sudden, when you realize you aren't in Kansas anymore.

Even worse, it looks like Astoria has started to feel a bit festive, maybe even a little spooky.

THE TEMPLE OF BEGINNINGS.

Welcome to the "Home Base" of Astoria's Circle. What the actual name of the base is called is lost to the ages, and there's no sense of where you could find it, unless you started asking around.

At any rate, this is a central hub of the Circle, a place of powerful magic and mysterious energy. It is a scattering of ancient stone buildings and for the most part, it looks abandoned . . . except for what seems to be a few items, some rooms taken, items moved or organized, even a small garden planted. These are just the smallest hints that there are people here that have been here before you arrived.

Overall, it's fairly beautiful. However, it is definitely not modern.

Upon exploration, you find that the buildings are kept up by some kind of magic. Some of the rooms have items, things from other Circle members already settled, and others appear to be unclaimed. Pick your rooms, explore the grounds, see the beauty and wonder all around you in such a magical place. However, be careful -- there is some additional movement around the Temple that seems specific to the time of year.

THE GREAT PUMPKIN.

Fall has certainly arrived in the Circle . . . rich colors adorn the leaves, a crisp breeze is in the air . . . and in the center of the Temple itself appears to be a massive pumpkin. And, really, the word massive doesn't appear to do the gourd justice. It is nearly twelve feet tall and twelve feet wide, round and bulbous in nature. But what is even more bizarre is that the entire structure seems hollow . . . and the front of it, in a Jack-O'-Lantern facade, has a large grinning face.

No one says you have to go inside it, but if you're so inclined to scale through the mouth of the massive Jack-O'-Lantern, you will find a couple of things inside! One, the thing seems to be full of bowls of candy. Some candy might look familiar, but most of it looks a little weird. Two, there are floating candles spread throughout the pumpkin, creating odd shadows that cast about as the sun goes down. Three, the pumpkin changes expressions throughout the day. When you aren't looking, it goes from grimacing to smiling -- and it never seems to happen when you look!

Have fun celebrating the holiday, Circle. Astoria is just getting started.

SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS.

If the pumpkin wasn't quite enough of a giveaway that Astoria has become spookily inspired to welcome her new guests, then this will have to do. Because right along the outside of the Temple of Beginnings, there seems to be a somewhat constant and fairly thick fog. It's the kind of fog that makes you think there's something there. And with some exploration, you'll find...there is.

Right in the distance there is movement, unnatural and sporadic.

Any further investigation into the movement will involve you moving further and further into the fog. But be careful, because this fog is thick enough to lose sight of where you've come from. With enough time, you can catch up with the movement, to find that what you've heard and seen just beyond your peripheral, are...skeletons. Animated skeletons. They're humanoid, almost cartoon, and are moving with little to no direction. They just seem to be shambling in whatever direction they can, with no purpose or reason. They are entirely harmless.

Except that if you get too curious, and get close enough to touch them, their heads will jerk towards you. They won't do much more, until you try and step away. It seems that by touching the skeletons, you've attracted their attention, and as you try to move away from them they will follow. And as they follow, they will attract the attention of other skeletons, and others, and others. If you're not careful, you'll collect an army.

They will not follow you across the boundary around the Temple of Beginnings, but everywhere else you wander, you will have an entourage. Depending on how long you spend with your skeletons friends, you might even find out that they will answer simple commands. Like dance.

FALL FEAST.

No matter how Astoria's thoughts on holiday cheer, she seems to have at least gotten one fall related item down- because on one of the days, you will wake up and find that in the middle of the Temple of Beginnings, where there is usually some green space and open grass, is now a very large table, extravagantly decorated. It seems to go on forever in each direction, which feels...a little impossible (but what isn't impossible here?) with plenty of chairs. The table has been decorated with fall ornaments (anyone familiar with the American 'Thanksgiving' will find quite a few similarities) with the only difference instead being the wide variety of food available.

Astoria is not limited to Turkey and Stuffing on this day - but rather, almost any kind of food or drink (minus any kind of magical abilities it may contain) is here on this table. Food and snacks from every reach of every world and galaxy is on display. Maybe you're going to spend some time searching out your favorite from home, or maybe you're feeling adventurous and want to try a piece of whatever is in front of you - you think it might be some kind of potatoes? If potatoes were slightly bioluminescent? Also, did that side dish move just now?

COMMUNICATIONS.

Upon arriving, you will notice on whichever is your non-dominant hand, you will have a fairly simply screen. A smart watch, if you will. Upon exploration, you will find that it has a directory of all those here with you at the Temple of Beginnings- names, and access to a direct message to them. The watch also has video, audio, and text capabilities, as well as what looks like a collection of messages sent to everyone who wishes to open them. This is your 'network', and also how Astoria can reach out and communicate with you.

There is nothing keeping you from removing and/or losing your watch! But remember that you will not have access to this network without it.

OOC: Also feel free to join us and other possible players on our discord server!

enjoy! ♥

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

That's because I haven't told them not to.

[ Like he has. She's just been nice and they've listened to her. ]

Mm, the same way you're nice to everyone else, right?

[ That's how you be nice to bones. This is assuming he's nice to anyone, though. ]

The same way I... [ he stares at her suspiciously because... is she being a smartass at him or what? she's throwing some shade right?? does he look like he's nice or would give the time of day to anyone, let alone the undead. ]

Hey, corpse.

Kindly fuck off and die. Again.

[ defiant dancing intensifies. he shoots her a death glare--this didn't work--!! ]

[ You've got to be kidding her, that's not nice at all. She's a little shocked to hear him say that. ]

Just putting "kindly" on things isn't going to make it nice.

[ You have to make the whole sentence nice, dude. And she puts her hands on her hips. ]

That's why they're not listening.

[ She is unfazed by your death glare. ]

[ a... annoying as fuck-- ] Oh please. Like dead bastards deserve my courtesy.

If you're such a skeleton expert and all your bony assholes are following your directions so nicely why don't you tell mine to kindly fuck off for me?

[ You are beginning to wear her patience thin, buddy ... What a mean person. She feels exactly the opposite about these skeletons than he does.

Still, she's not the kind of person to yell a lot or get overly mad. But she's certainly a little annoyed with his attitude.

So she places her hands on her hips. Standing her ground here. ]

Or you could learn to do it yourself.

[ this girl has some ego or what... or she's just not taking his shit but you know what, fuck that. ] Learn to what, say 'please' to a bunch of bones? You've gotta be kidding me.

[ No ego, just too strong of a will for her own good. ]

Nope. That's exactly what you should do. [ A small pause. ] And stop threatening them so much, too.

[ Because his saying please isn't going to go very far if he's still being a jerk in other ways. ]

[ stop threatening... he can barely not threaten people. ] Telling them to die isn't a threat, it's... anyway, they're already dead. [ probably. therefore death threats are totally fine, obviously. ]

Here, if you care about these bone idiots so much you can have them. [ pushes... one of them at her. it stumbles over its own two feet before staring at her hopefully--maybe she will be a friendlier skeleton boss than the asshole it'd been saddled with? please adopt it. ]

[ Doesn't matter if they're already dead! Still not nice to say! What if when they die a second time they die forever, huh!!

But moving past that — she makes a bit of an annoyed face at him. She'd rather force him to learn to be nice, but she can't really say no to such a hopeful-looking skeleton. It makes her feel bad ...

So she sighs. ] Okay, let me have them.

[ This absolutely does not mean he is off the hook, though. Far from it.

And that skeleton he pushed will scurry up to join the other skeletons she has, while the rest of his wait for him to let them go, too. ]

[ he can kind of tell she's feeling righteous about this and it's annoying as hell... ]

They're dead assholes. They don't even have brains. They're just being a pest, you can adopt the whole fucking mob if you want to be princess of skeletons that badly. [ but he's already shooing the rest of them towards her, they start to crowd up to her like excitable puppies... only they are skeletons. ]

And they're kinda gross. [ how can he say this when he likes skull motifs?? they're still gross damn it. ]

[ Little does he know, she's an actual princess. But not of skeletons.

She gives a soft smile to the skeletons that come over her, before switching back to her annoyed expression for him. ]

They are not gross. You're free of them now, so why are you still complaining?

[ Grow up!! If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it! ]

[ his eyebrow twitches because--the hell is she doing, trying to lecture him. he wasn't complaining, he was shittalking, there's a difference--

probably.

but it is true that he's freed from them. his scowl turns into a frown then--you know what. mission accomplished, the skeletons are gone, she has them. actually as far as he's concerned this is what he wanted. ]

Whatever. Have fun with those things. [ he's peacing out. later. ]

test drive meme # 4

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject