021-023 » the ghosts of fallen leaves

[villagemod]

WHO: Everyone.
WHERE: Eastern/Central/Western Mathias.
WHEN: Days 021-023
WHAT: A cold storm approaches.
WARNINGS: Will update as necessary. PM this account to have a warning added!
NOTES: Plotting post over here!

RECOMMENDED ♫ Emily Kinney & Lauren Cohan "The Parting Glass"

DAYS 021-023
THE WORLD TURNS WHITE
“Are ye the ghosts of fallen leaves, O flakes of snow,
For which, through naked trees, the winds A-mourning go?”
— John Banister Tabb
The howling wind is what wakes the residents of Mathias each day now as the world turns slowly into a bleak stretch of white. Snow continues to fall in thick curtains of flakes that accumulate on trees and rooftops, swirling sideways in the gusts of wind that bow trees and whistle through any crack they can find. The drifts of snow grow taller against the buildings and the wind makes the already freezing temperatures feel bitterly cold.

By day 022, the far ends of streets begin to resemble the hazardous fog with how little becomes visible as the winds pick up. Buildings can still be discerned as dark shapes but the weather's warning becomes clear — a storm is coming. And by day 023, the storm arrives properly, the wind still screaming through the streets like a winter banshee announcing so many deaths to come. These conditions are far from hospitable and only the truly mad would be foolish enough to venture outside in weather such as this.


THE NEWLY ARRIVED
With an embrace of wintery white, Mathias offers a chilly welcome to its newest residents. They awake along the southern treeline bordering Mathias, near the small makeshift cemetery containing a handful of wooden markers erected without names or signifiers of those buried within. And not far from them is the schoolhouse, where in a snowdrift they will the frozen corpse of a young woman named Rey.

LIGHTS IN THE DARKNESS
“A lantern can give you light only when you light it”
— Munia Khan
When residents wake on the morning of day 021, they will find outside in the snow the abandoned lanterns of those shadowy spectres who have moved so silently through Mathias. Each nestled in a patch of frozen white outside their door, the lanterns are now cold to the touch, the half-burned candle within each one seeming to have been lit so very long ago. Inside the glass encasement is a small rolled piece of paper, upon which is written:

keep it lit
There is nothing more, and the prior owners of these lanterns will not return within these days.

There is one lantern waiting outside the building for each resident wherever they are sleeping — the exception for this is those who may have already claimed a lantern as their own. Removing a lantern from its resting place results in no apparent reaction, nor does lighting or not lighting it. However, whatever residents ultimately choose to do with these lanterns should be reported.

---

CONDITIONS UPDATE

— SNOW continues to fall, resulting over the three days in upwards of a foot of accumulation. The winds blow in gusts over 35 mph.

— VOICES are not openly haunting our residents, though they may still be occasionally encountered in the more heavily decayed buildings where some rooms seem to almost swallow whatever light tries to enter them.

— THE FOG has still receded from the town proper and much of the eastern and northern beach, with the path through the northern forest to the lighthouse still clear on day 021. On day 022, however, as the storm worsens, the fog returns to the paths in the forest, urging residents to stay huddled within the town proper or else.

— DISAPPEARANCES continue to plague the town. While Zed Martin has returned, Rey's corpse will be found in a snowdrift near the Schoolhouse; she disappeared on day 018.

— THE STRANGER is gone.

— THE SPECTRES are gone.

OOC UPDATES

— DISCOVERIES have been collected and collated for your review. Please note that this is OOC information only, put together for the purpose of helping you as players see connections and possibilities for CR and your own character's potential avenues of exploration and investigation. (If we are missing something, please report it so we can add it to the list.)

— AP REWARDS have a new option now — Ideas may be requested if you find yourself stuck. You may now claim up to 2 rewards per log: (1) idea and (1) other reward.

— SANITY may be regained in two ways: self-medication and treatment. In Mathias, this means such coping mechanisms as drinking or drugging oneself into a stupor that allows them to face their fears and issues, or talking to someone about those fears and issues. Since both of these will take some time, best get started. (A form will be added to the Sanity page.)

— REMINDERS — Don't forget about the bulletin board. Please continue reporting your updates to locations, plots, and discoveries. The map of Mathias has been added to the locations page for ease of reference. Make sure your character's sanity level is kept updated. Prospective players are still joining the TDM, so it's recommended to track new top-levels so you don't miss them.

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➝ town hall reporting [ day 22 ] | will match format

[hellblaze]

[ The sun rises on Day 22, and John Constantine throws on his scarf, trenchcoat, and a new shirt. He's trucking through the snow found on the streets and lanes. Right up Phillips Drive with the short walk to Town Hall. He forces the front door open, taking a gander at the Bulletin Board. He sees one particular note, grabs a pen, gets writing and pins a response to it. He flicks the pen back onto the reception desk and makes his way into the main area of Town Hall.

The trenchcoat goes over one of the chairs, a cigarette behind his ear, and he starts looking through papers. Rooms. He's going to be camping here for the day... so, might as well talk and take a gander.

There's also a new note on the board.

You can find John Constantine rumamging around Town Hall. He also has his lantern on tables next to him. ]

➝ [ ooc ] info sharing

[hellblaze]

Want to have your character share information, but busy with threads? Just reply here with a bullet point set of information that can be related to Constantine or Coulson (please state which one)! They will share this with others as they see fit.

If enough information about the state of the town can be gathered, Constantine will be putting together a "for the new comers to the Madness Town" and placing it on the bulletin board.

Klaus Hargreeves

[bestfuneralever]

Regardless of what’s played out in threads, this is information from Klaus that anyone may have in hand now:

He’s a medium, ghosts have been in his life since he was 4yrs old, so he knows what he’s talking about when he says: There are no ghosts here. Not a single one. He’s never been anywhere this devoid of ghosts and the whole thing really unsettled him because no ghosts mean no life before (and honestly how do you explain that with the houses and general state of the town, he’s not sure).

When a group of people died recently, he tried to manifest or conjure his brother’s spirit. He was unsuccessful, but did get an eerie reading from the body: a cold, dark empty nothingness that is neither a place to travel to or from, it felt like a void that could swallow him whole. It was a very unsettling experience.

He tried to manifest or conjure the lantern specters to no avail. No creepy vibe, just... a failed attempt.

He tried to manifest or conjure The Stranger. He was not affected by Klaus’ powers, but Klaus felt a deep, cold darkness from The Stranger unlike anything he’s ever felt before.

[conning]

[ Neal bundles himself inside early in the morning, forcing the door shut against the wind. He stops for a moment, leaning against it, gathering himself. He's a sweater that at least fits, in a blue that compliments his eyes, though he's still stuck with jeans that are short enough to show the ankle monitor he hasn't yet successfully removed. But hey, he has a coat now. That's an improvement.

He's fine. He can handle this. He's here to get information and to study those symbols on the board. Just like any other case. Chisel away at what you know until you can see the shape of what you don't.

He pushes away from the door and heads to the bulletin board, putting up a pair of messages. The second is a shot in the dark, one he almost hopes doesn't pay off, but god it would be good to see Mozzie or Peter. And this way, at least, they'll know for sure that N. Caffrey is him.

Then he explores. Takes note of the photos on the walls, the state of the offices. Goes through a few desks without finding anything of interest. For a while he sits near the bulletin board, sketching out the symbols on it over and over again with slight variations, breaking them down by shape and element.

Eventually, be spots the lantern, then the man, and makes his way over. ] I'm not sure which is worse. The fact that the paperwork here is boring, or the fact that a place like this can have boring paperwork.

[hellblaze]

Oh, it was a normal place once, mate. As normal as normal goes. Might of had some unsavory types that led to the whole affair.

[ John looks up from the papers in his hands. New face. He clicks his tongue and leans back slowly in the chair he's accommodated. A chair that once belonged to the man or woman that would sit at the head of town meetings. His feet go up to rest on the table, a low grunt escaping him from the fact that his ribs are still on fire.

Internally. Obviously. ]

Suppose this means you're new in town, given I haven't seen your face around before... and I know just about every face in town. Welcome to Bloody Fucking Mathias Township.

[conning]

Bloody Fucking Mathias. Points for capturing the ambiance. [ He takes up the chair across from John, a very small smile on his face. Neal settles into the chair in much the same way John settled into his, minus the kicking his feet up part. ] Very new. Woke up here yesterday, in point of fact, and I can't say I appreciated the change in scenery. The snow ruined my favorite pair of Ferragamos.

[hellblaze]

The note's written in blood if you couldn't tell. [ He gestures to the opposite wall where the receptionist desk sits. Oh, how does he know? Well, Neal can ponder over that one. No point in taking the surprise out of it. ]

Mathias doesn't much care for the favorites. But, I'm guessing you know the basics of the situation and the town.

[ Some part of him wonders how the hell he ended up in this position. Why is he the one in Town Hall, talking to a new arrival, as if he's the fucking welcome wagon? Part of him wonders why he cares so much for these people. He's never met them before Mathias, and he really shouldn't. Yet, here he is, putting himself out like this, to make sure the people who don't go knocking around in the dark don't end up like Ritchie.

Or Gaz.

Or Annie.

Or him. ]

[conning]

[ Neal's expression goes briefly grim. ] I could tell. Reds or browns don't dry to that shade on that kind of paper, and the feathering isn't right for something as thin as ink.

[ He's just trying real real hard not to think about it.

Deep breath. Forced smile. ] Neal. Caffrey. I take it you've been here for... a while.

[endlessflask]

[ Eliot's been looking for John. Mostly because he knows that Quentin and John had been looking into sharing information together, so Eliot just figures that it'd be best to bring his small findings to him. The note Eliot sees on the bulletin board just tells him that, yes, that's the right thing to do. He thinks about leaving a note of his own but he'd rather just give John the papers in person.

He gives a bit of a wave once he finds John in one of the rooms. ]

Hey. Word on the street is you're trying to compile all the shit everyone knows about this place.

[hellblaze]

Oh, well, word must get out pretty fast then. I haven't seen too many of you lot wandering into Town Hall so far this morning.

[ He flips through some papers on the desk, cigarette behind his ear, looking up at Eliot with a bit of a grin. ]

Don't suppose you've gotten your hand stuck into any floorboards recently.

[endlessflask]

You know that I can just take these things and leave, right?

[ But also, Eliot wasn't the one sticking his hands in mystery floors in the first place, was he? ]

I saw your note on the bulletin board then I heard someone back here. But, yeah, there's like twelve of us in the town so it'll probably get around fast.

[hellblaze]

You could, but, where's the sense of self-fulfillment and helping your neighbors out in their time of need?

[ He just grins wider at Eliot. ]

Looks like you've been holding up well enough, mate. [ Really, he's just screwing with him. ] Bit more than twelve by my reckoning now. Give or take the few that haven't come back from the grave like yours truly.

[endlessflask]

[ Eliot doesn't want to think about people not coming back from the dead. He's still feeling a bit lost without Quentin, who should have dead when Eliot found him here and now he's gone again. So he just sets the papers on the desk. ]

So. I don't know if they're really important. I've been spending some time at Barker Botanical and I found this sales ledger dated for April, and this is some sort of order note for The Lodge? Whatever or wherever that is.

[cholesterol]

( Day 21, for Dean, was not a good day, even if half of it felt good. He awakens on day 22 wanting to - first, drink, because his head is pounding, but, second, actually do something for a change. The change being, day 21. He's not planning on drinking himself into a stupor today, but he does refill his flask for good measure.

After wolfing down eggs and bacon, he throws on his old jacket, and stubbornly heads out into the falling snow.

If anybody will be anywhere, it'll be the town all. That, and he should start copying down phone numbers seeing as they're all land lined.

Letting himself in, he doesn't see a familiar face yet. Constantine must be in one of the rooms. Dean takes a pen and a paper and starts to copy down phone numbers and names. )

[hellblaze]

[ There is the distinct sound of heavy footsteps coming from down the hall. Uneven at that. It's a bloody bitch to walk with injured ribs. After all, it's really only been a few days since John had his fight with that tosser.

He comes into the reception area and clicks his tongue with his teeth. ]

Ah, Winchester. [ He half turns to look at the bulletin board. ] Any of these fanciful notes sweep you off your feet?

[cholesterol]

( Dean looks back once, before resuming his jotting. )

Just writing down people's numbers.

( The ones that have provided them. )

Find anything back there?

[hellblaze]

Local phone book. Not a bad idea.

[ He means it too. ]

Nothing of much value yet. But, I haven't ripped apart every office just yet.

for coulson or johncon or both~

[cluing]

[ Sherlock's doing a self guided tour of Mathias. He wants to walk the whole town at least twice, if not three times, and focus his energy on the buildings that seem to be the most important.

One of them is, of course, the town hall.

The bulletin board is easily the best thing Sherlock's seen since he arrived here. It gives him a clear idea of the sort of people that are here, and what life has been like for them. He makes a copy of the map and the notes in his notebook. That task done, Sherlock goes for a look around. ]

[hellblaze]

[ Maybe that board might give him an idea to the one who is quite clearly the ego of the town? The man that's all trench coat and arrogance, sitting at the table that was once reserved for those who headed meetings. His feet are up on it, lounging back in the chair, trenchcoat draped around his frame, and cigarette unlit in his mouth as he looks up at the dirty grime ceiling.

Thinking, obviously. ]

[cluing]

[ Nothing about the man suggests to Sherlock that he might be in charge of anything, let alone a town. Though given the condition of it all, maybe this stranger could in fact be a level of authority, but Sherlock considers it unlikely. ]

I usually think better when it's lit.

[ The cigarette, he means. Sherlock's always felt more focused when his body is being filled with nicotine. ]

hope this is ok with you both!

[40seconds]

[ Experiments are only as good as their results, but in this case, even a lack of results is at least a little telling, albeit disappointing. Eventually, though, he decides he should actually head back over to the bulletin board and see if anyone else has stopped by. That's when he spots John and a new face talking, and he makes his approach, not wanting to interrupt, but feeling curious all the same. He's just in time to overhear that comment about John's cigarette, and he decides to use that as his opening. ]

Don't quote me on this, but I imagine it's less likely to make you sick if it stays unlit.

[aprofoundbond]

[Castiel sees the note regarding information sharing at Town Hall, and, immediately, decides to attend. He doesn't have information of his own to share, but he would like to see what he can learn here. He's still settling and adjusting; finding himself having to deal with human inconveniences renders him grumpier than usual as he, bundled up in additional clothing beyond his trench coat and suit, makes his way into Town Hall and the meeting.

Naturally, the first person he comes across is Constantine. But of course. Castiel sighs.]

If we don't have anything to contribute ourselves, can we still attend this meeting?

[It might be a stupid question but Castiel feels that it's well worth asking, nonetheless.]

[hellblaze]

Less of a meeting and more of a sharing, Feathers. Trying to get the town to explain what lot of shit they've found. Figure we might really learn something that way.

[ There's a hello, how are you doing in there somewhere. If Castiel squints. John has his trench coat in the chair behind as he's flipping through papers in front of him. Cigarette is tucked behind his ear, and his green work short certainly clashes with that loose black tie.

He doesn't much care either. ]

Might as well learn somethin' you might not have. Like, the fact there's a few new faces other than yours here.

[aprofoundbond]

[Yes, there it is; Feathers. There's no use fighting it, he knows. Perhaps, given enough time, he might eventually learn to tolerate the nickname.

Today is not that day.

Still, as grumpy and out of sorts as Castiel is, he can appreciate what Constantine is trying to accomplish here.]

That's a good idea. Gather as much information as possible and share it around. I believe there's that saying, 'knowledge is power.'

[He tilts his head, considering Constantine as he flips through the papers he has before him.]

Are those your notes, then?

[He arches an eyebrow at the mention of new arrivals.] How often do new people arrive here? Is there a...set timing to it?

[hellblaze]

[ 'Feathers' is still better than 'Wings', and at least there isn't a malicious intent behind the nickname! Today, anyways. He's a bit more friendly than normal. Meaning he's just more tolerable for everyone else to handle. ]

Your Dad would know, wouldn't he? One of the things your lot does - share the knowledge to us small humans.

[ He looks up from the papers and gives a smirk. Purposely annoying? Playful? He'll let Castiel decide. ]

Papers I found lying around. Most of it's blurry or faded, like the rest of the papers in this goddamn town. [ He drops the bundle down and pushes it to the other side of the table for the angel to take a look. ]

Seems like you lot filter in every few days. Never more than four at a time? Not sure if there is a reason to it, or, if Mathias is just picky.