methuselah (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
singmod) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
singillatim2023-11-09 04:18 pm
singmod) wrote in singillatim2023-11-09 04:18 pm
Entry tags:
- *event,
- alluri rama raju: xil,
- bigby wolf: jelle,
- cornelius hickey: kates,
- dean winchester: verna,
- edward little: jhey,
- harry goodsir: karin,
- jack kline: jean,
- jason mcconnell: balsam,
- kate marsh: cheryl,
- kieren walker: cheryl,
- knives: lassie,
- la'an noonien-singh: amy,
- levi jordan: cirape,
- louis de pointe du lac: tea,
- max mayfield: jean,
- rei ayanami (ii): floral,
- rorschach: shade,
- thomas jopson: kota,
- tim drake: fox,
- vash the stampede: fen,
- vash the stampede: fyn,
- wynonna earp: lorna
nature offers a violence
NOVEMBER 2023 EVENT
PROMPT ONE — WHITEOUT: Methuselah makes an unexpected early return to Milton to warn Interlopers of an impending monster storm, and boy does it surely come.
PROMPT TWO — A CHOICE: Following the storm, sightings of a mysterious stag prompts a hunt down in the Basin and out in the Outskirts.
PROMPT THREE — REST MY WEARY BONES: While the storm causes a great deal of mess, it also uncovers some far more pleasant surprises. Hot springs.
WHITEOUT
WHEN: Early to mid-month.
WHERE: Milton.
CONTENT WARNINGS: extreme weather; storms; blizzards; themes of survival; possible character cold-related injuries; possible themes of peril.
In the times that he is no longer occupying the Community Hall in the center of town to help tend to the newcomers, Methuselah is out in the wilds. Despite his growing age, he is a hardened survivor, and has been more than accustomed to life living as a nomad, out in the thickest, deepest parts of nature. Sometimes he can be encountered, sheltered in a cave or out in the woods, huddled by a warm campfire, or busying himself with his latest game catch. He seems to be always on the move, never staying for too long, and never coming into town — unless it’s to begin preparations for the latest batch of new arrivals.
To see him returning to Milton outside of these times is a curious sight, and the grim expression he carries is enough to make anyone wary. Even his voice is grave. The warmth and kindness usually found in his expression is gone, replaced with a deathly seriousness. He doesn’t speak in jest.
"I am long used to this world and its weather, even with the changing times to more bitter nights." he will say. "I have seen the years rise and fall, too many to count. Please, I beg that you hear me with this— a storm is coming. Greater than some of you may have ever known. It is in the air, and we must prepare to see it through. We do not have much time. Three days, perhaps. But no more."
He will tell anyone and everyone; encouraging the word to be spread around. He will instruct on what needs to be done, what needs to be gathered. The storm will be long and hard, and will last for some time. With that, Methuselah will begin to prepare the Community Hall as a place of refuge with a stock of food, fuel and water to get through the storm. Interlopers will be free to join Methuselah and bunker down together, or can choose to bunker down on their own in their own homes, or with others.
You have only three days.
And sure enough, the storm comes. Maybe you can notice the signs too: the sudden updraft, the slow gathering of clouds, the drop in temperature, the changes of pressure in the air.
Halfway through the third day, the storm rolls in: a ferocious snow-storm unlike anything you’ve seen before. Even with the fading amount of daylight as mid-winter approaches, the sky turns as dark as night as will stay like night for the duration. Strong howling winds batter the town, and even the sturdiest of buildings creak and groan under the weight. Trees will be felled, some buildings might not fare the storm.
Relentless snow that falls so hard it’s a complete whiteout, and will be impossible to navigate if one were to step outside. Even then, it isn’t advisable. The temperature is bitter, with a frigid windchill. Going out in this kind of storm would be a death sentence. Staying out in it for longer than a half-hour will certainly kill you.
It would be best to wait it out, to huddle around warm fires in the darkness. It may certainly be a test of patience, depending on your choice of place to stay. The storm will last a full week, a stark reminder of what you are, the words you have heard in your arrival: thrown to Mother Nature’s mercy, the Interloper in her design.
But will you persist?
A CHOICE
WHEN: Mid-month, onwards to end of month.
WHERE: Milton Basin, Milton Outskirts.
CONTENT WARNINGS: survival themes; themes of hunting; possible animal death.
After the storm passes, there’s a certain kind of hush that falls upon Milton and its surrounding areas as Interlopers are left to pick through the wake. While the temperature certainly doesn’t get that much warmer, there’s days and nights of clear, calm weather — short afternoons of weak sunshine and nights of chilly peace, the moon hung high in the starry skies. Winter is drawing ever-closer, but it’s still for a little while.
In the early evenings, before the sun sets, there’s strange sightings of a particular white stag that can be found roaming the area — particularly down in the Milton Basin. It seems quite elusive, but there’s plenty of Interlopers that have been able to capture a glimpse over the coming days. Even Methuselah himself has seen this beast before, remarking there has long been tall tales of a ghostly stag that roams the Northern Territories and is said to bring good fortune to those who manage to hunt it down.
Perhaps you’re a little low on luck. Perhaps you’re feeling lucky. You’re going to find that stag.
Hunting down the stag, however, will take a great deal of patience and time. You might find yourself waiting several hours to wait for it to appear. Building a snow shelter, or hunkering down in some old shack might be needed in order to keep warm. But if you’re patient enough, and able to withstand the cold for long enough — the beast will soon make an appearance.
In the dying light of the day, it is there. It’s unlike any deer you’ve seen before: tall and majestic, with thick, soft fur of brilliant white. It almost looks ghost-like in some angles, it’s an incredibly beautiful creature. But it seems to have also noticed you, just as you have noticed it. It doesn’t dart away, however. Instead it stands before you, waiting for you to act.
You have a choice: slay the creature, or let it go.
It will not move until you make your decision, holding your gaze until you raise your weapon or until you lower it and give up your hunt. But there is a consequence to either action: if you choose to kill the stag, you will be rewarded with a sizeable bounty of venison. Eating said meat will help you feel fuller for longer, and the meat will keep for far longer than any other deer slain.
However, if you choose to spare the stag, the creature will lower its head, as if bowing to you. Then, it will disappear with a swirling of powdered snow. When you return home for the evening and go to sleep, the next morning you will find a gift at the foot of your bed: a pair of deerskin boots, or a deerskin blanket. These boots are supple, tough and waterproof — allowing for a great balance of mobility and warmth. The blanket is incredibly toasty, and will provide a great deal of comfort in the long nights ahead.
REST MY WEARY BONES
WHEN: Mid-month, onwards indefinitely.
WHERE: Milton Outskirts.
CONTENT WARNINGS: n/a.
The storm has blown in plenty of snow to make traversing the area much more difficult, but there’s something else of note that comes with its passing. While the storm has brought much devastation, and some places have been buried in snow drifts, plenty of snow in areas has been blown away, uncovering otherwise lost secrets within Milton. Clouds of what looks like steam can be noted not too far from town, towards the mountains of the north.
If Interlopers head to explore the clouds, they will find old trails leading up towards the mountains. It isn’t a particularly difficult journey, for once, and they will soon discover that the storm has blown away the previously blocked access to a cave. It appears that this is the right place.
The air is warm here, pleasantly so. Warm enough that hats and mittens and coats seem a little unnecessary. One might wonder if someone lives within, and that a great fire is stoked to keep the place warm. But there’s no one in sight, no sounds of life: human, animal or otherwise. If they press on, they will discover that the cave floor is well worn with footfall: plenty of people have come here before, and the reason why is soon revealed.
The air grows even warmer, and more humid. The space opening to reveal small pools of slow-flowing water, warm water. The stone houses a natural hot spring, and following the cave out the other side will lead to another space in the rock open to the air, where there are even larger pools of warm water, perfectly sized and deep enough to bathe in. It seems that this place was frequently used by the people of Milton, where their life of hardship could be forgotten for an hour or two.
The water is pleasantly hot, and incredibly inviting. After so long in the freezing cold without modern appliances and utilities, a natural hot spring sounds like an absolute luxury.
FAQs
1. Characters are free to play around with this prompt how they want. Maybe they're dumb enough to go into the cold and get injured or sick. Maybe they're stuck in the Community Hall for the week. Fights might break out as tensions run high whilst everyone's stuck together, or maybe you're actually having a nice time.
2. For those stuck in the Community Hall: there are board games and old school textbooks stored in cupboards. There is also a piano.
3. A floorplan of the Community Hall can be found here.
1. .... Yes, you can pet the ghost stag.
2. Characters will get one choice only with the ghost stag, meaning they can't keep going back to find it to get extra gifts.
3. If characters can't agree on a course of action, whoever acts first will get their gift. The second character will have a chance to try again another time.
4. If both characters agree on sparing the stag, but players want different gifts (ie. one player wants the boots and one wants the blanket), characters will get the gift the player wants their character to receive.
1. The hot springs will now be a permanent fixture in the Milton Area, enjoy!
Hot Springs
The hot springs? A dream coming true. The only issue for him was the complete lack of privacy. Coming from a world where even showing your face is considered indecent unless you're in specific areas, like the Pandaemonium, he finds himself unable to take his clothes off in pubic. The young man waited all day, taking a good nap in the back of the natural cavern, and only when he saw the last person leave -or so he thought-- Erich decided to move in and take care of his needs.
Even alone, the Ancient was wrapped in two summer towels that barely let anything visible, and that was how he approached the water. With a whole single arm visible.]
I am already so much in love with you...
[He's talking with the water, yes, and he's sliding in... without uncovering his body anyway, everything is getting wet and he doesn't care. A small sigh of relief escapes his lips as he relaxes inside the water, finally letting some warmth in his bones. It's wonderful, isn't it? He had not been so relaxed in months and- and he almost jumps when he notices Vash...]
By the Creation! I am so sorry-
[He wants to look away he can't. There's something in Vash's body that just forces him to stare even if he knows it's absolutely inappropriate to look at another's bare skin. The ancient has never seen scar tissue. Read about it? Sure. Heard about it? Same, it's just common knowledge. But... that's not something Erich ever actually crossed.
Sorry, Vash, you now have a young man (who may be older than may of the presents in town because for ancients centuries are ust nothing) who is staring.. He looks very flustered while doing so, because he's aware he's crossing a line there, but at the same he can't bring himself to look away.]
no subject
Vash has the decency to look sheepish when eyes finally fall on him, raising a hand out of the water in a small greeting. He's quick to reassure, shaking his head at the apology to dismiss it. ]
It's fine, don't worry about it!
[ Some staring is to be expected. Most do when first catching sight of even just a hint of the expansive mass of scars that litter his entire body. Vash is plenty prepared to endure it, used to it as he is. The thing is, people usually are quick to look away again. The sort of blatant staring that proceeds to happen is more the kind he would expect of children, normally accompanied by a million questions. Now there is just staring in silence, the air getting progressively more awkward as it stretches on. It's not at all helped by how flustered the young man seems, causing Vash to feel all the more self-conscious. ]
Er, sorry. I can leave if I'm making you uncomfortable...?
[ He offers tentatively, shifting restlessly in the water. ]
no subject
Finds himself sinking in the hot water, his cheeks turning bright red due to the temperature and his muscles relaxing. How long has it beeen since he took time for himself like that? Oh, how he misses the communal bathrooms of the Pandaemonium, there he took the longest baths, indulged into things like parfumed shampoos and scrubs thanks to his mentor's guide. Yes, quite something to love. And, worry not, Vash, Erich has no romantic interest whatsoever toward anyone, he is just very affectionate toward things. And dangerous creatures.]
I am still very sorry! I am well aware most people here don't mind mingling in underclothes, but it's just-
[He can't quite finish the sentence, though, because the other man is already suggesting that he could leave because of him. Uncomfortable? Yes. But not for the reason Vash thinks.]
What? Oh no no no! DOn't leave because of me! I know I have a very... huh... problematic relationship with bare skin, it's something my people just don't do, but I wasn't staring because I have any inappropriate thought. I- it's just- I don't think I've ever seen a single scar before? And, man, you are covered in them!
[Erich doesn't seem to see anything wrong in bringing that up, too, like he's just commenting the other man's choice of clothes or his hairstyle. In his mind it's genuinely more distressing seeing people without clothes without a medical reason or for research than pointing out that the other is a carpet of marks.]
What wouldn't my people do to see such a beautiful sight! Yet, standard procedures want one to be healed 'properly' after any injury. Or, well that was the norm, but none of us had time to form any real scar since things changed...
Ah, apologies, I am probably talking too much.
no subject
It's a grisly sight and no doubt it must be all the more disturbing for it being the first time seeing any scars at all. He's told not to leave, but more and more he's starting to feel compelled to, until... ]
B-beautiful...?
[ He splutters in shock, more to himself than anything, as it's his turn to flush red. He's been called many things — a monster and a walking natural disaster most prominently among them — but never a beautiful sight before. From someone who seems to be a prude and has never seen any scars before, Vash would be expecting disgust rather than the awe he appears to be receiving. Especially when it sounds like scars were easily mended (or prevented) wherever his fellow bather has hailed from. Technically, Vash could have done the same and healed all his injuries so they wouldn't scar the way they have. He could have been more like his brother, walking around without a blemish despite any previous grievous injuries sustained, but that was never like him. His scars are a testament to his resolve and a punishment for his sins at the same time, failures etched into his skin.
Not once has he considered them beautiful and it leaves him at a loss, laughing awkwardly and scratching the back of his head in a self-conscious manner, quick to dismiss another apology. ]
Ah no, that's quite alright! Your home sounds fascinating. It's- Uh, just... no one would think that way where I'm from.
[ He's flattered?? He thinks. Perhaps (utterly) baffled is a better word. ]
no subject
Please, undersatnd that I mean nothing weird when I call you beautiful, but I am sincere in my words. You know, I know about scars because they are... cosmetic in my world? Sometimes people apply them to big and scary monsters during their creation but that's just... cosmetics? Different flavors in the design?
[He's still processing that most people of the world he's currently in aren't innate creators like his people but more, well, like him, that being said he's doing his best to wrap his mind around that and process the fact that this means that he also has or, welll, had the chance to do more than he actually expected. But it's no time to think too much about it as he hides his hands underwater once more before continuing.]
Yours, though? They tell a story. It's a canvas of experiences and tales that wasn't just erased with a bit of magicks. And I know different kinds of damage procure different kind of marks, so it's not even a 'Big scar means bite' kind of deal, someone with a talent in medicine like our healing leader Emmerololth, would probably be able to see what lies behind each scar?
And I agree to disagree with your people's... general attitude? My apologies for being so bold, but as I said scars are added during creature creation to show how though a beast is, how it has the strenght and will to survive and how it doesn't let things stop them. Perhaps the reading differs between our worlds, but looking at you the message I get is... well, "Look how though I am, you can't stop me.". You are, indeed, pretty beautiful in my eyes.
Oh, and apologies if it sounds like I'm assuming things about you, I'm just explaining why I said that.
[He knows he's a bit of a weird researcher in that sense, but at the same time he doesn't mind. If it wasn't for the fact he was only covered in towels and the other was pretty much undressed, the Ancient would probably slide over and offer his hand in greeting like he knows people of this world do.]
I'm Erichthonios, by the way, Eric in short. Nice to meet you.
no subject
Instead he merely listens to the deluge of information with sincere interest, ducking his head a little and letting out a soft, bashful titter of a laugh when he's somewhat seen through (the ”you can't stop me“ sure is accurate) and essentially called beautiful again. It puts his scars in a positive light that he's not sure what to do with.
At least the apology gives him something he knows immediately how to respond to, shaking his head and meeting the young man's gaze again with a wry smile. ]
No, no, I appreciate the explanation. And um, thanks for the compliment?
[ He really doesn't know what else to say and the heat that stubbornly lingers in his face isn't exactly helping him feel less flustered. Thankfully then he's quick to latch on to that introduction. ]
I'm Vash. It's nice to meet you too!
[ He'd offer his hand, but well... that would probably be cause for more discomfort on his companion's part. So Vash inclines his head in a slight, polite bow instead. ]
This place must have been quite the culture shock for you, huh?
[ By the sound of it, his home must have been incomprehensibly different. ]
no subject
Nature needs predators and prey, ecosystems are a most delicate thing and balance has to be preserved, those are words he still lives by when he fantasizes about new concepts. Sadly there was an arrogance at the base of his kin, acting like gods on the star, but at least the base intentions were good... even if their ways discutible.]
Well, I'm just- I know I don't misunderstandings to be there. It's already wrong to look at people when they're not properly covered, let's at least avoid... you know, getting the wrong idea.
[HE returns the head bow and reaches under the water, starting to scrub a little his skin. He hums happily, noddind in the other man's direction.]
Quite so. I didn't expect anyone to undress in front of others, for example, but I'm getting used to the fact that people here don't conform as much as they did back home. It's not necessarily an unwelcome change, I just still struggle to change a bit myself.
What about you? You come from a rather... exciting place, don't you?
no subject
He'd rather focus on the topic of their homes, plenty eager to learn more about where people come from and what their worlds are like as he is. He nods his understanding and can't help but laugh a little at the question. ]
That's putting it mildly.
[ Exciting is certainly a word for it. Vash sinks just a little bit more under the water to create some illusion of decency, more of his torso hidden by liquid distortion, settling comfortably as he goes on to explain. ]
I come from a barren desert planet that was fittingly named No Man's Land. It wasn't meant for human life, or really any life beyond that of the native worms, but it's where our ships crashed. With two suns, it's pretty much the opposite of this place. Nothing but heat and sands and people stubbornly finding ways to survive regardless.
[ There is some fondness creeping into his voice there. Humanity's tenacity to continue on has remained impressive. That it came at the cost of his fellow plant sisters is no fault of their own, but of his brother's as the cause of said ships crashing. Those are details he's keeping close to his heart though. ]
I guess in some ways, it's not too different from our struggle here.
no subject
The man hums, listening to the other talk for now and keeping his gaze down to the water in front of himself. A world with two suns, hard to imagine when back in his own the man never even got to see his planet's star once before the Final Days started ]
I see. The creatures and the tribes of your star must be incredibly resilient, then. It's no surprise, considering what your body apparently got through, at least at a first glance. It's... admirable.
Back in my star, Etheirys, some researchers said that species that adapt to life outside their natural enviorment are- well, often stronger than many other ones.
[Erich can't help but smile at the perceived fondness, with his naivety in social contacts he can only assume that meant Vash has deep love toward his people and nothing more.]
Well, then you are definitely more prepared than I am, that's for sure. Before my last... months at home and an... interesting adventure few years before? I can't say I ever had to fight for my survival.
no subject
The statement about his world's inhabitants gets a soft semi-awkward laugh out of Vash, neither confirming nor denying anything, almost dismissive in nature. Yes, the native species and the people who made No Man's Land their home are very resilient, there's no denying such, but his body is not a testament to that. Vash stands outside of it all as an Independent plant, an outsider looking in; an existence that is an anomaly and does not belong. His body looks the way it does because of said resilient people. But that is neither here nor there. Vash doesn't bear a grudge or even fault the humans for it, there's no need to breathe a word of it.
Much more interesting is this Etheirys anyway and what Erich goes on to say is a little alarming. He knows how hard it is to go from the safety of staying in one place where everything is provided for you to suddenly being thrust into a foreign, hostile environment that requires fighting for one's survival. He still remembers the first years after the ships crashed all too well.
It brings an instant pang of concern. ]
This all must be very tough on you. Have you been managing okay? If you ever need something, you're welcome to stop by the church. I stay there with my brothers, we always make sure the place is well-stocked.
[ Knives would not be happy about sharing, but his brother doesn't get a say when Vash's other self would be equally eager to help out. ]