037-040 » the reason for time

[villagemod]

WHO: Everyone.
WHERE: Eastern/Central Mathias
WHEN: Day 037-040
WHAT: The dead return and the living wake to changes within Mathias Township.
WARNINGS: Some explicit sexual content in threads. (PM this account to have a warning added!)
NOTES: Plotting post over here!

RECOMMENDED ♫ Kammarheit "Sleep after Toyle, Port after Stormie Seas"

DAY 037
THE DEAD RETURN
“The only reason for time is so that everything
doesn't happen at once.” —Albert Einstein
The dead return to Mathias forever changed by their experiences. Waking along the beach, near the tree line, or among the graves, they will find that their bodies are not as they remember them. They are whole again and not torn to shreds by the shadow creatures that cannot be described, but they are also not as they were before the Hunt. These residents will find, so strangely, that their bodies are in the physical state in which they first arrived in Mathias — any injuries or recovery they have made since their initial arrival no longer exists, as if their time in Mathias has simply been a horrible nightmare. Except they all now carry a last reminder of the Hunt with them: spiderweb-thin healed scars marking their injuries from the Hunt. Those who were injured by fire in the other realm also carry those burns with them.

The dead are not the only things that have returned to Mathias. Inexplicably, fall is back, with the temperature finally reaching above freezing and snow falling from trees to reveal beautiful autumnal colors. As the sun rises higher in the lightly cloudy sky and the day warms, the snow begins rapidly melting, puddles growing in the slowly revealed grass and little rivers forming in the streets. And with that snow comes the frozen blood from the deaths to the Hunt, tinting the street river on Phillips Drive a sickening shade of red.

Another oddity that residents will notice: houses with broken windows from the encounter with the fog on Day 015 have now been completely repaired, though any boards put in place are still there somehow. A small bit of good news, at least? And truly, how kind of Mathias to clean up its own mess.

Finally, alcohol is back. Enjoy in moderation, friends, for more will not be arriving the following morning.


THE NEW ARRIVALS
The newest arrivals to Mathias will wake up on the beach near The Grey Gull. It's quite chilly out with their wet clothes, but surely there's something to help warm them inside the restaurant. Indeed, their timing is perfect, for alcohol has finally returned to Mathias Township — and not just the cowboys' homemade moonshine.


DAY 038-039
THE CHANGE OF SEASON
The continued warm weather proves that the unseasonable shift of the previous day was not merely a fluke. Once again, the sun rises and brings with it a temperature that feels almost spring-like, save for the fact that each day there seem to be more and more leaves on the trees in hues of red and orange. For those who have been in Mathias for some time, this new type of weird may be almost normal at this point, but newer arrivals will likely find it quite odd.

The gently trickling river running along Phillips Drive is still somewhat pink in color as the snow continues to melt and refreeze each night. By Day 040, the bloody snow will finally be gone completely, though the relief will be... short-lived.

DAY 040
THE BLINDING WHITE
In the late morning of Day 040, when the sun is visible through patchy greyish clouds, the fog sweeps into town like a like a tidal wave. It moves in quickly and without warning, not from the waterfront but the forest, cascading through every street in a thick wave of white. Rather than a soft blanket enveloping the town, it is a heavy weight pressing down, blotting out the sky in a way that almost feels suffocating, for none can see further than their outstretch hand.

Those outside when it rolls in are left wandering blind, stumbling toward shelter as you're unable to even see your feet beneath you, let alone any obstacles in your path. Perhaps you call out for help, hoping for another voice to guide you toward shelter or simply another living soul. Or perhaps you were lucky enough to already be inside when the fog descended, quickly closing doors and windows to keep it from creeping in.

Unlike the last time the fog swept into the town, residents who encounter it are not immediately killed. Instead, they are simply disoriented, possibly losing their sense of time and place, and it is only after prolonged exposure that they will begin to feel off. A sense of being ill will cling to them if they are in the fog for too long, including dizziness, lightheadedness, or nausea — the time it takes to manifest varies from person to person, as does the duration it will last after leaving the fog.

By nightfall, the fog still has not dissipated.

---

CONDITIONS UPDATE

— THE WEATHER conditions are fairly typical for late fall: chilly "sweater weather" days and nights that can dip just below freezing. You don't want to be outside without a coat, but it won't kill anyone if they bundle up. Probably.

— THE FOG remains blocking the paths in the forest beginning a few dozen yards past the treeline, urging residents to stay huddled within the town proper, and it also now blocks the western section of town, beginning just past Hill Lane, before where residents know the chasm in the earth to be between Hill and Stine Road. Venturing into the fog blocking these areas is ill-advised.

— DISAPPEARANCES continue. Castiel and Sam Winchester have vanished, and Dean Winchester has not returned with the others after his death during the Hunt.

— THE GRAVEYARD has now seen around a dozen burials, both below and above ground. With the weather warming, though, something may need to be done about the handful of temporary graves aboveground...

— ALCOHOL has returned to Mathias! A small stock of beer and cheap wine may be found at the General Store, and some homes may have a small store of alcohol in the fridge or pantry. The Grey Gull has also been restocked with its lower-end offerings of a variety of alcohol types. Alcohol does not replenish in the same way as food.

— THE GREY GULL has been cleaned up and stocked with moonshine. Along with the newly restocked usual offerings, the place almost seems like an actual bar again.

— THE GENERAL STORE is in a bit of a state following the brutal slaughter of two residents during the Hunt. Cleanup on aisle 3, anyone?

---

OOC NOTES

— FOOD is now being mysteriously restocked as per usual, including inside homes and at the General Store. Alcohol is not being restocked. Use those rationing skills, friends.

— REWARD REDEPEMPTION is back and will soon have a new option for anyone looking to spend big AP and learn a bit more of the lore of the town.

— MADNESSES due to the Hunt have been earned by Klaus Hargreeves, Ellie, and Malcolm Bright and may now be claimed. Players may also claim additional sanity loss from the aftermath of the Hunt; only losses from the Hunt itself have been deducted from totals thus far.

— SANITY REGAIN is now available! Players will submit a form with some details of the progress their character has made and the mod will review and decide on the numbers of points that will be regained.

— MOD STATUS The usual reminder that it's mostly just Amy steering this ship for now, so things will probably be pretty slow for a while. Apologies in advance, and please don't feel shy about pinging me if you're stuck waiting for something.

navigation | faq | locations | report updates

Comments

[prevenance]

Looking for anything that might tell me what's going on.

( every single day that he wakes up and he's still here, his frustration grows. he doesn't know why or how or what to do and it's starting to get to him. )

What specifically do you want to know?

( this, at least, is something he can outlet his frustration into, something he can try and help with. )

[setthetone]

First and foremost who returned and who... didn't.

[It suddenly feels colder in here and Carter rubs his arms when the horrible memories of the Hunt come back to haunt him.]

Did you... you know. Did it get you? Whatever it was?

[prevenance]

That's a good idea. I haven't gone looking for bodies since I've been able to get out of the boarding house. My bet would be that not everyone did come back.

( unfortunately. )

And no, it didn't. I was inside when it started and I was unable to get out. I couldn't open the doors or the windows or anything. Whatever was going on found a way to keep me inside.

[setthetone]

Same thing happened to me. Like some magical force field.

[Look at him using words like magic and foce field without that bewildered hesitation now or feeling like a freak. He's really growing into this.]

I tried to get out and help people but...

[He shakes his head.]

All I could do was listen.

[prevenance]

Yes.

( yes, that's all he could do too and he'd hated it. absolutely hated it but there was nothing else to do but stay inside and futilely try and get himself out. he'd pounded the windows, the door, done everything he could but nothing worked.

and that was troubling considering how strong he was. he rubs a hand over his face. )

There shouldn't be anything that could keep me inside like that. It shouldn't be possible.

[setthetone]

[It shouldn't be possible.

A fortnight ago that comment would have just passed Carter by like any kind of angry offhand remark. But a lot has happened in these past 14 days and he looks up, curious.]

Do you have powers?

[prevenance]

I don't know if I'd call them that but —

( there's no use in keeping it a secret considering he's announced it at a town hall meeting once before. he glances over at john before he sighs. )

I'm a vampire.

( he decides not to go into the whole original vampire, one thousand years old just yet. he'll see how john deals with this. )

[setthetone]

Vam--

[The rest of the word drowns out in a surprised sputter. Okay, he expected powers but vampire? That's new.

Not as shocking as it would have been two weeks ago before ghosts and shadow figures and brutal monsters in the night ripping the town to shreds but still new.]

What, like in the movies? With the... the teeth and the drinking blood and everything?

[It's such a stupid thing to say. He doesn't know what else to say.]

[prevenance]

Yes, with the teeth and the drinking blood. I don't sleep in coffins and I don't turn into bats before you ask me that.

( that seems to be a thing everyone asks and he's just going to cut it off at the pass. )

But you are in no danger. I don't want to drink from you.

[setthetone]

[John's mouth opens. Closes.

... Yeah, he was absolutely going to ask that. What can he say. Boring, regular, magicless run-off-the-mill world.]

That's, uh. Great. Good to know.

[And then, just because it's such a thing with people he meets,] So what year are you from?

[prevenance]

( for a moment, elijah thinks he's going to have some trouble with it. maybe even get up and walk away but to his credit, he stays where he is and even asks a question. )

977 AD.

( he's very, very old. )

I've been around quite some time so I am not going to be like the vampires you might have read about and seen in movies and on television shows.

[setthetone]

Damn.

[That is old.]

Has anything like this ever happened to you in your. Uh. Millennia?

[prevenance]

Like this?

( elijah glances around, taking it all in despite knowing what he'll see. he's seen these same walls nearly everyday for what feels like months.

and he hasn't been able to figure it out. )

No. And that's worrisome.