024-027 » neither reward nor punishment

[villagemod]

WHO: Everyone.
WHERE: Eastern/Central/Western Mathias + ???
WHEN: Days 024-027
WHAT: The consequences of their actions.
WARNINGS: Will update as necessary. PM this account to have a warning added!
NOTES: Plotting post over here! The next log will be posted January 23rd.

RECOMMENDED ♫ Deadly Avenger "Onryo" 怨霊

DAYS 024-025
CONSEQUENCES
“There are in nature neither rewards nor punishments —
there are consequences.”
— Robert G. Ingersoll
When the unwilling residents of Mathias Township wake on the morning of the 24th day, they will find themselves in yet another set of frustratingly unnerving circumstances. None of them are where they last remember being, and some of them have strange marks on the palms of their left hands. It's all incredibly unsettling, but truthfully they should be used to it by now. No one will remember traveling to their new location.

Residents can wake up anywhere within their new location and in any position. Curled up in a bed, sprawled on a couch, huddled beneath a coffee table, propped against a wall... Wherever they are, they will themselves to be in quite an unusual state. While they are wearing whatever clothing items they went to sleep in, plus their shoes and a coat. The newest arrivals to Mathias Township will perhaps stand out for being slightly more appropriately dressed than their new neighbors. They are all a bit damp, physically worn out, and half-frozen from their apparent walk through a blizzard.

Each of the four locations is inescapable — residents are trapped, with exterior doors and windows being shut tight and a blizzard raging outside. The locations are stocked with fresh food and water and a large pile of firewood for the fireplaces in each building. The circumstances residents will face, however, may vary wildly between locations as the forces at work in Mathias respond to the recent actions of certain individuals.


BOARDING HOUSE | GREY GULL
NEW HOUSE | MYSTERY MANSION

These residents will wake with a mark on their left hand palms, a spiraling black symbol similar to those some may have seen around town. All marks are identical and cannot be removed, but will have seemingly vanished from their skin on the morning of the 26th day.

Castiel, Daisy Johnson, Dean Winchester
Elena Gilbert, Elijah Mikaelson, Helen Magnus
Phil Coulson, Quentin Coldwater, Sherlock Holmes

DAYS 026-027
IN THE AFTERMATH
After their ordeals of the past two days, the unfortunate residents of Mathias Township will be grateful to find that they were back where they are supposed to be, a chill still clinging to their clothes in whatever place they went to sleep the night of the 23rd day. New arrivals will wake in the living room of the boarding house. None of the residents will wake with anything in their possession from the locations in which they were previously trapped, including any notes or documentation they may have made during their time there.

---

CONDITIONS UPDATE

— SNOW continues to fall heavily on Days 024-025, resulting in white out conditions from the wind that blows in gusts of over 35 mph; the temperature also drops drastically, making conditions extremely dangerous for residents. The blizzard clears on Day 26 and residents are left with a cold, calm world covered in white.

— THE FOG remains blocking the paths in the forest, urging residents to stay huddled within the town proper, and it also now blocks the northern section of town, beginning just before where residents know the chasm in the earth to be. Venturing into the fog is... ill-advised.

— DISAPPEARANCES continue to plague the town. Kylo Ren and Thomas Richardson have vanished without a trace.

— NO NEW DEATHS have occurred in town, but there is a new "grave" in the small makeshift graveyard near the schoolhouse. Rey's corpse has been moved and covered with stones to wait for the ground to thaw enough for a proper burial.

— THE LANTERNS will be gone from the morning of Day 024. No trace of them remains.

---

OOC UPDATES

— A GIFT for everyone! As a thank you for being part of this spooky little game, every character in the game is being gifted 2 Activity Points. These may be banked over here — instead of linking to an AC post, you may put "New Year gift" in that field. Happy 2021, friends!

— NEW LAYOUTS have been installed for our communities! Huge thanks to our Eldritch Librarian Stars for putting in the time to get this place looking shiny. (You may have also noticed some new page layouts being installed — these are also our Librarian's handiwork!)

— 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.)

— 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.

navigation | faq | setting | mod contact

Comments

➝ day 26 | ota

[hellblaze]

i. is there more beyond those plains?

[ Waking back up in his home with Zed had definitely been welcome. Waking up without the whiskey? Expected, but he had still groaned and placed his head back into the pillows. Of course. Not that that he expected much more from Mathias. She never really likes to share.

Sometime during the midday, John makes his way to Town Hall. True to form, a new shirt with the familiar black tie hanging loosely from his outfit. Tan trenchcoat, and a mild hangover. He pushes the door open, checks the bulletin board, and goes about moving through the first floor.

John kicks a pair of the doors open and walks inside the room. An old office that, obviously, is no longer in use.

The first thing he does is push things off the desk. He pulls out the ashtray he nicked earlier and puts it on the desk. Is he moving in? Why yes, yes he is. ]

ii. left a note as you escaped - to thine own self be true.

[ Two places that you can find John if you arrive a little later in the day. He's either taken his spot back up in the meeting room of Town Hall or in the office he has newly minted as his own.

MEETING ROOM. John is in the process of moving things. There's a cigarette behind his ear as he shifts that large table and a few chairs around, making things actually orderly. The trenchcoat is hanging over the back of a chair with his sleeves rolled up as he goes. He's moving stiff and in pain, grunting as it's clear he shouldn't be doing what he is doing on his own. However, there is now a binder that is open on the meeting table with a pen.

OFFICE. John is also moving things in this room. He's already emptied the contents of the desk --outside the window. He pushes items away from one wall, looking it over with his hands on his hips. His lower lip sticks out as he thinks. His fingers drum on his hips. Now, he's a mage, not someone who knows architecture. What are the chances something bad might happen if he just knocks down the bloody wall he's looking at?

Destruction, thy name is John Constantine. ]

[ LOCKED TO ELENA ] iii. take your throne, paint the walls.

[ Partner for SPOOKY ENCOUNTER has been found! Thank you for volunteering ♥

John closes the door behind him to Town Hall. It occurs to him then that he doesn't have a key to the building. His eyes roll as he sighs. A part of him hates just how comfortable he's gotten in this town. Thinking about needing to lock the bloody door - really? Is this what Mathias has done to him? God, this town might just be the death of him.

He tightens the scarf around his neck and turns, walking away from the door. He gets a few feet down the sidewalk before he stops. A feeling tugs at the back of his mind, a nagging set of voices prickling on the corner of his mind... ]

[descendent]

[ although elena's promised elijah and herself that she'd rest, remaining in their room at the boarding house isn't fun. she can't sit there and not grow bored, especially without any books to read or friends to text. it's for her own sanity and for elijah's that she decides to go for a few walks during the day. staying enclosed between four walls makes her nervous after spending two days at the gull.

(she leaves elijah a note claiming correctly she's gone for a walk to get some fresh air before she even ventures towards town hall. she's kind and well-behaved today.)

it's a relief to see the back of john constantine. one of the very first people she'd met here, she had worried about him when she could't escape the grey full. it's comforting (and selfish of her, she knows) to see he's still here.

not far from him, she wants to capture his attention. ]

Jonathan!

[ she yells, smiling around the extra syllables she's added to his name. she wears a long coat with a scarf wrapped around her hair and neck. elena's pale, but she brightens at the sight of him.

walking quickly towards him, she keeps her arms wrapped around her chest. still smiling, her brows furrow curiously. ]

Are you okay?

[hellblaze]

[ the familiar nickname is enough to jar him from the strange allure he felt wash over him. his eyebrows knit together at town hall before exhaling and spinning on his heels rather dramatically. there's a grin plastered on his face at the only person in this whole town that calls him jonathan. ]

Half-Dead Elena!

[ there's a cheerfulness in his voice. it's good to see her alive and well. he's gathered the other locations people found themselves in weren't nearly as cozy and kind as the one he had been in. she's still pale as shit though, and he wonders just what exactly she had been up to back home before mathias pulled her into all this. ]

Just dandy, luv. No need to worry about it. Cracked ribs and all! [ he gestures to her. ] You look all nice and bundled up. Although, I can't help but notice how bloody pale you are still. Not getting enough sunlight?

[descendent]

[ the one thing that's taken her by surprise since waking up here is how easily she's taken to some of the people. john is one of them. still a big question mark to her, his kindness and warmth and bloodhound like nose is what easily draws her comfort out. sometimes knowing someone means knowing their soul.

she shakes her head. ] I did my best to sunbathe, but I just couldn't find a good angle. [ she lifts her shoulders in pity and approaches him so she doesn't need to strain to hear him or worry that anyone will overhear.

her eyes crinkle as her face scrunches up. ] Where were you the last two days? Hopefully in a comfortable hospital bed?

[ she doubts it. john doesn't seem like the type to take comfort in a bed to let his ribs heal. perhaps that's why they get along. ]

[hellblaze]

Sunbathing in the snow? You're bloody brave, or mental.

[ there's still that grin on his face at her antics though. he appreciates someone with the good sense of humor in this situation. it's something he feels they are needing more and more as the days roll on. ]

Oh, this beautiful mansion with fluffy beds and a bottle of whiskey. Tried to hole up for the last few days to ignore the whole world.

[ meaning that he only really rested because he had some alcohol. he looks her over, hands slipping into his pockets. ]

Where did you find yourself?

[descendent]

[ a pang of jealousy in her stomach. she wishes she had been in the mansion with the fluffy beds and bottle of whiskey with elijah. instead, she'd been held up in a small building she hadn't known with hard tables and chairs and her back and beneath her head. ]

The Grey Gull. [ she doesn't recite it excitedly, either. it's a building name she hadn't known before she was trapped inisde of it, and now she knows it all too intimately.

carding her hand through her hair, she gives a small sigh. ] No fluffy beds. It didn't even have a fluffy pillow.

[hellblaze]

[ he sighs and gives a sniff at the cold air. ]

The first of us that showed up? We holed up in the Grey Gull for the first few days or so. Before we got brave enough to weather the darkness and go find proper houses with warm showers.

I imagine it hasn't become any more hospitable. [ his head tilts. ] Mind telling me what happened?

[descendent]

[ stupidly, elena wishes she had been here in the beginning. perhaps it would make understanding the awkward lay of this town a lot easier. ]

Is it okay if we go in and talk? It's kind of cold out here. [ with a glance over her shoulder, she can feel paranoia climb up her vertebrae. she doesn't want anyone to overhear. despite being locked in the grey gull for two days with strangers and elijah, she wants to duck in and not be overheard. ]

[hellblaze]

You're not going to hear me complain, luv.

[ john nods, and motions for her to head back to town hall. he pauses then. there's a spike that hits him. a wave. whispers. oh, he knows what the sound of his personal ghosts... but that's not what this feels like. ]

Step away from the wall John

[this_ismydesign]

Don't. It's load bearing. [ Hey John, remember your drinking buddy? Those quiet, fairly neutral tones come from the doorway.

In the time between the initial meeting and now Will has managed to find himself new clothes and a shower. He is dressed in flannel, plaid, dull and uninspiring. The shirt tails hang out over dark slacks and there is a hint of a henley peeking at the open neck.

At least the blood is gone? ]

It has it coming! He wants OPEN OFFICES

[hellblaze]

[ John turns his head to look at the familiar voice. Well, someone cleaned up nicely. He gives a grin, now at least properly dressed in his typical get up: work shirt, loose hanging tie, black pants, and his trenchcoat near by. ]

Here I was hoping of opening the wall up for my mate. Easier to get from office to office without a wall in the way.

[this_ismydesign]

[ Most people look better when not soaked in blood. ]

Have you considered putting in doors? [ Will asked the question with a shade of snark in his tone, though he walked on into the room shoving his hands in his pockets. ] Open concept is a nice aesthetic but are impractical in reality.

[ At least that was Will's opinion. Everybody being privy to your business all the time? ew ]

[hellblaze]

Still means you need to break the wall. [ A hand raised and gestured to the aforementioned offensive barrier in his way. Honestly, destroying bits and pieces of Mathias was rather cathartic at this rate. ] Nothing about this bloody town is practical.

Coulson and I are getting information together from people in the city. It'd be easier than having to strut out into the hall, take a turn, and talk the next room over.

[ Of course, he just presumed that Coulson would be taking up an "office" like he had. If they were going to be here so much then why the hell not? ]

[this_ismydesign]

[ Will looked at the wall under discussion. Leaned out the doorway and looked slightly down the hall, and yep that looked like an adjoining room.

Then back to the wall John wanted to target, and finally to John himself. ]

You're out of luck. [ He announced with direct simplicity. ] Put in an intercom.

[ The correct noise would have involved asking who Coulson was and about the gathering of information from people in the city. Will had exhausted his tolerance for people being around the crowd for the Town Hall. Part of him, the investigator, was urging him to ask but it was still in mental combat with his completely accepting that any of this was real.

'Fear makes you rude, Will.' Jack Crawford had been right about that. ]

[hellblaze]

Ah, bollocks. That? That isn't nearly as fun.

[ John clicked the tongue to his teeth. He threw his hands up before leaning against the desk that he had shoved all the papers off of. Shit. Well, he'd find something else to do and something else to break. Eventually, Mathias would either murder him again or throw him a bone. ]

Is it as load bearing as you think? What if there were tunnels underneath the building?

[this_ismydesign]

[ Will looked around, looked down at his feet, arms crossed over his chest as he stepped further into the office and eventually shrugged. ]

Take out a load bearing wall, destabilize the entire structure, building this size ... I expect you'd find out very quickly if there were tunnels underneath. [ There is no real sarcasm in his tone. If John wants to get his destructive on, risk bringing down the entire building? Hey maybe it will be interesting to unearth underground tunnels? ] Probably risk collapsing some of them.

[hellblaze]

Oh, I know there is a tunnel underneath, mate.

[ John looked up at him with his eyebrows raised. Is he going to share where the tunnel entrance is? Maybe. That all depends on how much he feels like introducing someone who feels like Mathias is Purgatory to a bunch of crazy symbols down below. ]

Sounds like a way to go out. I might just keep that in mind for the future.

offices, because you know why

[40seconds]

[ When Coulson wakes up on day 26, the first thing he realizes is that he's not in the strange house with its strange mirrors anymore. In fact, he's back to feeling like himself again, and any lingering after-effect of his run-in with the mirror seems to have gone. The only thing still left are the stitches on his hand, but he can deal with those. Mostly.

Now that he's apparently back, the first thing he intends to do is touch base with his friends, wherever they might be. Hopefully they're all still here. He heads off to Town Hall intending to find one person in particular, and when that's done, then he'll see to the rest.

When he gets there, he hears a bunch of noise coming from one of the rooms, so that's where he heads. He stops there, leaning against the door frame for a moment or two, watching John moving things around before he clears his throat to announce himself. ]

You look busy. Do you have a minute?

d e m o l i t i o n!

[hellblaze]

Coulson!

[ Phillie will come shortly. Don't you worry.

He half turns to look at his partner-in-crime with a grin. He hasn't started attacking the wall yet, but, oh he's tempted. Even if Will pointed out how the wall might not be worth breaking given load bearing. Of course. The town would ruin his bloody fun. ]

I think I've got a minute or two while I debate if this wall goes down or not. [ He pulls the chair over and then kicks it towards the man to take a seat. ] I suppose you went and got yourself stuck in a different place. Bloody stupid of you -- and me, really. Ended up in a mansion.

bring on all the sledgehammers

[40seconds]

[ He grins widely, not bothering to conceal how glad he is to see John in one piece, as far as he can tell. ]

Either you're just that happy to see me, or you need someone to partner up with for your wall destruction.

[ He's just going to sit in that chair with a big sigh; don't mind him, it's been a long handful of days, and he didn't even get good whiskey for his trouble! ]

You suppose correctly. It was a house, ordinary from the look of it, but it was the mirrors that were strange.

[ He raises an eyebrow at the mention of a mansion, but he continues on anyway. ] Have you ever hit a mirror and had it hit you back?

[hellblaze]

Well, one of our newest members to our budding community pointed out this was a load bearing wall. So, ah, I'll take whatever suggestions you've got, mate. I figured we could use proper offices if we're camping out in Town Hall so often.

Oh, that reminds me. We need to do something about that tunnel beneath us...

[ Honestly, he's just trying to feel like he's doing something in this town. ]

Any idea where this new house might be? [ Mirrors... ] Can't say that I have. Usually, though, I don't go about breaking mirror. Bad lucky for seven years on top of what I've got? Think I'll pass.

[ He raises a hand and points at Coulson. ] But, you, you went and broke one, didn't you? You silly sod. Why'd you do that?

[40seconds]

Load-bearing, huh? [ He turns just slightly so he can get a better look at it. ] Never really got into architectural design, but I think the trick is finding the vulnerable point and focusing on that. Could be wrong, though. Do you want to chance it on a hunch?

[ He chuckles, then. ] You're just raring to go, huh? The wall, and now the tunnel. Well, whatever it is, count me in, although I might not be much use because- [ He waves the hand that Helen stitched up. ]

Not a clue, unfortunately. Opening a door or a window wasn't an option; all I know is I appeared there randomly, along with some other people.

But these mirrors weren't ordinary ones; there were shadowy figures in them, and even if a mirror was covered up, when you came back to look at it, the cover was on the floor.

A guy there- Carter, I think he said his name was. He tried appeasing them with a- well, what looked like a blood sacrifice. Except he said he learned how to do that from watching TV, so you might want to take that with a grain of salt.

[ Coulson shrugs and finally answers John properly. ] I broke the mirror because all the tests and experiments I did with them got me nowhere, so I got angry.

[ What? It happens sometimes. ]

[hellblaze]

My hunches haven't been as good as they usually are. [ There's an odd tone that comes from him at the admission. His lips press together, hands on his hips, as he looks up at the wall and frowns.

He sighs and looks back at Coulson. ] I'm not quite desperate yet, mate, but, getting there.

[ He scratches the back of his head and listens. So, another house locked up tightly like the mansion was. People woke up there without a clue as to why. Mirrors... mirrors. He frowns. ]

Mirrors and reflective surfaces can be entrances to other realms and planes if you know the right magic and ways to do it. Sounds like we've got a bit of that going on here in Mathias. Oh, brilliant.

[ His face scrunches up and he rolls his eyes over toward Coulson. Really. ]

Oh, unless he knew what he was doing, it was probably just a big show and doin' what he's seen on telly. Blood magic is dark magic, mate. Very dark. These knob-heads are going to end up summoning something if they're not careful enough.

[ Then he gives an expression that says Coulson is a giant knob-head. ]

You broke a bloody mirror.

[40seconds]

Really? [ Coulson gives him a look then, not wanting to really pry because he gets the feeling that John doesn't appreciate it when people stick their noses into his business. But then again, he considers the other man a friend, and friends look out for each other. ] Well, when you do, drop me a line, if you want.

[ Because whenever John does reach that point, Coulson at least wants to be there in whatever way he'll allow. ]

I've been thinking about that. When I broke the mirror, maybe something got out. [ Except there's no maybe about it; Coulson's not 100% sure what came out of the mirror, but he believes something did. ]

If it helps, in this case, all he got for his trouble was a cut hand and a bloody peanut bar. [ Coulson half-smirks then, because he'd be lying if some of John's mannerisms weren't rubbing off on him, but in this case, it's just an expression. ]

You didn't see the way the shadows inside the mirror kept moving around.

[ It's not an excuse, just him trying to explain why it felt so unnerving. ]

They responded to light or the absence of it, and if you turned around, they would move closer or further away.

[ And now that he's explained a little, he does feel slightly abashed for going with his gut reaction, but hey, this isn't his area of expertise. ]

[hellblaze]

Given we're occupying some offices? I think that ring might not be as hard as you'd think.

[ Coulson might regret that. John does stupid things when he's desperate. Summoning a demon to shred another demon? Summoning a demon into himself to heal a fatal wound? It goes on and on... ]

That's why you don't go around breaking bloody mirrors, you git. [ Despite the condescending tone? There's a gentleness in it. ] That we know of so far. You don't go around tempting things in mirrors with a bit of play of sacrifice. Carter, you said? Got a first name to go along with it?

[ Oh, he's going to go off. ]

Shadow creatures are usually beings of pure darkness. Either never had or went about casting out the spark that all creatures of God have. It's a choice, really, for beings like us. Any form of light might send them scurrying off. Especially if it's the righteous sort.