♥ October (Lasohm) Event Log

[hugtopiamods]

October (Lasohm) Event Log

Lasohm's chilly weather may encourage residents and off-worlders alike to stay indoors and make themselves cozy with blankets and warm drinks or adjust their internal cybernetic temperature in the locals' case. Shops bring in their outdoor seating and stands, and the researchers that maintain the botanical gardens prepare for a seasonal yield of bright vegetables and grains, hopeful to regain their original forms and celebrate the harvest. Cozying up and preparing for cooler weather is not all they do: with the train successfully established, the third option of simply booking passage to Shoremere for fairer weather becomes more popular on weekends. In short, the days that pass this month are mild and uneventful, quiet and homey aside from a little boost in economy and trade.

---

❥ PROMPT I: Boos Ex Machina

Spooky Scary Apparitions. On the evening of the 14th, this changes with a drop in temperature, enough to cause an early frost to crystallize at the edges of metal and glass, creeping over the autumn greens, golds, and reds; and as the artificial sun of the barrier sets, a ripple of gold energy moves across the dome to its edges. Twilight, night, and the array of alien constellations usually set upon the barrier never follow the set of the sun, and as locals gather near their windows to watch and anxiously whisper about what this means, the ground trembles as if something taking rattling, frigid breath. The barrier ripples with this quake, then become transparent, revealing the darkness of the world around. Some may worry that it's gone; it's not, for faint, golden shimmers that arc over the city can still be seen, but panic begins to set in as researchers and temple priests are summoned back to their posts in an effort to decipher the cause. For any that wish to leave at this time to Shoremere, the train remains operational.

By morning, the barrier remains clear, the air remains cold enough to see one's breath, and a worried silence settles over the city as the tremors only grow more frequent and powerful by the hour. It's at when dawn- would would be dawn, if the sun was visible- that pale, hazy figures begin to slowly emerge from a tunnel one of the giant worms carved out a year ago, and the only tunnel to be kept closely monitored because of the sealed door it leads to.

Ghostly Invasion. Those who had helped out with creating the corridor of lights months ago may recall the hostile apparitions that wandered outside the barrier. Unlike how the apparitions appearing outside of the barrier could appear animalistic or humanoid and ill-defined, the ones that emerge from this tunnel are distinctly Aellynians as they once appeared. Like the ones encountered beyond the barrier, fending them off can only happen when two engage in some sort of physical contact. Some have feathers, others have feline-like ears, but all bring a chilling, hungry aura with them as they slowly move throughout the city as if searching for something. What that "something" depends on the apparition:

Hostile. These apparitions behave similarly to the ones encountered beyond the barrier, and when they appear close enough to their target, they reach out to attack. Any brush with them will cause the person to forget what they are doing, and prolonged contact with them may result in (temporary) memory loss. Some of these apparitions chant the following words: "Our planet is dying... Our planet is dying." But if you're close enough to hear them say as much, you're not likely to get away unscathed.

Good news! Or maybe, bad news? The apparitions appear to target locals first, and a single pass of their phantom form through their robotic bodies leaves them slumped over on the ground, inert. Stop these apparitions from passing through the locals' bodies, or help bring the ones who have collapsed back to one of the research towers.
Non-Hostile. These apparitions appear even more distinct than their counterparts, and some even bear unique facial features. However, they all appear to be on a set, looped path, migrating from the tunnel to any of the four temples, then back to the fountain with four statues in the middle of the city, where they then kneel and bow their heads. Over and over, they repeat this pilgrimage. Some may occasionally deviate to a particular house or store, but most return to the central plaza, then the tunnel, then temples, then the plaza once again. Like the other apparitions, the same cautions still apply: don't physically touch them unless you want to forget. But if you do happen to engage with them, some might even speak. What are they saying?
"Save us..."
"Don't add too much salt ....or you'll overpower.... the flavor, dear."
"Where is it... my body...."
"Is my wife still alive...? This was her house..."
"I'm not.... ready to move on..."
"I want this to be over..."
"The door…"
All throughout this, the barrier remains translucent, and the world dark. As the city becomes more saturated with these ghosts as they pour out from the tunnels, it becomes increasingly dangerous to venture anywhere without encountering them. But just as some begin to cave into hopelessness, the temple priests come up with a solution: the candles from before. Grab a partner and make a candle with them, or take one of the extras from the temples, and their light appears to attract these ghosts-- perhaps for the nostalgic "scent" from the average-sized candles that evokes memories, or the "sleeping" effect of thinner candles. Whatever the real reason, as soon as the apparition touches the flame, they vanish as if absorbed by the light, and this process turns the flame into colors of silver, pink-purple, blue-gold, and white-red. Once the spirit inhabits the candle, it no longer burns wax, and it will not extinguish. Even so, it might be best to set them somewhere safe.

The Mysterious Door. Once enough of the apparitions are contained to the candles, the question now becomes what do we do with them? Or better yet, where did they come from? The leaders of Havenwell request volunteers to brave the tunnels that lead to the sealed door. Providing you with enough candles to attract and contain the apparitions, the only other potential adversary is the occasional earthworm; but don't worry, they are smaller in size than the ones from before, and they can be outrun.
At the end of the labyrinth of tunnels is the sealed door, now unexpectedly open, which cannot be closed, and cannot be entered by any off-worlder. What can one see through the door? Vast, endless darkness, with mist that moves in slow, swirling currents. Be careful: apparitions can leave at any time through this portal, but apparently, they cannot renter on their own. Once it's safe enough, make the pilgrimage to carry their candle back down through the tunnels to this gate. Off-worlders will be able to extend their hand through the threshold of the door to place the candle in the darkness, setting the souls back through the mysterious entrance. Watch closely enough, and one might see how the candles are carried through the void. Unfortunately, setting a candle back in through this portal comes with a price: lethargy, malaise, illness, and exhaustion… not unlike the symptoms one experiences when venturing outside the barrier without an exosuit.

❥ PROMPT II: Trick or Treat Yourself

Despite the haunted goings-on, there are as ever attempts to keep Havenwell in high spirits, especially now with their established fledgling relationship with Shoremere. Naturally, the spirit of the season is coming into full swing with decorations and candles available just about everywhere one thinks to look. And while most are largely ordinary, one can happen across some with a little extra 'festivity' to them.

There are all sorts of provided decorations for the season--leaf garlands, synthetic jack o'lanterns, fake cobwebs, scented candles, just about anything one could want to make themselves as festive a display as they should ever want or need. However, in some cases the decorative efforts might just go noticed by some less-than-ordinary force, and any number of things might come along with the new fall atmosphere.

Maybe everywhere you go, sudden unpredictable showers of leaves follow you. Or your hair color continually changes to any number of warm fall colors to match the decor. Does the inexplicable smell of pumpkin spice or apple follow you everywhere you go? Or perhaps you come home one day to a gathering of small plastic skeletons having a dance party on your lawn, and abruptly find yourself in a silly costume befitting the seasons. Any number of things in the nature of the Halloween season could happen, with no clear connection between specific decorations and their unexpected side effects.

❥ PROMPT III: We Put a Spell on You

It starts with a comically large nearly 8 foot tall candle in the city square one day that appears overnight around the mid-month mark. Then on random days at dawn, the candle shoots out a bright blue holographic flame along with some (thankfully) biodegradable glitter, and a doorway opens in the candle to reveal three colorfully dressed natives, cackling with delighted glee. The three natives emerge saying, “It is our time, Sisters!” or “Brothers, it is upon us!” depending on the day, and boast colorful, eclectic outfits in either green, burgundy, or pink. Once released, they link arms and start marching through the city, looking to cause mischief in any way they can.

Most of the natives don’t seem entirely bothered by this trio of weirdos now haunting their city, and even stop to take pictures with them on occasion, or ask them to sign autographs (which they will happily do), but offworlders may find them a little more…annoying.

Flash Mob: You may be shopping, eating, reading a book, strolling through the Botanical Gardens, anything - when suddenly you hear music start up out of nowhere. The Trio emerge, jumping up in a splash of glitter and confetti and begin singing an undeniably catchy tune, including call outs to the audience and somehow? A light show? Natives in the crowd will begin dancing as if they’re being compelled (“Oh nooooo, I can’t stop mooooving!”) and will call on anyone in the area to do the same. If you refuse to dance, natives will start trying to goad you into it, offering their hands to pull you up out of your seats, doing increasingly embarrassing dance moves like throwing a fishing line and trying to reel you in, etc. Whatever it takes to get you up and moving to the beat! Those who staunchly refuse to partake will be summarily booed by the singers and dancers alike, but those who decide to get into the mood and dance along will be applauded and - once the song ends - will find a particularly delicious candy thrown in their direction as the Trio cackle and disappear into the city once again.

Calming Circle: If you’re out and about, you may find yourself suddenly surrounded by the Trio as they link hands and dance a circle around you. “We’ve caught you! We’ve caught you! Now we’re going to eat them up! Oh, they’ll never break our circle, because they don’t know we’re so weak to love and tenderness! Oh ho!” they chant as they spin around you, skipping and cackling away. Of course, you’re free to push past them and run, but they will continue to hound you if they spot you again.

But the easiest solution is probably just to listen to them when they so negligently give away their darkest secret. Any prolonged affection shared between you and another person will have them crying dramatically, clawing at their faces like they’re being burned. “Noooo!! How could they have known! Affection! Our greatest weakness!!” they’ll scream as they scurry away to find their next “victim,” leaving a small but delectable candy treat for you behind.

Bewitchery!: Glitter bomb to the face! You’re probably minding your own business, chatting with a friend, having a nice meal, praying at a temple, whatever it is that people do, when an absolutely obscene amount of biodegradable glitter gets sprayed all over you and your companion. The culprits are, of course, the trio of tricksters and they wiggle their metal fingers at you, waggling electronic eyebrows as they declare you’re now under a truth spell. You have to confess a truth to your friend or they’ll gobble you up right then and there! If you refuse, they’ll just throw more glitter at you and stare uncomfortably until you finally relent, so you may as well. It doesn’t have to be a big truth or even anything all that shocking, but once a truth has been told, the lead “spellcaster” will toss some candy into your hands and then the three of them will slink away, vowing to get you another day….

However annoying you find their antics throughout the day, it seems darkness is the Trio’s greatest enemy, for as soon as the sun starts to set, they screech and run back to their candle. They dramatically shake fists at the sky as they retreat, crying as they go, “We’ll get you next time, my pretties!!!!” before the doors close and the blue flame turns off.

Anyone who sticks around long enough after will see three regular looking natives sneak out the back of the candle later, returning to their normal lives until the next time they decide to bring their strange act to the city. If asked about the “trio,” however, they’ll feign complete ignorance and shock that they could miss such colorful people running around. What a shame! Maybe next time!

---

This event will run from October 15th to October 31st. Click on each prompt's title to see the text. If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to the FAQ or to the Mod Question thread. You can also use the Havenwell Status page or the General Plotting Comment to give you other ideas for original prompts!

Comments

[daikonrose]

She took the cups readily, with a soft "oh!" at the specification--she hadn't thought he'd go out of his way to get them all different drinks, but that was nice. Meeting his eyes one more time, Kyoko tried to ground herself, and gave a firm nod before turning down the hall. Let's go, then.

Would the Kaito awaiting them still be as confused as we was a few minutes ago? Would he even still be there, or had he taken a page from another friend he must have forgotten, and climbed out the window? Agonizing mysteries, but soon they would be solved.

[whenyouneedme]

Climbing out the window would have been a fantastic idea. Extremely tempting. A promise was a promise though. It didn't matter how much more comfort he would have found if he could sprint down the street until his lungs burned. The fact that he probably would have ended up in several more spectral hijinks remained, and who knew what that would have done.

In lieu of this, he was making himself scarce instead. He'd found the emptiest corner he could to hole up in, sitting on the floor with he's knees drawn up. There hadn't been any cigarettes in his pockets which was unfortunate. The next best things for his hands to be doing then were to be pressing the heels of his palms against his brows, fingers knotting themselves up in his hair. Yes. This was fine.

Big, deep breaths now. Don't think about the sobs he did hear or the worried murmurs of his name. Think about absolutely nothing before even trying to think about anything else. It shouldn't be that hard if he'd had so little going for him that he hadn't realized he'd forgotten anything in the first place. His fingers curled tighter.

[hedgehogsdilemma]

As long as he's not making a huge effort to actually hide, scarce is... doable. That's a findable state. And find him they will, even when he seems so upset and small curled up like that. All Shinji wants to do is rush to his side, sit with him, try and help ease some of those sorrows, but as things stand, that's only going to make things worse, isn't it?

Ah. He hates this so much.

He'll do what he can, however little that may be worth right now. It starts with a soft, "Hey," as they find him, and a gentle offer, "Do you want some company?"

[daikonrose]

Catching sight of Kaito like that immediately sent a fresh stab of pain through her chest, but Kyoko swallowed it. It didn't matter how badly she wanted to just curl around him and absorb all of his troubles into her body--that was a no-go for now. Their focus for the moment had to be just... making this less terrible for him, somehow.

"We... can come back later if you want." Definitely not what either of them wanted, but if he truly couldn't stand to be around them right now, backing off would surely be the move.

[whenyouneedme]

Another deep breath in. He'd hoped for a little more time. His hands unfurled from his hair so he could look up at them though, if only so they knew he heard them.

"I.... don't know what would be better," he admitted after a few moments. The thought of company made his stomach flip, but the alternative of sending them away felt just as terrible. "I don't want to make either of you more uncomfortable."

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Not a single one of them actually knows what to do here, but who can really blame them? Shinji takes a deep breath with that admission, nodding slightly as if to tell Kai that it's okay if he's unsure. You're in good company, even if you don't know it yet.

"Kyoko has your drink." It's as painless of a way to facilitate at least the one (re)introduction as he can manage, a plus to handing the drink off to her. "If... it's okay, I think we'd both like to sit with you for a little bit. It doesn't have to be for long, if it makes you uncomfortable."

[daikonrose]

"Seeing you isn't uncomfortable," Kyoko insisted softly as she knelt to hold out that cup of Calpico for him. "But you don't have to make things hard on yourself for our sakes."

[whenyouneedme]

He was about to say 'it's your house' when he had to stop himself. 'Our' house? It was their house. This was a place that was his, with people that actively wanted to be with him. That part was still fucking him up.

Kai took the cup with a muted 'thank you,' trying to keep his expression level. "Pretty sure things are hard no matter what," he murmured as he looked down at the drink. Oh... he hadn't expected that familiar smell in a place like this. Huh.

"I won't tell you to go."

[hedgehogsdilemma]

It's true, there's no easy solution here. No matter what they choose to do now, there's bound to be some turbulence one way or another. Staying with Kai feels like it could be the less fraught option, if only for whatever measure of comfort his physical proximity can bring Shinji and Kyoko.

So, he gives her a quick look before carefully moving to Kai's side and siting next to him, drawing his knees in on himself and clutching his cup, all while keeping a comfortable amount of space between the two of them. Easy does it, now.

"If... there's anything you want to know, you can ask us," he offers as gently as possible. "Or, you don't have to. Whatever is easiest for you."

[daikonrose]

With that non-committal permission granted, Kyoko followed Shinji's example, settling down to tuck her knees under her in a proper kneel facing the boys. Glad to have the cup just so there was something to curl her hands around, she gave a slight nod to Shinji's words. Kaito had the right to anything he wanted to know, and also to their silence.

[whenyouneedme]

Kai looked between them as they took their seats, and gave a little nod. This worked. He could deal with this.

If only Kai knew where to start beyond that. There were many very obvious questions he could ask. There were some he really should ask, but they all felt like the sort that would hurt them more just by confirming he didn't know the answer. He wasn't sure he even wanted to hear the answers just yet.

"Kinda feel like... you shouldn't tell me too much," he said carefully, slowly trying to put the gut feeling into words. "So I know it's something I knew?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Shinji's already promised not to tell him anything he doesn't want to know, and 'not too much' isn't a hard request to meet either. He nods along a little, taking the words to heart. "We only want to help," he encourages, "We can do that. I'm sure... this is already a lot."

Maybe too much (probably too much), so Kai should be allowed to set the pace of any conversation.

[daikonrose]

Kyoko also nodded, a bit slowly as she turned those words over in her mind. "So then...you really believe it now?" she had to ask, gently. "That you've forgotten things?"

[whenyouneedme]

It was actually very much a lot. Kai nodded slightly with that assessment. They were trying very hard to minimize things, but the weight of his own existence had already been tenderly wrapped around his shoulders. It was there in all their gentle words. It had been there in the careful way she had held his hand, and the soft note of a nickname. This was all so, so much.

"It's... the better option to hope for, right?" That he just had a problem, rather than being the problem. Kai let a slow sigh slip out his nose. "Seems like it'd make sense, it just wasn't my first thought at all."

[hedgehogsdilemma]

If he can't even remember what he was supposedly doing before running in to the ghost, then it is the more logical conclusion to look toward, rather than some kind of divine joke being played on them some other way. Part of him almost wants to ask what his first though happened to be, but he's also sure the answer isn't one that would leave anyone particularly thrilled. We're trying to not invite more misery, so he'll just silently speculate.

"Weird things like that... can happen here." Nice and careful, the blame for this should be settled wholly on Havenwell itself, not on any mistake anyone may have made. "So it's very possible."

[daikonrose]

"It's true," Kyoko quickly chimed in. "A lot of weird things--that's why we were asking if you'd eaten something. I've...never heard of anyone losing memories until today, but I don't think it would be impossible." Truly it could happen to anyone. "There's surely something you ran into that caused this, but...there's never not been a solution when something like this happens."

[whenyouneedme]

Oh cool. A precedent for weird shit. Kai supposed that was comforting in a way, even if he grimaced a little at the thought. He chased that look away by finally taking a sip of the calpico they'd brought him, letting the familiar flavor sit on his tongue for a bit. If only sorting out the other familiar things was just as easy as taking a sip.

Usually having solutions was promising at least? Kai considered that a bit. "Something like whatever was maybe helping earlier?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Oh, good. He wasn't sure if that would be unwanted information, but Kai looks like he's taken it well. Another nod from Shinji, and while he may not be able to see it very well, he shifts his hands around his cup slightly so that he can link his fingers together around it as he answers, "Touch, usually."

He gives a nervous glance toward Kyoko - Kai had been pretty casual with both of them about touch even when everyone had first arrived, but Shinji's nerves are still rattled enough that he's unsure how the other boy will take that piece of information. Is this fine? Is it something he should amend? Yeah, let's do that. "It's not... always the right solution, but it's typically a good place to start."

[daikonrose]

Kyoko had met Shinji's eyes with barely restrained anxiety in her own, but she nodded. "It's really weird," she apologized, turning her eyes back on Kaito. "Really, really weird. But it's true...a lot of times, that's just how it is."

[whenyouneedme]

Right, she'd been holding his arm at the time. So that was what he had meant. The whole touching thing. There wasn't any reason for Kai to be opposed to the idea, it wasn't like he had any touch aversion that he could think of.

"That is really weird," he agreed though. Because it was really weird! He wasn't sure how that was supposed to work. "How's that supposed to work?"

[hedgehogsdilemma]

"It's... complicated?" Oh no, they didn't even explain that this is a whole different planet from Earth yet! Kai takes stuff in stride well enough, but it still feels like Shinji should be somewhat particular about what's said. "Something about... this world running on touch, so if something odd happens, touch is supposed to rebalance it, or something? I'm... really not sure about the specifics, but it is weird."

[daikonrose]

"Nobody's ever actually explained it, that I know of," Kyoko added, still finding room in her heart for bitterness over the situation, even with all the other turmoil. Ah, what a familiar feeling--it was almost soothing. "But since we were brought here to revive the gods of this world through skinship, you could also think of it as a scheme from them to make us do more of it."

Ah... that was kind of a lot to lay on him, though. Softening, she added, "But sometimes it's other things, too--sometimes just talking about certain things is enough. So there's really no telling what's going on..." She sighed, casting her gaze down. "Sorry."

[whenyouneedme]

Uh... huh...

"Well that's pretty fucked up," he blurted. Reviving gods and worlds running on touch and actually he was not anywhere near where he thought he was: fucked up. It's Complicated was a bit of an understatement there.

It was just as easy as it was the first time he couldn't remember to just sigh about it. If he was here already, there wasn't that much he could do about it. It was probably easier just not to think about it. Normally he wouldn't, but right now thinking about it was probably what he was supposed to be doing.

"Seems easy enough though, I guess."

[hedgehogsdilemma]

Hoo boy that was an awful lot to drop on him all at once! But you know what! Kai taking all of that so coolly is a pretty expected reaction! Who could really have known after such a fraught start to this whole ordeal? The frankness of that assessment is enough to stir a little bit of lightheartedness into his mood, though it's probably not very obvious from just looking at him.

"Yeah." Pretty fucked up, dude, but also a very easy solution. "Kyoko had your arm earlier, it might have been helping." And here, he shoots her a quick glace. "You could try that again, if you're comfortable with the idea."

[daikonrose]

It really was a relief to have Kaito just be Kaito about it. Not necessarily reassuring, not yet, but ah...maybe they really would muddle through this, at this rate.

Kyoko chewed her lip for a moment when Shinji met her eyes, but soon she was looking at Kaito again. "If you decide you don't like it, I won't want to either," she started, before shifting her cup to one hand so she could hold out the other, "but if you want to try..."