I'd sit there and look at the deserted lakes and I'd sing

[singmod]

MARCH 2024 EVENT

PROMPT ONE — EXIT STRATEGY: With the way via the main road a no-go, Methuselah finds a potential and very dangerous way out of the Milton area: the Milton Mines. During the Aurora, the Interlopers must find a way to safely navigate the mines and find a way through.

PROMPT TWO — BRAVE NEW WORLD: Interlopers make their way into the Lakeside area, and are free to explore the more of the Northern Territories: a place of both industry and leisure.

PROMPT THREE — THE ECHO: On Aurora nights, the aftermath of the Darkwalker's attack on the Interlopers continues to ripple through the community — with a painful affliction.

EXIT STRATEGY

WHEN: Mid-month.
WHERE: Milton Mines.
CONTENT WARNINGS: claustrophobic situations; potential injury/maiming; potential electrocution/electrocution injuries; potential burn injuries; hyperthermic situations; exploration horror;


Unusually, Methuselah returns to the town around the middle of the month. He is looking pleased and will ask that the Interlopers gather in the Community Hall. Once gathered, he climbs onto the small stage at one end of the Hall and explains that following last month’s Feast, he set out to try to find a way out of Milton, and he believes he may have found a way out.

He goes on to explain that although the Milton Mine has been closed for many years, there may still be access through the mine. The mine had two entrances through either sides of the stone, one on the Milton side since many of the residents worked the mine back in the day, but there was also an additional entrance on the opposite side, which led to a railway track that allowed easier export of coal and precious materials towards the coast. Having gained access, he believes the mine seems to mostly remain intact, but not easy to get through. However, he discovered that during the Aurora, the old mine and its electronics came to life — meaning a way through is certainly possible during those times with the added electronics in play.

It is not much, and it is certainly incredibly dangerous, but it is something. There is certainly no way out towards the south; towards the north might be the Interlopers’ best chance of finding a way out of Milton.

Methuselah will ask for any volunteers to join him in trying to find a way out via the mines, taking them up north and then waiting for an Aurora to happen before they can then make their way through and explore the mine system. Anyone is free to sign up, and he suggests someone drawing up a sign up sheet so that Interlopers have an idea of who is leaving the town on the journey.

The hike towards the mines is a long one, taking a few hours on an incline to reach the northern mountains. Waiting on the Aurora may take time, so setting up camp is the next step — waiting for night and hoping the skies fill with night soon. Interlopers are free to explore the mine beforehand, but will find a lot of it locked up tight. With areas unreachable without power and the darkness suffocating, they won’t get very far.

When the Aurora does finally come, the mine will come to life: the system’s lighting will come on throughout, albeit flickering and a little unreliable. Machinery and track systems whir and groan as the mine slowly cranks itself into functioning once more. While there are maps of the system to help Interlopers navigate the system — showing a second entrance labelled as ‘Lakeside Entrance’ — the true difficulty in getting through lies in wait.

Interlopers will find that parts of the system have been partially flooded: with the frigid water in places mostly ankle deep and others reaching no higher than knee-high on an average-height man. What’s worse, is the half-destroyed electrics ravaged by both time and the Aurora mean plenty of loose wires hanging here and there. It’s possible to accidentally catch yourself on them, meaning burn injuries and mild electric shocks — but care should be taken in checking if these wires may have fallen into these flooded parts. Stepping into these live waters will be far more deadly. They will also find that the electronically-powered gates that open through into areas may not function, with the fuses having been blown.

Gaining access through the mine is not impossible, however. It will simply require a little bit of legwork. One of the larger caverns of the mines houses a fuse board. Characters can switch off sections of the mines in order to traverse them safely, find new fuses in toolboxes scattered through the mines in order to open the gates and make their way through to gain access to the elevator of the mine — which will also require new fuses, in order to power the electrics to get it to function.

It is perhaps, most frustrating, that once Interlopers get the elevator working and head downwards into the final section of the mine, that they will come across hand-cranks — allowing them to use the elevator without the need for electricity. But at least the hard part is over, and the Interlopers now have a way through from Milton that doesn’t require relying on the Aurora to power the mine’s electrics.

On the lower section of the mine, there will be a handful of more gated rooms to get through before reaching the Lakeside Entrance, and more wires and flooded areas to traverse. But you can taste it: something on the air. You’re close.

You’ve made it, Interloper.

BRAVE NEW WORLD

WHEN: Mid-month, onwards.
WHERE: Milton Mines (Lakeside Entrance); The Ravine; Lakeside area.
CONTENT WARNINGS: themes of exploration/survival; themes of peril; acrophobia; potential character/npc death from falls; potential injuries, potential cold injuries/hyperthermia risk;

Coming out of the mines, you will be greeted by a small mining camp and railway track enclosed by mountains on both sides. It’s incredibly sheltered here, with little wind chill and not as much snow on the ground compared to some of the more open areas of Milton. It may be best to rest here for the rest of the night. There are several portacabins that were used to house some of the former miners, along with additional cabins with one being some kind of foreman’s office, one that served as a kind of mess hall and one for bathing/toilet needs.

While there is little in terms of supplies left in there, some scraps may be found here and there — plus the cabins will provide decent shelter from the cold, which may be the last Interlopers will get ahead of the long walk down through the mountain track and into Lakeside. There is also plenty of coal left lying around, too — allowing for Interlopers to craft fires to keep warm. Even with it being sheltered, it’s still cold out.

In terms of where to go from here, the only way seems to be to follow the track. It’s a long walk, but rather straightforward if you keep to the tracks. A good few hours of it, but it’s quiet — and there doesn’t seem to be much in the way of wildlife or windchill here. It almost seems too easy, or as easy as it could be in regards to a long walk through thick snow.

Until you come face to face with the ravine.

The world opens up to you, with the tracks stretching over a huge valley via a… mostly sturdy-looking wooden and steel bridge. There doesn’t seem to be any way around it, no alternative route of getting over to the other side. Crossing the bridge is the only option. Care should be taken, with Interlopers now being vulnerable to the wind and the snow-laden tracks. As sturdy as the bridge looks, it seems to creak and groan under the weight of a single footstep. There even appears to be the remains of fall train-carts in the depths, from some unfortunate incident years ago. It’s probably fine.

Crossing the bridge and continuing down the tracks will eventually have the world opening up even more — you’ve finally reached Lakeside. Thick boreal forests crowd around the tracks, and in places, Interlopers will note that the tracks have buckled and become badly damaged. When they find roads, they will also find them in similar states of disrepair from beneath the snow. Following them for another hour or so will eventually lead to Lakeside’s Maintenance Yard. From here, there is a road, with directions: signs pointing towards Milton, the Coast, Lakeside Resort and the Carter Hydrodam.

For those interested in searching the Maintenance Yard, they will be greeted by a large, fenced in building. Fortunately, a great deal of the fencing has been damaged with the bad weather and it is easy enough to gain access. The place is a bit of a mess: scrap metal, wood, and dissued trucks and cars litter the yard, along with wood that can be used for kindling and firewood. Inside the Maintenance Yard, it is a little bit of a mechanic’s dream. There’s plenty of tools in this place, and even a forge which could be used for crafting if someone has the patience to fire it up and keep it hot for long enough. There’s plenty of stores of coal, at least. But in terms of a living space, there’s not much else other than a small break room with some comfy chairs to catch some quick shut-eye. Searching the Yard for any letters or such will reveal a similar theme to that of Milton: difficulty in reaching the Mainland with postage and correspondences, the lack of staffing, and the problems with wildlife. There are also complaints and concerns over growing dangers of small quakes causing damage to the roads and rail system.

Following the road towards the Lakeside Resort is a mostly quiet and pleasant enough trek, as long as one keeps close to or on the road there as much as possible. The Resort is largely secluded, even if it is around the actual lake itself, and it’s easy to see just why this place would have been a popular vacation place.

The resort is a collection of a dozen luxury cabins dotted around the edge of the lake, each of them with a decent amount of space between them for privacy. The cabins themselves are sturdy and well built, but look far more modern and almost designer in terms of style - with huge almost floor to ceiling windows and spacious porches for that perfect lakeside view, and open plan rooms and balconies. Each of the cabins contain multiple bedrooms, suitable for vacationing families and mix both modern technology and more rustic means of heating homes — making them ideal for all weathers.

A couple of the cabins are not completed, appearing to be a kind of expansion of the resort that was not finished. Build materials still remain here. Some of the cabins on the furthest side appear to have become victims of vandalism, having been broken into and completely trashed with windows smashed, furniture missing and broken, and any goods completely ransacked from the place. There are perhaps five cabins out of the twelve that remain fully intact and may contain useful items such as food, basic medical supplies and tools, and will certainly be excellent shelters for those looking for somewhere to stay.

There is also a Camp Office, situated at the east side of the lake. Used as a kind of main office of maintenance for the cabins, along with an office or tourist centre of sorts. It has a decent stock of hiking and outdoor essentials. The Camp Office does also have a small living space upstairs — presumably used by Lake staff or rangers, with a wood stove and kitchenette, along with a bathroom and several bunk-beds. It appears that the Camp Office wasn't abandoned until a short while ago — no more than a couple of months.

Following the road to the Hydrodam is a trickier one than the one to the Resort. There is a higher volume of predator wildlife here, with wolf howls closer and more frequent. With the current state of wildlife’s behaviours, it is likely to face attacks from wolves on the way there. The Carter Hydrodam has clearly seen better days. It seems to have fallen into disrepair and may have only been run by a small skeleton crew. While the Hydrodam is gated and locked up tight, it’s possible to break in through the gate and gain access.

While the lower dam is currently out of bounds, Interlopers will be able to get into the upper levels of the main building of the Hydrodam, which consists mostly of offices, maintenance rooms, a medical bay, and rooms banked with control panels, plus staff areas. The med bay is relatively well stocked, but might need a little forced entry with certain medical lockers and cabinets. Tools and other useful items can also be found here, along with bunk rooms, a small canteen and bathrooms/showers. It might be possible with some work to get access to hot water here — the showering systems run on a back-up furnace system, and while some of the pipes are broken, it might be possible to fix them to get the hot water system up and running again.

Following the road to the Coast will find a dead end. The bridge that heads over towards that direction has been damaged beyond repair, and there looks to be no way of getting around it. Perhaps, much like with getting out of Milton, there may be an alternate way of getting further south, but time will tell.

But for now, here is an entirely new region, ripe for the picking. While it appears some places have already seen minor scavenging (with the exception to the vandalism and looting of some of the resort cabins), Lakeside is largely untouched. It is full of game to hunt, an expansive lake to take up ice-fishing in, and indoor locations to search through for supplies. Some Interlopers may decide to stay here permanently now that it’s easier to travel between Lakeside and Milton.

THE ECHO

WHEN: Aurora Nights, the month of March.
WHERE: Everywhere
CONTENT WARNINGS: supernatural/otherworldly afflictions; themes of grief; themes of loss

There are roughly no more than ten Aurora nights during the month of March, and everything occurs as usual: the insanely bright colours swirling in the skies before you, the crackles and pops of static in the air providing percussion to the strange, ethereal chorus of almost-electrical sounds. The electrics of the world around coming alive with its usual sputtering and falters. There is much mystery to these strange, almost supernatural phenomena — but they almost feel like a kind of staple in the Northern Territories.

But on these nights something different happens.

If you listen closely, the sound of weeping can be heard on the air. Those with the Aurora Call Feat will be particularly drawn to the sound, and will hear it more clearly compared to their fellow Interlopers. It is the sound of a woman, and those paying attention might be able to recognise the voice it belongs to: it is the same woman heard over the static of radios and televisions in December and early January. The same woman that spoke to Interlopers, telling them to sleep, with the promise of help — thus granting some of them powers. It is the same voice that screamed out the night La’an Noonien-Singh died, and the night of those recently killed in the church.

She is… grief-stricken. Her weeping is a raw and anguished thing, and the more you listen, the more it seems to grip at you. You feel her pain, maybe it echoes within your own. Those you have lost, those you have failed or hurt — a reverb that grows stronger as the night continues. It is an all-consuming pain, its depths endless. It brings tears to your eyes.

You carry this pain, as she does.

You feel it in your very bones, in your flesh and sinew. It’s an exhaustive pain, and as the night progresses, you find yourself incredibly weary. In a strange state of fatigue that won’t even allow you to sleep.

You may find yourself going in search of comfort amongst friends, or loved ones. To hold a hand, to embrace them — to not be alone in this pain you feel.

But it is a pain that is too great.

On these nights, you will find yourselves alone, without the comfort you would otherwise lean on. You will not be soothed by that comfort of others. For as long as the Aurora lasts, reaching out and touching others will bring real physical pain to you. It will hurt to touch others, and physical contact will produce a sharp biting pain, even for those who may not feel pain otherwise. Too much. It’s… too much.

Some of you were told once, in a dream: “Don’t you understand it now? We are all connected. The Aurora connects us.”

Once the lights in the sky fade, that pain will finally ease and the woman’s sobs will go quiet — but it will return once more, when the next Aurora comes.

FAQs

EXIT STRATEGY

1. It is entirely possible for NPC Interlopers to die in the mines due to electrocution, and players are free to use NPCs — we ask that players give mods a heads up so that the masterlist can be updated accordingly.


BRAVE NEW WORLD

1. The lower dam is currently completely physically impossible to access. The door that leads there is jammed shut. Characters will notice half-frozen water leaking on the floor around the door.

2. It is possible to find bodies in Lakeside, however there is a... suspiciously low amount of them, and the rare ones found by characters will have been there for some time. They will have appeared to have died of exposure.

3. Wolves can be found in Lakeside, and their tracks are incredibly common. Interactions with wolves can happen in the exploration of this region, and they will behave much like they did during the September event and be incredibly hostile to players.

4. Bears are also common in Lakeside, and their tracks can also be found. They technically should be still hibernating, and much like wolves — they will be aggressive towards Interlopers. Keep your distance!

5. Lakeside unlocking comes with a Companion Event of an Interation with a new NPC!

THE ECHO

1. Essentially: physical touch with others will bring Interlopers physical pain. Sorry about that.

2. It is possible for Interlopers with Aurora Call to attempt to reach out to the woman. Those interested can inquire into what that interaction may be like! They can find out what that entails here.

PLOTTING POST

Comments

— Benton Fraser / EXIT STRATEGY

[castitas]

[ Progress through the mines is slow going. Even with the flickering lights of the mine thanks to the Aurora, the tunnels are dark and often quite narrow. Kate holds her storm lantern up high, trying to coax a little more of the mine into the light. It still feels cold, even though it should be warmer within the earth — and there's an odd wet smell that hangs in the air.

It's creepy, and she doesn't like it all that much, but she's trying her best to be very brave about it all even if she's majorly wigged out.

At least the company with her is perfectly... perfect. On a rare occasion of not being close to Lieutenant Little's side, Constable Fraser is with her as they traverse this section of the mine. And she's perfectly content to walk in the quiet. It's kind of nice, actually.

That is until her boots splash in something cold and she stops, staring down at the frigid water before her — lifting her lamp up to check ahead and seeing the tunnel with some pretty bad flooding ahead: yikes. ]

That... does not look good. [ No loose wires, at least. But yikes. She turns her head to look to Fraser for a moment. ] Should we turn back? Find another way?

[maintiensledroit]

[ He glances around at the rest of the group, following. It's difficult to tell how much time has passed since they started walking, but it feels like hours. Even he's beginning to feel weary, tired in a way that he suspects has more to do with the omnipresent darkness than the travel itself.

The last possible fork had been a while ago, and it had looked even more foreboding than this flooded path. Fraser shakes his head. ]

Not without losing too much time. If we want to be able to make our way through with the Aurora still powering the electronics, we'll need to push on, and this did seem the most likely path.

[ He crouches next to her, removing a glove and dipping his hand into the water. At first it feels simply sharply cold; in the next moment, his fingers are tingling uncomfortably, well on their way to numb. Diefenbaker noses at the surface, then leaps in with a splash as Fraser stands. Fraser nods to the wolf. ]

See how far it goes.

[ Diefenbaker strikes out, lunging through the water like a half-wolf, half-seal hybrid. He's perhaps sixty or seventy yards away when he climbs back up onto dry path and shakes out his fur. Too far for Kate to walk in that icy water.

Fraser turns to her, holding out a polite hand. ]

I think it might be best if you allowed me to help you across.

[castitas]

I was really hoping that wouldn't be the case. [ Kate doesn't mean to sound so forlorn. This way isn't all that appealing in the slightest and it does feel like they've been in here for forever. It's easily dampening her sprits when she already feels so tired. It feels like it's been the longest night.

They do only have so much time before the Aurora ends and they'll have to go back and then wait for another one. Which... could be days away. But it's the only way they've got right now, so she takes a breath and nods — watching as he tests the water, then nods to Diefenbaker — watching with wide eyes as the wolf moves through the water and out onto the other side. ]

Good job, Diefenbaker—! [ Because a little bit of cheerleading is totally needed. He did do a good job! So it's totally doable, but— Kate's gaze moves to the water, frowning and— he offers his hand out to her and she stops still for a moment: processing then realising.

.... Oh.

He means— he's offering to— oh. Kate swallows, and she's sure her heart's just skipped a few beats. Oh, this... this is probably the best day of her entire life and all she can manage is a very soft: ]

Oh, okay.

[ There's a very shy smile, because she's immediately bashful and she nods — her hand reaching for his. But it's short-lived upon contact: a sharp shooting through her like she's been bitten by something. She snatches her hand back with eyes wide — confusion in her eyes in amongst the pain. ]

What was that?

[maintiensledroit]

[ He doesn't flinch quite the same way she does – there's a brief tightening around his eyes and his fingers twitch in toward his palm – but he's frowning when she pulls away, bemused. Fraser flexes his hand and looks at the water, glances around the area they're in, looking for live wires that might be running a current into the ground. ]

Static electricity, perhaps.

[ It wasn't, but he can't explain what it might have been otherwise. It felt more like a wasp sting, and it had been just as surprising as one. He frowns again, shakes out his hand, and leans down to slip an arm under her legs and one behind her back before stepping into the cold water. ]

We'll be there in a –

[ He thinks at first that it's the ache of the frigid water as it rushes over the tops of his boots that takes his breath away, although it's nothing he isn't used to. His whole body is alight with pain like he's never felt, racing through nerves like electricity, clawing at his muscles and bones. Fraser staggers, sending a wash of freezing water up his thigh, which only serves to make his nervous system scream in a brand new way. It's blinding. ]

– a... a moment. Just hang onto me, Kate.

[castitas]

[ Kate's expression's one of uncertainty. It... doesn't feel like static, or like— is it the worst kind of static shock? She gently massages her hand with the other for a moment, her lips pursed as it lingers for a moment after. Weird.

... This should be like... the best moment of her life, right here. It should be, her heart doing another little loop-de-loop as he stoops to pick her up. But it's not, and no sooner she's in his arms does another bite of pain surge through her — enough to steal the breath from her lungs.

She cries out, tears prickling in her eyes. Her body goes rigid, tensing as she rides the pain — thinking it might stop. But it doesn't. It doesn't stop.

(She hears weeping. She doesn't know if it's her own voice or someone else's.) ]

It hurts. [ There's a soft stop of her own, and she shuts her eyes tight. ] W-why does it hurt?

[ Her grip on his shoulders tightens, knuckles bone-white beneath her gloves, and she has to bite down on her lip — uttering tiny whimpers that echo through the mine. It burns, and she's never felt anything like it and she doesn't understand. ]

Make it stop.

[maintiensledroit]

I --

[ He's never experienced anything like this before. Not the pain of frostbite, or broken bones, or bullets lodging themselves deep into his flesh. It's like the moment when Geiger sank a hunting knife into his leg, but all over his body, over and over, relentless. It burns, it stabs; it traces lines of fire along his nerves. His legs are screaming from the icy water; his whole body is being attacked by pain the like of which he's never known. He feels like one long stripped nerve, like a scream made flesh.

And what's worse is that he's hurting Kate, too. Hearing her small whimpers is like being slashed, over and over again, by a dull-bladed knife. ]

-- I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.

[ She begs him to make it stop but he can't, he doesn't even know how it started. All he can do is clutch her tight and push forward, blind with pain. ]

Hang on, Kate. We're almost there. Be strong.

[castitas]

Please— [ There's no words that come after, nothing but the quiet muffled pleading. She wants it to stop, she wants the pain to end and it feels like back in Blackwell all over again. Just another kind of pain that won't give up and all she wants is to sleep forever. She doesn't want this.

She doesn't know what this is, doesn't know what else to do. It's slowly turning into a nightmare and she can't think about much else other than the agonising pain. It's gutting. It's too much. And all she can do is try to stop herself from crying out — tears streaming down her face, her voice echoing down the tunnel over the sound of sloshing water.

He's apologising, telling her to hang on, and she doesn't know if she can. ]

Stop. [ She cries. I can't. another voice answers, sobbing to her. And it makes Kate gasp. A woman. One who whispered to her. She's crying to Kate now. ] Please, stop it. Make it stop, we don't want this.

[ I can't, I can't— Please, forgive me. I'm trying— ]

[maintiensledroit]

[ She's sobbing in his arms. Every tight shake of her body is like being stabbed in the gut, even as the pain rushes over and through him, every nerve a scream of agony. He's doing this to her, somehow – it's the only clear thought that makes its way through the haze of pain. Dimly, he hears her pleading, assumes it's to him, begging him to stop.

But he can't, not yet, it would be just as bad to set her down in this frigid water. He grits his teeth, a muscle jumping grimly in his jaw, and forges onward, almost blind with agony and shame.

Finally, his boot scuffles against dry rock. He stumbles out of the water and holds onto her just long enough to find a place to lay her down, as carefully as he can when his arms are shaking so badly, before he backs away. Rapid. Taking quick steps backward until he comes up against the wall of the tunnel, his chest heaving for breath, his face drawn and pale, horror at himself etched into every line.

He doesn't try to say anything to her, though his eyes are locked, aghast, on Kate's small, shivering figure, there on the rocky floor. What could he possibly say? How could he ever apologize? She must hate him, and for good reason. He can't possibly forgive himself. ]

[castitas]

[ She doesn't understand why it's happening, why she's doing this to them. Kate thought the woman wanted to help? That's why she gave them those dreams, to give them powers, right? Why would be cause them so much pain?

She does her best to not cry out but once she's set down, she can't quite hold it back any longer. There's a quick scraping against stone and metal as she scurries back, hugging her knees to her chest. Her breathing coming thick and fast as she rides through the residual pain, sobbing. ]

I don't get it. [ Her head shakes as she whimpers. ] I don't—

[ Her gaze lifts up to Fraser and all she can do is stare at him in complete stun. There's no anger there. Just confused horror. What happened between them?

The pain does slowly subside, thankfully. And she's reeling from it all, the woman's voice still echoing in her mind. She's sorry, she can't help it. Eventually, Kate's sobs do soften a little. The sound of others behind them in the mineshaft are still a little off, but not too far behind. There's one person she thinks of. ]

Lieutenant Little. [ The words are hushed, she's trembling. ] I— I want Lieutenant Little.