059-061 » the place where you stop the story

[villagemod]

WHO: Everyone.
WHERE: Eastern/Central/Southern Mathias
WHEN: Day 059-061
WHAT: Time returns to "normal" and Mathias grants a reprieve.
WARNINGS: (PM this account to have a warning added!)
NOTES: Plotting post over here! The next log will be posted the weekend of May 15th May 22nd.

RECOMMENDED ♫ Nathan Johnson "Foul Play"

DAY 059-061
A BRIEF REPRIEVE
“There is no real ending. It’s just
the place where you stop the story.”
— Frank Herbert
Residents awake to a peaceful morning with the sun shining and earth remaining still. There is no unsettling shaking to rouse them at dawn, and time has continued moving onward as they slept. Whatever state they were in the night before, they remain that way now, for good or for bad.

On the surface, there seems to be little lasting effect on the tiny town from that strange series of days, save for the memories of any traumatic experiences residents may have faced — but there are always consequences within Mathias. The perpetrators of acts against the town are tormented by nightmares of those acts being used against them, and those who did not raise a hand to stop those acts of destruction may yet face consequences of their own. For now, however, the unwilling townspeople should do their best to rest and recover from the disturbing ordeals of late, for this reprieve from the madness shall surely be shortlived.




THE NEW ARRIVALS
The newest arrivals to Mathias will wake up on the beach near The Grey Gull. It's a bit chilly out with their wet clothes, but surely there's something to help warm them inside the restaurant. They may even find some alcohol within — and not just the cowboys' homemade moonshine.

---

CONDITIONS UPDATE

— THE HISTORY MUSEUM has not fared well with the return of "normal" time. The once esteemed wooden building is now a charred ruin, the recent fire leaving behind little of the contents within for study. The structure is unstable and it is not wise to venture into the ruins for long.

— THE WEATHER conditions remain fairly typical for early fall: warm days and cool nights. It feels almost like spring arriving except that there fewer red and orange leaves on the ground and more of them oddly returning to the trees and slowly fading to green. It's like watching one of those nature documentaries that have a timelapse of the seasons, only it's going in reverse.

— THE FOG has retreated from some areas!

— Residents may now wander the southern stretch of the forest surrounding Mathias Township — it is possible to leave the paths but potentially unwise to do so.
— The fog has also retreated farther into the western section of town, now stretching across town between Stine Road and Shelley Drive. This has revealed the Chasm in the earth that stretches from one side of town to the other between Stine and Hill Lane.
— Access to the northern section of the forest is still blocked beginning a few dozen yards past the treeline; this section of fog will urge residents to stay huddled within the town proper by inducing a physical reaction of panic and fear.

— DEATHS & DISAPPEARANCES continue! Max Guevara has vanished into the fog. Claire Novak's body can be spotted on Day 059 facedown at the bottom of the Chasm between Hill and Stine, near Phillips Drive; by the morning of Day 060, her body will be gone. (Attempts may be made to reach her body but will likely not end well for those involved. Such attempts should be reported under Exploration.)

— ALCOHOL is still in Mathias! Just barely. (Supply is running very low after recent town events.) 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 was also restocked with its lower-end offerings of a variety of alcohol types. (Alcohol does not replenish as food does.)

---

OOC NOTES

— PROJECT HELP Your mod needs help with some projects!

— FUTURE PLANNING If you haven't, please answer the questions here for future log planning. I will almost definitely need some of these answers for the log going up the weekend of May 15, so act quickly! Late submissions will not be considered for that log.

— UPDATES Don't forget to report updates as they come up! Changes to locations (like toppling a few bookshelves in the library), big plots you have coming up that will affect the game (parties, major property destruction, etc), or exciting discoveries that may tie into the game's mythology (even the things provided by the mod) are very helpful to have in one place so relevant page updates can be made.

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

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Comments

[abrightboy]

"Just half," Malcolm told him. "Nothing on it."

He scooped the soup into two bowls, sliding a larger portion of the rice and chicken into Raylan's.

"Bon Appetite!" he declared, turning around with the bowls. "Where do you want to eat? Out in the bar?"

[tinstar]

"Dry it is." The toast was stacked, cut in triangle halves (everyone knows everything tastes better in triangles) and once Raylan had put it all on a plate, he jerked his head towards the outer area.

"How about one of the booths? You can put on new record and we can have some music while we eat."

[abrightboy]

Malcolm put on a new record and slid into his seat, picking up his spoon.

“Maybe we should make ‘lunch at the Gull’ a regular date,” he suggested. “We can almost pretend we’ve gone out.”

[tinstar]

Raylan smiled at Malcolm as he sat down at the choice in song and lifted his eyebrows in soft surprise with a nod at the suggestion.

"At least once or twice a week," he agreed with a nod. "Make it somethin' special, if we're allowed." Special, exactly like this. "Maybe we start with a picnic in one of these houses.. bring the record player, pack a basket?"

[abrightboy]

Malcolm’s whole face brightened.

“I’d love that,” he said. “I will find all the most romantic records for dancing to in the whole town,” he declared, then realized that might have been too declarative, then decided that Raylan was well aware of his feelings, so scaring him off with them was probably not much of a possibility. “And also soup that packs well.”

[tinstar]

"It's a date. Gonna have to see what else we might be able to get into you. How do you feel about egg salad sandwiches? Or at least a bite of one. I'll pack one anyway, you can try it. Keep an eye out for a good house?"

Maybe one that Raylan hadn't slept or fucked in, which was most of them, but he'd rather they get away from Phillips Drive for the date, pretend that they were going anywhere other than the other side of Mathis.

[abrightboy]

“Egg salad sandwich. Sounds like it has a lot going on in there, but I’ll try it.”

He would try it if taking a bite made Raylan smile at him, just for the try, whether it landed well or not.

“I’ll find a good house. Maybe there’s one with a record player already in it and we won’t have to drag this one around town.”

A little mission for him. Gave him a goal to focus on.

“We can just bring the records and the food.”

Maybe they could lock the door. Maybe they could stay there all night. But that was the sort of romantic notion that would likely get squashed by reality. He’d either have to forego restraints or bring them along. The former felt dangerous. The latter felt presumptuous.

“And ourselves.”

[tinstar]

"Just a bite. I'll eat it regardless so it doesn't go to waste." In case that was any kind of concern on Malcolm's part.

Raylan grinned. "We can take the whole afternoon, if you want. Or longer."

It wasn't presumptuous; Raylan wanted to spend time with him.

[abrightboy]

"Most of an entire day?" He couldn't help his idiotic grin. "I've pleased the gods or something," he remarked, taking a bite of his toast. "I'll... pack my restraints. In case we decide to stay the night."

[tinstar]

He lifted his eyebrows with a bob of his jaw to the side, intrigued before it broke back into a grin. "Scandalous. Shame we don't have any more wine, I'd suggest we bring that. You handle the blankets, the music selection. I'll handle the food so you're gonna have to give me a few days to make sure we've got an easy way to move it all."

[abrightboy]

"You're going to handle the food?" Malcolm said, eyebrows going up, clearly excited at the prospect. Raylan cooked a little, but it wasn't a hobby of his. This was special, that meant. "Just tell me when you're ready," he said, spreading his hands. He would wait for that. He took a bite of soup. "I don't think anyone's ever made me a picnic before," he admitted.

I think we can leave that one there?

[tinstar]

Malcolm's praise was starting to hold its own weight and Raylan felt himself lift a little to the expectation.

"First time for everything. We'll get a blanket and all," he said, feeling foolishly pleased with how loose and wide his grin was.