NoriWasHere

Nori And Her Stuff

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OVERVIEW

Deep in the frostbitten highlands stands the village of Greyharrow, a place long abandoned by the world’s trade routes and forgotten by those who once claimed it. Only the Waystone Inn remains alive, the former trading station turned into a reluctant beacon for those with nowhere else to go. Runaways, drifters, petty criminals, and people fleeing pasts they’d rather keep buried all find their way here eventually. In Greyharrow, no one asks questions, no one judges, and no one looks too closely. For many, this ramshackle settlement has become the closest thing to a second home. A place where the world finally stops chasing them, and they get a second chance, whether they deserve one or not. The town itself is surrounded by an old, yet incredibly sturdy mountain wall that forms a nearly perfect circle, and has a large, arcane tower that sits abandoned on the mountains at the bottom of the circle. This observatory has always had an aura of mystery, as no one has ever managed to break in, or loot it. Thus, hundreds of adventures and dozens of groups fall victim to the magical defenses this ancient fortress still boasts. Yet beneath the worn wooden floors of the houses and ice-cracked stone on the street, something far older hums through a ley line that the village unknowingly sleeps atop.

One winter night, that ancient power ruptures. An arcane engine within the old observatory seemingly detonates. At first, it only felt like the ground itself shook underneath their feet. Yet, within a moment, an impossible storm of color and sound preceded reality breaking around the town, tearing Greyharrow from its moorings. When reality returned, the Waystone Inn, its residents, and the entirety of the town find themselves now drifting through the Celestial Tides, dancing among the very stars themselves, where time and distance lose their meaning. They are unmoored, frightened, and utterly alone in a place that offers no maps, no mercy, and no promise of return.

Now the village of Greyharrow, clinging to its floating shard of earth, serves as an unwilling vessel carrying its mismatched crew across astral storms and dying worlds. Their mission is simple at first glance. Figure out how the magic of The Observatory works, figure out where they are, and figure out how to get home. Yet as this motley crew advances, they will quickly learn that something vast and alien is stirring beyond the horizon. Is it an intelligence waiting, watching, and preparing to break through? Or do the stars themselves hide horrors that are best left unspoken?

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For the setting, this will be a homebrew world. I am going to make this a fantasy story with almost every DnD fantasy race available. As long as it's in the Player's Handbook, I am good to go. The time period will be undisclosed in a sense. At most, there is a very active and alive steampunk world somewhere in the world we hail from. Things like trains, airships, and even some steam-powered carlike contraptions do exist. However, they do not exist in our corner of the frontier. Thus, your character can have experienced devices, or be able to make devices, like that but we will be without them at the start of the story. You will have agency to try and create devices that fit that setting as we advance; however, so if your character is someone who likes to create you will have that ability. Fashion is also flexible, owing to the diverse and evolving timelines our characters will come from. The basic premise of this RP is that you will play as one of the many rabblerousers who either call Greyharrow home or as an unlucky traveler caught in the chaos. Regardless of how or when you arrived, you were present in the Tavern when the observatory seemingly exploded. While the building still stands, there is no doubt that your current predicament is caused by something that happened on it's grounds. It will be up to you to discover the cause of the explosion and see if there is any way to turn this city around and head home. Whether or not that is possible needs to be discovered.

This story could be one that takes many years in the story itself, and as such, your characters are liable to age. Keep that in mind when creating characters. As well, keep in mind that I will not pull any punches. As such, your character very well might die. I am going to be open to a variety of different character concepts. If you don't know if your idea will work, you can always message me here or join (discord), and we can either talk publicly or privately! The one area I will be strict on will be face claims. The more realistic the better, but for this story, I will NOT allow for anime-themed face claims.

This will be an ever-evolving story that can change depending on where you the players take it. If you make the right choices at the right moment, you may find that the story is more optimistic. However, the inverse is also true.

RULES & NOTES

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Hider

1. First and foremost, I reserve the right to reject anyone from the RP and boot them out at any time. I hate to do this, and I will try to avoid it, but sometimes, some people are too disruptive to the RP or aren't a good fit and must be removed. 2. Please try to be respectful towards all other players. 3. This will be a homebrew creation. Thus, there will be some flexibility with the setting. 4. The tone of the RP will be relatively dark and brooding, but not edgy. It'll have plenty of dark moments and probably some pretty graphic moments - with occasional nudity. However, I like to balance this with enough humor and heartwarming moments. 5. no "wip" sheets on the OOC. Post a complete sheet, or don't post anything at all. If you need something looked over, feel free to private message me. Speaking of which, the character tab is for accepted characters only. 6. Keep in mind that your character can die. If they make the wrong move, it can result in their death, and I will not jeopardize the story to save them. 7. You're allowed to have as many characters as you can handle... don't go too crazy. I want to keep it to about two characters max per person, but if you have a good idea, I'll allow more. 8. I only describe the essential lore for character-making. That is because I like doing stuff from top-to-bottom, meaning I like to explore the crazy world in character. Please let me know if you want any details about the lore for making a character.

9. This RP will strictly be "first come, first serve." I will not reserve any /characters/roles/etc, and they will go to whoever finishes their character sheet first. If there's a conflict over it, I will decide the outcome. 10. All I ask for is one post a week. Your character will be deemed inactive if it's been a week since your last post. Please be aware that once your character has been deemed inactive, I have free reign to control them, or they can be killed off. 12. Some rules are so beaten into your head that it should be obvious. Do not break them and feign ignorance. 12. Normally I would say no to any FC that is too anime in theme. However, given that this is a fantasy RP and detailed FC's are hard to come by, I will be more lax PROVIDED it is not an actual anime image. Anime style art is potentially okay. My first character will have such a FC, and all I ask is that you try and keep it to that standard....................................................................

RESOURCES & LINKS

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Hider

RESOURCES

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Races and classes

............................................................ "So what be yer fancy? You like a sword, magic, or somethin' else."	All across the world, there are thousands of different professions, schools of magic, and fighting styles. For this RP, these will be simplified down to two key elements: your class and your subclass. A class is a broad spectrum descriptor for what your character can do. Your subclass is what tells us in detail what your character will do. For example, a cleric is a holy champion of a god or goddess who channels their power from a divine or cosmic force. A Death-Domain Cleric tells us their power comes from some form of god or goddess of the dead, and may have a focus on necrotic magic or other death-related skills. While a subclass can offer insight into who a character is, it is by no means an absolute description. A Death Domain Cleric may conjure images of an evil individual who seeks to bring death to the world, yet this is not often the case. Instead, they could be someone who honors their divine patron by visiting ancient battlefields and providing final rites to the restless dead who haunt it, providing them the ability to finally cross over. Classes, and their subclasses, are useful to tell us what your character can do, but you will always have the ability to make it your own In a traditional DnD story, we would have character sheets with stats such as strength, intelligence, wisdom, and so forth. In this story, we will not. Instead, we will work with a simplified format for spell casting and skill gain. Every magic-based class will start with two abilities, every cleric will start with one divine spell, and every martial class will start with their weapons and fighting styles. These will be up to you, though they will need to make sense for your character. Thus, we will NOT be using dice rolls, and instead work through the flow of the story.

Each class, and its subclasses, has various strengths and weaknesses that help balance them in combat encounters. This will often have a rock, paper, scissor vibe in that a knight, or paladin, could be weak when they face a true magic user like a wizard, sorcerer, or warlock. Those same magic users are weak when faced with a ranger, rogue, or other ranged sources. And those ranged classes would be weak against the armor and might of a fighter, paladin, or cleric. There’s going to be a lot of common sense when it comes to it. A heavily armored knight is likely to be hard to kill if you come at him with a pair of daggers, and a mage might be hard to pin down if you don’t have something ranged to hit them with. Again, there is no set rule for what will happen outside of common sense will prevail.

Please reference this website when you are looking for information on each class, subclass, and so on (but do exclude any of the LoTR classes). This is not a definitive list, and it is not something I am going to hold everyone to. However, it does contain a trove of information that should be helpful when creating a character.

Races

............................................................ ""Which kind of elf do you be?""	This link is going to be a useful tool for creating your character. In terms of what is and isn't allowed, I want to stick to races in the Player's Handbook for player characters. This is not a firm rule; however, it will need to be a fantastic character for me to move on with this. This is to simplify and keep a consistent theme for the characters. I will want you to maintain the aesthetic or rules that they have. Like you can be tall for a dwarf, but tall for a dwarf is still going to fall within their height range, or just a hair above. Elves will have their usual characteristic and so on, so forth

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LINKS

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Links

Spell Examples
Warlock Patrons(use this as a reference! Again, we are borrowing a lot from DnD but you can be as creative as you want with the patron)
Use this for your frontline characters. Again, feel free to be creative.
For Paladin style players. I will have you either borrow from this list or create your own, but you must create your own oath regardless.
If you are looking for information on Bards.
Wizard fans rejoice!
Sorcerer and their origins!
Cleric's have this spot here. I will have you create the god that your cleric follows. Remember, like the Warlock, a cleric may have their patron's voice in their head.
A Druid can have whatever wild shape you like, and I will give you the flexibility to create the creatures they can turn into.
If you prefer the sneakier classes, this is a good resource to use.

Camp Athens - Closed

INTERACTIONS:@Qia
Outfit

Forest stood there with a shocked expression on his face. He did not even get a moment to introduce himself and learn about these new people before an argument broke out. Forest did not pick sides, as he did not know the full story, but something deep within him made him trust the words of his new best friend over the two people he had just introduced. Forest placed the bottle of mead on the table and then put his free hands on his hips. This party sucked, and this was not just because of the party. A massive yawn escaped from Forest's lips as he leaned back into it, and he barely managed to keep the volume down. His eyes did one final scan of the party and did not spot anyone he wanted to speak to in that moment. Thus, with a sigh, he picked up the bottle of mead, pulled off the top, and left the party in the direction of his cabin.

As Forest walked along the path, he found a moment to reflect on the day in between sips of his mead, from the crazy mix-up at the airport to the taxi driver who was far too friendly, and then meeting his new best friend and sharing a nice conversation with him. While the memory of the bartop show still tried to creep into his mind, the thoughts of the end of the party and the mead did well to hold them off. He made a mental note that he would need to check in with Elias in the morning to ensure he was doing all right. Forest brought his mead to his eye level and saw that he was almost halfway through the bottle. His eyes drifted ahead and saw his cabin fast approaching. He knew he needed sleep, and fast, and he knew that he couldn’t be too hungover in the morning. Thus, he decided to only drink half of what was left and save the rest for the evening tomorrow. With a quick swing, Forest gulped down the alcohol until he arrived at the door and went inside.

Forest quickly changed out of his party fit and simply strolled through his cabin in his boxers. He had a toothbrush in his mouth and his hair slicked back and wet. He strolled from the dedicated bedroom to the living room and placed a hand on his hip as he returned to attacking he bottom right quadrant of his teeth. He was a little drunk at this point but he wanted to try and reflect on what he could expect tomorrow. Would there be any sort of godly training? His command over his power was strong, but not complete, and he wanted to begin to master it. As well, he knew he would need to train his mind and his body if he wanted to remain strong. From the perverts on the bartop to the explosive argument over dancing, this group was already proving to be children in the bodies of adults. They would need an adult in the room.

And Forest would be that adult.

Camp Athens - Closed

INTERACTIONS:@Qia@Mjolnir
Outfit

“It’s, uh… about to be the new year. First one at camp and all that for me. So… food some other time, maybe? Deal?”

Idris offered a warm smile in return. “Deal.” While part of him was happy that he wouldn’t need to go through the whole process of preparing, cooking, eating, and then cleaning all this late at night, he knew that if he weren’t here, he would be doing that anyway back home and opening the shop. Part of him had wanted to go through those motions to try to ground him in this new reality. This did not hurt his feelings, and he knew that he was just homesick despite the short time away. He would cook for Rae one day, and for tonight, that was enough to help.

"Yeah, I appreciate the offer, man but I have an angry girlfriend and I haven’t decided if I’m going to risk going back to the party or hide in my cabin. Don’t stay up too late. Wouldn’t be surprised if there’s training tomorrow."

Idris’s right eyebrow twitched violently for half a second at the mention of training. It wasn’t because he hated the idea of a day of training, or the prospect of learning more about his ability. He was here, after all, and he was fully prepared to do what he needed to do to ensure his mother had the best retirement gift Idris could give her. What made him upset, internally at least, was the prospect of doing a full day of training tomorrow morning after waking up only a few hours ago back in Canada. He knew that there was not going to be a way for him to fall asleep tonight. Not only was he in a completely different country, in a completely different timezone, but he had also gotten a full night's sleep the night before and thus was completely awake. Sure. Idris knew he could down drink, after drink, to force the issue, yet that ran the risk of having a karaoke party in his cabin until the first dawn, and he would rather not show up to the first day drunk or hungover. Thus, he was not going to go to bed tonight because there was no point in that action. While it was approaching midnight here, his body felt like it was still early morning back home. Whatever time training was tomorrow would be like a late afternoon workout, and he should still feel rested, even if his body was out of sync with the time. “I did just wake up a few hours ago, so I should be fine. Thank you both again, I hope to catch y’all in the morning!”

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A few hours had passed since the fireworks went off, and the campground became a battleground of celebration. The new year had officially started, and Idris felt disconnected from himself. He had found a clock on the wall earlier, and he turned his head, seeing that it said it was only two in the morning, yet his body felt like it was still the early afternoon back home. His head leaned back as his eyes scanned the ceiling above him. Normally, by this time, he would have traded places with his mother at the restaurant, allowing her to solely run the cooking in the back while he handled the register and the coffee machines up front. It would have been a slow day; it was always slow the days before the holidays, but his mother insisted it was better to be open in case someone in need came in than to close up shop for the day. Still, the occasional fisherman or trucker would come in, order something, and have Idris make either their famous Chai or a boring coffee and converse for the hour or two they would be inside. At five, they would bid adieu to the patrons and close up the shop, but not before helping clean every inch of the place down to ensure the restaurant itself was ready to welcome the new year. At eight, they would arrive back at his mother's house, and the two would work in tandem to create a nice dinner for the two, and then they’d wait for the fireworks show to begin.

Two in the morning here, likely two in the afternoon back home. His stomach rumbled.

Idris placed a hand over his stomach as he leaned forward off the back of the couch and towards the center of the bedroom. His eyes darted to the surprisingly stocked shelf filled with books to his left, before they shifted down to the ‘Neuromancer’ book in his hand. While this cabin had been stocked with everything he could need, there seemed to be a distinct lack of devices that could connect to the outside world. Thus, whoever had designed this cabin elected to provide him with this old-fashioned form of entertainment. His stomach growled. Had he worked up an appetite reading some hard-to-understand fiction? Idris closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath. The cabin itself was filled with a faint scent of cedar and something warm and golden. While he could not place the smell, he did enjoy it all the same. A decision was made in that moment, and Idris’s eyes shot back open. They searched for a brief moment before they located their target, a bookmark that was sadly shaped like an arrow, and marked the page with it before he closed it, and placed it down next to him on the couch. He stood up and stretched, looking at the clock on the wall, which was opposite the bed itself.

It was two-thirteen in the morning, and it was time for Idris to make an early dinner.

Camp Athens - Closed

INTERACTIONS:@Qia@Mjolnir
Outfit

"Appreciate it, man. But I’ll let you get settled for a day or two before you wine and dine me," Idris did a soft smirk even as his eyes remained relatively neutral. Idris knew that, unless he did something to help in the future, he would not get to experience his cooking unless he came to the restaurant and ordered it there. Still, it was not like Idris needed to tell Wes that at this time. He could come to learn regret over that loss on his own. "Food bribes already? Guess camp etiquette’s not so different from college." Idris smirked, and this times his eyes betrayed a little more sparkle than when he smirked at Wes. Food bribes were one of the few things he could use to get something he wanted in school. That, and the promise of going to a party. Still, he always loved to cook for others, and college was one of the easiest places he could do that without expectations. "Lewski on the other hand…"

“I don’t like the word ‘bribe’, I just like to cook for others!” Idris paused as he followed Rae’s lead down towards his cabin.

"I’m not gonna say no to a kitchen. Half the reason I survived finals was because my roommate knew how to cook. But maybe we should see what our cabins actually look like before planning anything. For all I know, mine really will be that mini-fridge full of ice cream… and some leftover pizza at best."

Idris squinted ever so slightly at the words that came out of her mouth. Left over pizza and ice cream? While some might call that the breakfast of champions, Idris would call it a cry for help. If Rae was subjected to that terror, he would at least offer her the occasional treat if he could help it.

"So… you’ve got a lot of experience in the kitchen, I take it?"

“You could say that,” Idris took a second to think. How much did he want to reveal about his backstory? Would that be something the other godly children would exploit? Idris decided that this woman was kind enough to help him pick out a cabin and was skilled enough to pronounce his full name almost entirely correctly. “I practically grew up in my mom’s restaurant back in Halifax, and I fell in love with the craft! She taught me everything she knew, and I worked most nights back there with her until I went off to college. In the end I did come back and was actually preparing to open the restaurant for the breakfast crowd when dad showed up and sent me here, Idris looked over towards Rae, “kinda a dick move if you ask me but it was my first interaction with any god so I don’t know if that is typical of a God, or if it is just him.

Idris was about to return the question back on Rae when he caught sight of his cabin and stopped in his tracks. He gripped his bag a little tighter as a sudden wave of unease washed over him. While his face did not change and betray the cool, calm demeanor he presented, Idris was quickly becoming overwhelmed by the events that led up to it. He would need some time later for some self care, and he hoped that his perfect cabin had a TV that would allow him to watch some terrible comedies to help ground him back in the moment. “Well, my cabin is your cabin, let’s see if the gods know what I like,” Idris chuckled as he led the way towards the door. As long as it had a TV, a workout space, a nice kitchen, and a comfy bed that would be enough. There was absolutely nothing else he would want or need in his perfect cabin.

Idris turned the door handle and pulled the door outwards. Once he had enough room, he stepped inside and looked around for a light switch. Once he found it he stepped to the side to allow the others to follow him in. As he flicked it, he was pleasantly surprised by the warm lighting found inside. His eyes instantly caught the rather large kitchen to the right and a large smile crossed his face. Idris counted two separate stoves, each with two burners each side by side. One of the stoves had a grill top, and the other had a griddle. Each had a rather large oven underneath that should be more than enough space for him to cook a large meal at a moment's notice. His eyes slowly rose upward and saw the large vent hood over the top that would make keeping the cabin clear of smoke easy. There were two refrigerators, each one on the outside of one of the stoves, and next to them, various cabinets filled the space between them and the wall. And in the island between the kitchen setup and the entrance to the cabin was a large granite island, complete with a sink right in the center. There were barstools on one side of it, and the other side offered a lot of free space for Idris to move while cooking. Idris let his bag slide off his shoulder and he gently placed it on the ground as he walked towards the kitchen, set with a smile on his face. Yet, in the perfectly polished and mirror-like finish of the first fridge, he spotted something truly horrific.

Idris slowly turned his body and saw that on the other side of the cabin, there was a large stage with flashing, colorful lights that bordered the edge of it. Near the front of the stage, centered perfectly, was a mic stand with a wireless microphone attached at the top. There was a large screen behind it that Idris knew, even with it turned off, was meant to display the lyrics of a song that one might sing. Next to this grotesque home karaoke bar setup were two large display cases filled to the brim with every last medal, trophy, and award Idris had won in archery, football, and basketball. There were even photos of Idris as an athlete, newspaper clippings, and even the specific arrows that won the competitions that were framed as if they were award-worthy on their own. While there was a comfortable-looking couch on the opposite wall of the front door, and a TV hanging on the wall, he could not keep looking at the damned Karaoke set.

Idris now knew his dad was truly an asshole.

Idris’s right eye twitched at the display. He knew he couldn’t stop the others from seeing that, but he could do his best to redirect any conversation that would come from it. He turned back around and walked towards the first fridge and opened it, and a sigh of relief escaped his lips. There was meat, vegetables, and everything else he would need to cook. He assumed the pots and pans were under the island, and any and all spices would be in one of the many cabinets. He turned around and faced Rae and Wes, forcing a smile across his face as he did.

“It looks like I should be able to cook something from the restaurant!

Recollections: Linebreaker

The rank stench coming out of a bar covered in sweat, spilled beer, and lost dreams did little to dissuade Amanda as she stepped out of the Uber and began to walk towards her date with destiny.

Destiny was the name of a tall, muscular woman Amanda had matched with on one of the several dating apps she used. The two had been talking for a couple of weeks, and, thus far, Destiny had passed the ‘will not murder me in all likelihood test’ that Amanda gave every prospective partner before meeting, and this meant that Amanda was more than happy to travel to the wrong side of town, at the wrong hour, to meet the right woman. Her eyes flicked to the driver, who had a look of concern etched across his face as he pleaded with unspoken words once more for her to reconsider her actions and leave this place once and for all, never to return. Yet Amanda would not be turned away at the finish line. If Destiny brought her to this crappy bar, then who was Amanda to deny her that? Besides, she did not tell any of her friends where she was going tonight, so there was little chance that she could be interrupted here of all places. Besides, Amanda paused the thought as she looked down at the black dress she was wearing; she was dressed up for a good time.

Amanda turned her head away from the driver, but stopped in her tracks as she finally took in the scenery around her. The front of the bar was littered with litter, from the broken bottles of beer to the numerous discarded cigarette butts. Mixed in with the trash were several visible wrappers from fast-food burgers, a random shoe, and several scratch-off lottery tickets that had not hit it big. Amanda raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t the worst exterior for a bar that she had seen. Hell, back home, there was a dive bar called The Bar, which had people actively overdosing outside its doors. In comparison, this was fancy. Her eyes shifted from the trash and towards the front door. It was open, and Amanda could see the interior of the door was padded with a black material to dampen the sound, what good it did with the door open however, as Amanda felt each kick of the bass as the electronic club music played from within. There was a tall, strong-looking bouncer at the front door with his hands together and resting right in front of his hips, with both feet shoulder-length apart. He wore sunglasses even though it was dark, and the twisted cable of an earpiece snaked down the side of his head. Amanda walked towards the door with a smile on her face.

Even through the sunglasses and stone-cold facade of a face, Amanda could see the bouncer adopt a look of concern for her, and he reached out with the palm of his hand to block her path. Yet Amanda could only look on in horror as his hand began to stretch towards her direction. It grew closer, and closer, and closer still, accelerating each second until she stepped out of the way and watched as it began to stretch into the distance. Amanda followed it as best she could. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see the building, the other people, and even the trash begin to stretch in this fashion. Each stretching towards a single point, an impossible distance away, and soon everything began to be pulled towards this singularity, including Amanda. She tried to dig her feet into the ground to stop it, but soon even she was caught, and she felt herself pulled into the unknown.

---

After a second had passed that felt like an eternity, Amanda opened her eyes and her body lurched upwards. Her breathing was coarse, and it felt like an impossible weight had only just been lifted off her chest. Her eyes were wide, bloodshot, and a trickle of blood flowed from her nose. Amanda looked down at her hands, which shook with a violent twitch. She chuckled. It was no longer being pulled into an impossibly long shape. It was back to normal. Even as the others around her began to talk, she could not take her focus off her hands. That was, until a sharp pain accompanied her breath and she realized that he body may be in a rough state.

Her trembling hands quickly patted her chest, and she winced in pain as they touched a spot underneath the bottom of her breasts and across her chest. It felt like someone had kicked or hit her across the room, and she may require a hospital. How the fuck did she get hurt? The last thing she remembered was the bouncer reaching to stop her, and the next thing she knew, she was in the middle of a strange place, surrounded by strange people. Her eyes drifted as she tried to look at who was here, but they could not move past the flattened creature on the floor.

“What the fuck,” Amanda paused as she scurried backwards through the pain. As she did, she became acutely aware of a bag that was suddenly on her hip. She looked down and saw that the black dress she was in was gone. Instead, she was in a striped multi-color sweater and beige khaki’s. She did not know how her clothes had been changed, nor whose bag it was, but she needed something to quiet the growing panic in her mind. She reached into the bag, fumbled around until she found a figit cube and a deck of cards, and began to play with the cube in one hand while she gripped the deck of cards tightly in the other.

As the sound of something wet slopping about down the hall hit her ears, Amanda forced herself to her feet and turned her head in horror towards the source. If there was a dead shark monster here, what was the likelihood that they were about to meet what killed it? A panic swept through her body. Her breathing became faster and sharper, even with the pain. She could hear her heart beating like a drum in her ears. Her face flashed hot, and a cold sweat began to drip from her forehead. Her vision got narrow and fuzzy, as every sound became almost overwhelming. Eventually, this panic exploded outwards. “Where the fuck are we, what the fuck is going on, and why the fuck is there a dead fish fuck on the ground and why the fuck does it sound like whatever killed it is coming back for more?”

Camp Athens - Closed

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Collab:@PatientBean
”…my place is just down the path..”
Outfit

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^{#de9b8f ....|..... outfit .....|..... party}

"Well, I for one am glad you did. It doesn't seem like it's going to be boring here, if that was any indication. I'm no prude, but I think fun times like that should be...intimate. Don't you think love?"

Lily grinned. She knew that a more intimate experience was always preferred. How else could she have such close contact to learn every curve of a body? “I couldn’t have said it better it I tried,” Lily paused as her eyes wandered once again. On second thought, she wouldn’t even need an ulterior motive. She just wanted fun times that were kept intimate. "I could use a drink after that show. The thirst is real. Where did you say you got it from? Perhaps you can lead me there?" Lily grinned as she stood up.

"Far be it from me to rebuke an expert. Careful, now. It's strong. You seem fun, Lily. I'm sure we'll see each other tomorrow."

“Well, Azariah,” Lily said as she used her one hand to grab the bottle he pushed towards her, “I aim to be,” she paused as she grabbed the outstretched hand, “catch you around,” she paused as she gave the woman her complete, undivided attention. She held the bottle up, and smiled. “Shall we find a quiet…intimate spot to finish this,” she paused as she looked towards the Boy Scout remaining stash of alcohol. She counted three more bottles. She was sure he wouldn’t mind a few more going missing. Lily motioned for Chariselle to follow her lead.

Chariselle tossed her hair over her shoulder as she gave Azariah a parting wink and blew a kiss. She allowed Lily to lead her wherever she intended to go. While Chariselle wouldn’t have minded putting on a show, she didn’t want to follow that act. It would look like she was copying them and Chariselle was 100% original baby! She would show Lily that, if it led in that direction.

”Of course, love. Intimate settings are where the best things happen to lucky boys and girls.” The purr on her lips beckoned to unleash, but she withheld. Let it be a game of sorts. She liked games. Especially when she won.

And she fully intended to win.

Lily grinned, tilting her head down and to the outside as she did. From the corner of her eye she kept her eyes on the prize as she navigated out of the bar. “I know the perfect place then,” Lily paused as she knew she needed to play this as cool as possible. Still, it couldn’t hurt to kill two birds with one stone with this adventure. Lily knew this form, this heavenly sight, the most beautiful woman Lily had seen in far too long, would prove useful in the coming days, weeks, and beyond. She just needed to be sure she explored every last inch and commit the sights to memory. They were well on their way to the first of hopefully many study sessions already. Thus, she needed to also talk to learn her voice.

“So. Would I be too forward if I asked which godly parent you come from,” Lily paused, letting the question linger in the air for a second, before she raised up their drinking options “I don’t know if I have a sibling here after all.”

”I would have figured it was obvious, but my mother is Aphrodite. Inherited all her good traits, I think. I’d be happy to show you more.” Chariselle figured there would be people here immune to her aura, as it were. ”What about yours? I’m sure they are very interesting.”

“That explains you’re so hard to look away from,” Lily added with a grin, “of course the goddess of beauty would have a child that lived up to her image,” Lily paused as she looked ahead. She wondered if her charm was just because she was just hot, or if there was a perk to being the daughter of Aphrodite? “I know you’re stunning all by yourself, but what can you do,” Lily paused as she turned around and walked backwards facing Chariselle. She turned her head to the side and summoned a clone, Lily and the clone looked at each other for a second before their heads turned as one facing towards Chariselle with a grin. While she kept the clone in her peripheral vision she very much kept her eyes on the prizes. “I’m a daughter of Apate,” Lily spoke from the clone, “so I can do stuff like this,” Lily’s voice started with the clone and finished back with her.

Chariselle looked from one Lily to the other, a smile creeping on her own lips. ”Well, well, aren’t you full of surprises. I imagine that skill can be very handy in all sorts of situations. I know I just thought of about 50 off the top of my head. 45 of them are in the bedroom.” Chariselle couldn’t tell the difference, which meant Lily’s skill in this was top-notch.

”Oh, let’s see. I can control feelings of love and, by extension, hate to an extent. I can also change my own appearance, though I don’t often do that if I can help it even though it has gotten me out of a few touchy situations. I can also charm people through my looks and words. It’s why my tongue is the most dangerous part of my body,” Chariselle stated, licking her lips almost in anticipation.

Lily pondered trying out her voice for a moment. Whisper those sweet words that she spoke right back into her ear. Yet Lily knew there was a difference between innocent reveals and deeper dives. Chariselle had earned a small show thus far, maybe she’d be the first here to learn how far she could take her ability. Still, Lily was hoping there was more than one meaning to her comment about the tounge.

“I had hoped you’d say that,” Lily whispered, projecting her voice to appear as if it was coming from right behind Chariselle. “I can’t say I’ve ever had the pleasure of using my clone for anything in the bedroom,” Lily paused as she stopped moving, looking at the clone and examined her face in detail, almost fawning over herself as she did. The two Lily’s turned back towards their target with a sly grin across their faces. “Out of the forty five, what is your favorite one?”

”Now, now, a girl doesn’t kiss and tell. At least, not without some incentive.” Would Chariselle have sex with herself? I mean wasn’t that just one step away from masturbation? ”What’s the most fun you’ve had with your clone? And yes, I mean outside of the bedroom.”

Incentive? Well now, that would be something that Lily would need. The question became "what did a woman who had everything want,” and Lily would figure out the answer before long. “Don’t judge me for this but we had a wicked bad bullying problem back in High School. I would use my clones to make these guys think they were going crazy. They’d see my clones walk through doors, walls,” Lily paused, knowing full well the clones often had the bullies faces on them, “kid ended up committed because he thought he was going crazy,” Lily paused again, knowing he was committed because he put a gun in his mouth in front of his parents, and pulled the trigger without realizing the safety was still on.

“I also,” Lily spoke from a clone, “liked to pretend I had a twin,” Lily finished from her own mouth.

Chariselle was…well astounded felt like the right word. By all definitions she was a bully in high school. Though she never dealt with the consequences of it. Hell, she got two teachers fired and a few students sent to different schools. One of whom went to become a nun. ”Well, I can hardly blame you for that. Sometimes people deserve the consequences of their actions. I know a few people back home who deserve that and more, but it’s not like I can clone myself and cause mischief. Though I have been known to sew the seeds of chaos now and then. Life gets boring when you are given what you want all of the time.”

Chariselle kept it at that. She needed to keep a few things close to her chest, after all. She liked Lily, but she liked herself and her secrets more.

“It’s also fun, so,” Lily paused as she grinned, “I can’t say I did it out of the kindness of my heart.” Lily led the two further down the dark, windy, path to the west of the main field before turning south along the path. She didn’t know how much she could reveal to this stranger, however, she had never showed off before directly. “There is one more thing I can kind of do, I don’t have a good control over it yet,” Lily paused, letting the lie sit in the air, “If you promise not to judge I could show you.”

Chariselle thought about it. Did she fully trust this person? No. Did she really care? Also no. ”Only if you want to. Consent is hot.” Chariselle joked, but truthfully, she was curious what Lily could do. All of it would be added to her book later anyway. May as well see the potential in her potential ally.

“Yes I agree,” Lily paused as she channeled her magic, and summoned a replication of Chariselle’s voice, “consent is hot,” her voice started as Lily but quickly changed to mimic Chariselle. While it still was a blend of the two voices, Chariselle’s tone cut through Lily’s as if it was a hot knife through butter. “my place is just around the corner. Want to come in and have that drink?”

Chariselle was impressed. Lily was someone who could cause a slew of trouble if left to her own devices and Chariselle didn’t mind that. She just wanted her pointed in a different direction. ”Lead the way, gorgeous, and continue saying pretty things to me in that voice. It does something to me.”

“As you wish,” Lily spoke in a voice that was even closer to Chariselle, before she offered a warm, genuine smile in response as she led the duo around the final bend arriving at the front door to her new cabin. Lily quickly turned around and put her back towards the front door. Lily put both arms behind her back as she took a playful step towards Chariselle and stopped just outside her personal bubble. As Lily bit her lip, she leaned into the bubble ever so gently and maintained eye contact, breaking it every so often to stare at Chariselle’s ever so inviting lips. “Let’s get your pretty face inside. I don’t feel like sharing it with the world right now.”

Chariselle followed, eager to see what performance she was about to be treated to. Wicked words tasted to sweet so she could only imagine what the lips that spoke them was flavored with.

Camp Athens - Closed

INTERACTIONS:@Qia
Outfit

“I can introduce you if you want. Might have to earn your keep, though. She's big on dancing... obviously. So, don't be shocked if you're dragged into some spin or two.”

Forest thought long and hard about the proposition. On one hand, he was no stranger to dancing. While the form of it was much different, he at least knew his right foot from the left. Growing up in rural Ohio meant he was sheltered from many different kinds of music, but swing and country music, and the dances one could do to them, were a common experience for Forest. With the current music, if he was forced into a dance, he would be able to not make a fool of himself but he would prefer to figure out a change of pace if possible first.

“Well I can’t say I would be opposed to paying the dancing tax,” Forest grinned as he placed a heavy hand down on Elias’s shoulder and chuckled, “though I would be better if the music had a bit more of a swing to it but if the worst comes to pass I can make do,” Forest paused as he gave his new best friend a strong pat on the shoulder. Elias did not know it yet, but Forest was already spreading the deep root of his friendship and it would be very hard to uproot him from here on out. Forest did not know much of the other gods, their children, but if there was one thing that he knew it was that no matter what it was good to experience the unknown at the side of a capable friend.

“I think the greener pastures are worth the risk of a few spins that your friend might produce,” Forest looked towards the woman Elias mentioned and tried to see if he could spot her on vibes alone, but decided best to let Elias introduce them. “Take the lead, Elias, and we’ll see how it goes.” Forest chuckled as he pulled his hand off the shoulder of Elias and took a healthy swig from his drink. Regardless of everything else he would want to ensure he had a decent buzz just in case he had to pay the tax. In his mind he knew that the worst case scenario was that he had to dance with a pretty person to get some herbs and spices in his life for the night. If their greenhouse was any good he would want to get on their good side regardless. While he could make anything grow anywhere, a greenhouse would be fantastic. He was curious why he wasn’t given one with his cabin, but the only thing that sprung to mind was god fuckery.

INTERACTIONS:@Qia@Mjolnir
Outfit

A sudden jab of a finger in his direction was all it took for Idris to place a hand on his chest and gasp softly as he first thought he was about to be the target of harassment but sighed as it was just Rae being excitable and using the dramatic motion to make her point. Idris grinned softly in amusement at the panic she displayed. It became increasingly obvious to Idris that these two shared some history, though what that history was was up in the air. Was it unrequited love? Or was it something more casual like a friendship that wanted to be more? It wasn’t for Idris to guess but he simply straightened his back and listened in. He wondered if gossip would be prevalent in this camp, and he knew that if it was he would want to be at the center of it.

“See? That’s a question I can’t answer, but you can. Think, Wesley! What if another question comes up that I don’t know?”

Idris’s eyes remained as they were. He knew that she brought up a good point. While the map was good, it would not come with the answers a true vet of the camp could provide. Idris looked up and to the side for a brief moment. Why didn't his camp come with some form of a welcome crew, or at least an information brochure? Ask the brochure a question, and the magic gets you the answer. Otherwise it felt like the camp was designed to confuse at first.

"Alright, if it’ll help you not freak out, I’ll help you guys find your cabins. Camp really isn’t that complicated."

Idris’s eyes shot over as he placed a hand on his hip. Not that complicated? There were gods, children of gods, it was warm in the middle of a cold winter with snow still on the ground. How was that simple? His eyes darted back to Rae for a brief moment before they returned back to Wes. Idris’s eyes demanded explanation.

"The cabins are all furnished. Weird camp magic I can’t explain, but they’re always outfitted to suit their owner. Everything you would want should be inside… Unless the Gods are being dicks or something. It’s possible."

Idris’s eyes went wide at the final statement. His father was a dick. Apollo was many things and a good dad was not one of them. How could someone so strong and powerful not have the faintest ideas what his kid wanted, or was like? He hoped to all the other gods and goddesses that there was something else that picked out their cabins instead of his father.

"Um. Your cabin is pretty close," Idris sighed. He would figure out the answer before long. "Rae, yours isn’t far down that path."” Idris watched in horror as he pointed down the path past his own home. On one hand, they did not have to come in, but on the other if there was any food or snacks inside his mother would find a way to smack him if he did not at least offer a quick bite to these people who were helping him. He would need to cross that bridge when they got to it.

"Alright, Lewski. Lead the way."

Idris sighed as he looked at Wes and then back to Rae. “You said the cabins come complete with everything we want. I know I would want a full kitchen to cook in, and food to cook," Idris paused as he knew he would need to rip this bandaid off now and get it over with, “if I have the food I have to offer you something to eat to thank both of you properly for helping." He finished the statement and waited with bated breath. Both for their response, and for their anxious leader to take the first step towards the future.

The Season of the Enlightened

“How did you know that,” Agatha asked again, though this time her tone was firm. Her heavy hands slammed down onto the bar, knocking over a glass as she did, sending it crashing to the ground below, and filling the air with its shattering sound.

Elsabeth quickly scanned the room to see if anyone was paying too close attention to her conversation, and sighed as it seemed to be safe still. The only client in the tavern was still fast asleep in the corner. ”I am what is known as a spirit medium,” Elsabeth paused as she took in a deep breath, looking towards Joseph who had proceeded to start crying. It wasn’t the wailing, but it was loud and distracting. Elsabeth needed it to stop. She raised up a single hand until it was on level with his face and snapped her finger. The sound seemed to stir him from his cries and focus his attention on her.

“That’s not an answer. I don’t believe in that, my Joseph was a good man. An honest man. A man of God. If he’s anywhere he’s with the lord now.”

”As many would think.” Elsabeth turned to Joseph with an empty face. ”I will ask you a series of questions. It is important that you give me a clear, concise, answer. Understood?”

“Are you already drunk,” Agatha asked.

“I-I-I understand,” Joseph responded.

”Tell me about how you first met your wife,” Elsabeth asked as she kept her gaze on the ghastly figure.

“I met her when I-I was seven.”

”You met him when he was seven,” Elsabeth repeated. Her eyes drifted towards Agatha and saw only rage on her face.

“I was a-a-a farmers son, and I was out working the fields. I was too weak to help farm so I was tasked with chasing-chasing the black birds. She came running through the fields screaming that she was being chased by a bad man..”

”He was too young to help with the farming so he was tasked with chasing the crows. You came running through the farm as you were being chased by a bad man,” Elsabeth narrowed her eyes as the anger seemed to only grow in Agatha. It must’ve been a story that was told before and someone could know this. ” Joseph, it seems you’ve told the story of your first meeting many times before. Was there any aspect of it that neither of you have shared before,” Elsabeth kept her eyes locked on Agatha in case she needed to run.

“Ye-yes, yes there is one part. She was running through our farm not because she was running from a bad man, she was running from the watchmen.”

”You would later tell him that you were being chased by the watch,” Elsabeth paused as she watched the anger on Agatha’s face melt to shock.

“Agatha had stolen a bag full of food from the market.”

Elsabeth did another scan of the tavern before she continued. Again, the drunkard in the corner contributed his snoring to the conversation. ” You had taken a bag of food.”

“Her family was starving and were without coin.”

”You did it to help your starving family.”

“It’s why to this day she gives out free meals to those in need”

”This shame is why you give away food to those who need it.”

“To both help people who are going through the same situation, and to try and clear-clear her sin.”

”And it’s all because you don’t want others to commit the very same sin you committed.” Agatha recoiled back, taking three steps as she did until her back was slammed into the wall. Her jaw was tense, her eyes darted, and her hand slowly rose to cover her mouth. Elsabeth knew that she had an in. ”Thank you Joseph,” Elsabeth paused as she looked back to the man and offered a warm smile before returning to Agatha with the same one. ”Sudden, and tragic, loss of one’s life can lead to their spirit being trapped in the mortal realm. I am someone who specializes in helping those trapped here to reach the other side.”

“I don’t want to go,” Joseph spat out.

“What if I don’t let you help him move on,” Agatha asked soon after.

”Things will be the way they are right now. The only difference is now you know,” Elsabeth paused as she sighed, ”but I want you both to think of what will happen from here. You won’t be able to see each other, hold each other, comfort each other,” Elsabeth paused as she let the words hang, ” That alone is a curse. As well, the longer Joseph lingers the more emotion, personality, and everything else that makes him, well, himself will be slowly eroded. He’ll become more cold, confused, angry,” she closed her eyes as she took a deep breath in, and then loudly out.

”Pray tell, have you heard mention of something known as a poltergeist?

“No,” Agatha softly responded.

“Don’t they live near Spain?” Joseph asked in return.

”A poltergeist is,” Elsabeth paused as her head shot over to Joseph. Her eyes remained fixated on the man, a single eyebrow raised at the comment. ”A spirit who has remained too long and is considered noisy. You can see it with the tankards. Joseph is already considered such a spirit. Eventually, he’ll get louder and louder, and louder still. When you’re gone, Agatha, how loud do you think he’ll get? If you don’t pay enough attention to him, how many knives could he throw? When his memory becomes fragmented and things change, how many people can be affected?”

Elsabeth paused as she looked back at Agatha. ” While it may seem like a blessing now, it’ll quickly turn into a curse. One that you will be powerless to dispel.”

Agatha pushed off the wall, her eyes scanning where Elsabeth had been looking and strained as if she could will her eyes alone. Yet Elsabeth could tell that her words had moved the woman enough, even if she could tell by his energy that Joseph would be harder to convince.

“What would you need in return,” Agatha asked as a few tears began to steam down her cheek.

”Room and board, meals, and patience,” she responded bluntly, ”I will not need to pay, but I will need time. I need to get to know Joseph, his story from his mind, and what keeps him here,” she paused as she looked back to Joseph who had continued to yell ‘NO’ at her, ”I don’t think he’ll be very forthcoming at first.”

“You can have the room for a week, but I’ll still charge you for food,” Agatha paused as she stifled a cry, “after that you’ll be on your way. Agreed?”

”You have a deal.”

In the corner, the Old Drunkard opened one eye as he continued faking a snore. A slight grin spread across his face.

Recollections: Primal Sinister

Thursday, November 24th - The Hollow: 16:15

Freya slipped away from Gideon and into the crowd. Her hand shot to her chest, gripping it tightly, as she began to take shallow and uneven breaths. It was not everyday one was threatened by the most powerful person in the lower wards, and Freya suddenly realized how bad an idea this whole ordeal was.

And she knew she was now stuck with it.

Freya could not leave, she could only focus on not being killed. Gideon made the rules of the night very clear after all. Thus, she simply sunk into the long line for food and kept her head down. She assumed that several people had already recognized her, and several more knew she was here. Thus, Freya decided to keep her head down low and keep quiet to avoid any further problems.

“So, you’re Freya Collins.”

Freya gasped as her back straightened and her eyes went wide. They slowly drifted until they spotted a woman standing next to her. She had a sports jacket of some kind. She exhaled and looked around, spotting several angry eyes looking straight into hers. Shit. Freya returned her gaze towards the woman with malice. “Thanks for that.”

“Oh you’re welcome! It’s not everyday you meet a celebrity like you,” Seren grinned as they cut in front of Freya and moved down the line towards the food. The bar top was serving as the makeshift food line, with volunteers and gang members alike helping to pass out the food. There were various devices used to hold, and heat the food sitting behind the bar that were constantly replaced with fresh food from the kitchen that was hidden behind the back wall. “Dude, you’re an idiot. The fuck your think would happen by coming here?”

“I don’t need lectured by a-,”

“A what? Dude I’m not even from around here,” they paused as they grabbed an empty plate and held it up, out soon found a helping of potatoes plopped onto it, “and you don’t know me, you don’t have any friends, and I’d be surprised if you made any here.”

A scowl crossed Freya’s face. Was she so predictable? Still, she just needed to blend in long enough to find a way out. She grabbed a plate and held it up like Seren. While Freya was annoyed by this person they were at least thankful that someone was showing her how these low class functions functioned. “That’s not what I meant,” Freya tried to deflect.

Seren turned back to face Freya and narrowed their eyes. They used their eyes to direct Freya’s behind the counter. The helper simply stared at Freya, with a scoop of potatoes hanging just out of reach. “That’s what they heard,” Seren grinned as the worker slowly released the food onto the edge of the plate, causing half the food to fall off.

“I guess I’m just a dumb southerner who doesn't know how to work tools well,” the man spoke slowly and deliberately as he pointed towards the wooden scoop. The line pushed into Freya and moved her down.

“So fucking dumb coming here,” Seren repeated.

Freya looked back with a hint of malice in their eyes but it quickly left as she saw the tall muscular man with a scarred face. She quickly moved closer to Seren. “I had to do something,” she whispered. Ahead Seren held up their plate and got a healthy helping of stuffing and a few slices of turkey, both dark and white meat. Freya followed suit and held up their plate. The large woman behind the counter crossed her arms as she shook her head. She quickly pulled a hand free and used a scoop to grab some stuffing and practically threw the food onto the plate, combining with the potatoes and sending some onto Freya’s clothes. She grabbed a couple slices of turkey, splashing the juices into Freya’s face.

“If it wasn’t Thanksgiving I’d tell you what I think, but it is and there’s children around,” the woman growled.

“Sorr-,” Freya was cut off by the line moving forward. She pulled the plate down and kept her eyes down as she felt tears welling. She kept shuffling, holding back tears as she did, until a plastic wrapped utensil package entered her vision from ahead. She looked up and saw that Seren was holding it out for her.

“Just eat your food without causing a scene. I doubt you’re in any actual danger, they’re just trying to teach you a lesson I reckon,” Seren said honestly. If this crew was going to do something they wouldn’t have let her mingle, she’d just be taken away.

Freya nodded her head and took the plastic cutlery, mouthed a thank you, and walked over to an empty table and sat down.

Why did she even come here?

---

Gideon watched Freya slink off into the crowd. A grin spread across his face as he enjoyed the pain he caused as the knife he twisted stung deep. Freya had long since been one of his targets, both because of what she believed and what her father had planned so it was only natural that he’d enjoy the fruit from his labor. This would prove to be the first of many such strikes across the river, each one targeting a different, powerful, and influential leader. Gideon had paid good money for access to a lot of filth, and it was all going to start coming out. The corruption, the experimentation, the Freak World files, and even the plans that many had to pave over the lower wards. A lot of compromising material, a lot of targets on his back.

He needed to be smart.

If anyone got word of his trove he’d feel a wrath fall down on him unlike any struggle before. There wouldn’t be enough money to bribe the police, the PRA, FBI, and beyond. He didn’t have enough soldiers to withstand the eventual assault. There was nothing good that would come from him overpaying his hand, so he needed to be careful and slow roll his reveal. Gideon turned his head back to the door and spotted the face of a stranger ready to come inside for dinner. Gideon flashed his trademarked smile, and the young woman would feel the warmth of his personality radiating off it.

As the line moved forward he eventually came face to face with a woman who straightened her spine and revealed the presence of two jars filled with some form of herbs. Gideon raised an eyebrow.

“Herbal blends. For the kitchen. My mom sent me with them. She runs La Botica Verde over on Calle Flores. Says they’ll cut right through the grease.”

Gideon chuckled.

“You’re not the, uhhhh, give me a second,” Gideon paused as he clicked his fingers together, trying to work through the decades of memories on this side of the river, eventually a last name flashed across his mind, “the Castellano kid,” Gideon smiled as he placed a hand on her shoulder. An image of her mother flashed across his mind, the resemblance confirming it enough. “Yes you are! I wondered why you looked so familiar,” Gideon had made it a point to build up at least some semblance of a rapport with many businesses, he only had passing knowledge of La Botica Verde. Still, the memories he had spoke to the quality of woman that owned the business, and granted that same grace to who he thought stood before him.

“I’m right, arn’t I,” Gideon paused as he caught the sight of a man that he knew all too well. Varnan. Gideon fought alongside him during the cataclysm, and if he was making a trip out here then business would need to take priority. “Please, come inside. Enjoy the food, and I trust you’ll find a good spot for those herbs,” Gideon used the hand he had on her shoulder to usher her inside.

“I do want to continue this conversation,” Gideon grinned a little wider, “I’ll come find you after some business is dealt with.” Gideon didn’t need to say more. He knew that the woman would assume a command was present in his word even if there was none present.

Suddenly, trouble moved through the line. Gideon could feel her presence before he saw her and he knew that a chaos named Palmoa was heading his way. The woman who came face to face with a monster and survived, and who made everyone around her more than happy to help. Gideon groaned and was about to hold up a hand to stop her but felt unable. He couldn’t even mouth a “stop” as she hit the spin move to avoid any attempt to stop her. Gideon simply followed her with his eyes as she entered.

“What is the matter with that one,” Gideon whispered to himself as he shook his head. This celebration just got more chaotic. Still, Gideon flashed a smile as he turned to the next man in line. Some business would do well in this moment so he could get away Deion that fucking goody-two-shoes aura and the weird girl it came from.

---

---

Thanksgiving dinners were not Varnan’s scene.

He had no family to spend them with, so there was never a reason to sit down for a big dinner. In his old life, the Guild didn’t do holidays. And he wasn’t close enough to anyone in this life that they considered him family, so Varnan’s holidays typically looked like a quiet day at home, a glass of something in his hand, and an eye on the neighborhood that had less Blind humans around.

He didn’t usually make a trip across the bridge for it, but things weren’t usual right now. He felt something strange, lately. Something that wasn’t quite the same as the imposter he encountered, so he rode into the outer parts of Cloverfield and to the Hollow to meet with a man who always had an ear to the streets. One Gideon Cross, a gentleman scoundrel. One part Robin Hood, one part crime lord, but he was the sort of man who could catch wind of disturbances.

Stepping off his motorcycle, he adjusted the pistol he had under his jacket. There wasn’t much chance of a fight breaking out in these conditions, but for all he knew, it wasn’t Gideon he was walking up to.

”Gideon Cross,” he greeted the man. ”Things are going great, I see.”

“Oh they could always be better,” Gideon said with a bellowing voice, followed soon by a chuckle. His eyes suddenly darted to his left ear, which contained a Bluetooth device, before they returned to Varnan.
“you’re more than welcome to join us here today but I’m going to ask that you stow the weapon before you come in. If you’d like, we have a makeshift ‘coat rack’ for them right here,” Gideon pointed towards where a man stood in front of one of the side rooms. Inside, there were already a few weapons hung up on the walls.

Without skipping a beat, Varnan unzipped his jacket and unhooked a holster from his belt, keeping it close so no one saw a gun.

”Normally, I wouldn’t consider carrying in a place like this. But after what happened recently, I’m wondering if people really are who they claim to be.” He was, of course, referring to the thing pretending to be Bill.

”I’m afraid this isn’t a social call, though. I noticed something strange happening, other than the imposter. I was hoping you’d know more about it.”

A singular eyebrow raised as Gideon examined the man in front of him in more detail. How widespread were the disappearances? “Would you like to join me in my office? I’d rather not ruin the nice atmosphere we’ve built up tonight,” Gideon asked in a way Varnan would understand to mean ‘you don’t have a choice’.

”Neither would I. I’d hope someone else was trying to keep people from being afraid,” He commented, knowing exactly what Gideon was on about. But Varnan didn’t care that much. He knew most of the south side of Cloverfield was less Blind, it didn’t mean they had to be scared on this day.

Gideon whistled and Marco appeared soon thereafter. Gideon twirled a singular finger in the air before his eyes pointed towards Varnan.

“My associate Marco will show you the way. I’ll be up in a minute gotta shake some hands, kiss some babies, you know how it is,” Gideon paused as his eyes lingered on Varnan for a second longer, almost as if they were seeing through him, before they returned to the door. His warm smile returned as he moved to greet the next guest.

Marco maneuvered through the crowd with a grace that seemed almost foreign to a man his size. As he approached Varnan he shot out a hand. “You can call me Marco.”

”Varnan.” He returned the hand quickly. [color=f9461]”I don’t plan to intrude for long.”[/color]

“It’s Thanksgiving, Varnan, stay as little or as long as you’d like.”. Marco motioned for Varnan to follow as he led them to the staircase and up the first few steps. “Where you from if you don’t mind me asking?”

”Up north, across the bridge,” He answered, walking with Marco. He kept his eyes moving from one thing to another while they did.

“A generic answer,” Marco responded, “in that case I’m from somewhere as well.”

Marco led the two up the two flights of stairs until at last they were outside the office of Gideon. Marco paused before they reached the door and crossed his arms. “Because of your work during the cataclysm you are on a short list being read into a particular situation that we think will happen soon. Everything you see, hear, and experience in this office should stay there. Am I understood?”

”Of course. I can keep a secret.”

“Good,” Marco paused as he opened the door to the office. In the center there was a body on top of a table. The body was twisted, contoured, burned, and covered in acid marks. The arms were extremely long and thin, stretching outwards as of this creature was Mr. Fantastic himself. There was no aura to this creature, no sense of dread that emanated from it, nor any sign that the magic was active. It was dead. “Seren can’t keep a secret, for the most part, and she said that you and those Keepers in the mountains fought one of these before. This is the second one we’ve seen, but we have no idea who took it out. Gideon wants to talk to you about your experience, and see if we can help each other out with this threat.”

Oh yeah, Varnan saw one of those, alright.

His face went from professionally stoic to grim awfully. He waited for the doors to be firmly shut first. Then he got into it.

”The vampires and werewolves in the mountains had been migrating down here,” He started. ”They stay in their own territories and never make trouble, so it was unusual. I noticed they had been mainly coming from the south, so I went to Raven’s Rest to talk to a man who’d been there for the Cataclysm.”

Varnan stares at the corpse of that thing. ”One of those got to him first.”

Marco listened intently. He seemed to listen to every word as if the world resided on it. He finally breathed as soon as Varnan finished his sentence.

“Witness testimony says this thing spoke of something called ‘Nothingness’. Any idea what that means?,”

”Not a damned clue. They’re imposters, they can mimic people and their Abstractions, and they can shrug others off. I shunted one out of time for a moment with a spell whose limitations I’m very familiar with, and it quickly became resistant to that as if it were an easy thing. It took a group to handle just one.”

Marco rubbed his temple. “Was worth a shot,” Marco paused as he pulled out his phone. He pulled up the most recent weather report, sighing as he saw the special weather situation was extended once again. He’d need to call in the crews soon to ensure everyone over on this side of the river could move freely like those in the north could. There was just so much work this crew had to take on in order to ensure that these people could still thrive despite all the setbacks they endured. Still, something did not feel quite right about this weather. Marco paid very close attention to the weather reports, and to the best of his knowledge there wasn’t supposed to be any fronts moving through the area until Sunday at the earliest, and even then as it stood that was supposed to bring warm, moist air up from the Gulf of Mexico. Where did this snow come from?

“Any chance you follow the weather,” Marco asked, curious if this outsider would have an outside perspective.

”Regularly. I ride a motorcycle, so I tend to keep it in mind. Weather stations aren’t always accurate, but I would not rule out weather magic, right now.”

Neither would Marco. He turned as he heard the door open and saw Gideon walking through with a giant grin on his face. As he walked in he motioned for Marco to come close.

“Vin is teaching the young ones how to throw a punch, make sure the kids don’t cause a scene. Maybe remind them of what we’re doing ,” Gideon paused, tapping Marco on the shoulder and moving into his office.

“A pleasure to see you,” Marco said as he placed his hands in his pocket and walked out of the office.

“Varnan! Thank you so much for waiting,” Gideon paused as he threw his arms out wide, “I hope you don’t mind but I invited a friend to join this talk,” Gideon paused as he looked down the dead creature, his knuckles cracking and the color drained as he formed a fist, “judging by Marco leaving without telling me anything I think I know you don’t know more than I do when it comes to these fuckers. That being said,” Gideon paused as his eyes slowly slid over and lined up with Varnan, “and don’t fuck with me on this,” Gideon paused again as he turned his whole body towards Varnan, “have you noticed that ever since these things started showing up there’s been something wrong with time,” Gideon took a step forward. “I ain’t a betting man because I own the house, but if I was I’d put money on it being connected. What does the time wizard think?”

”Something wrong, yes. Not necessarily something wrong with time, but that’s certainly possible,” Varnan admitted. ”I didn’t want to assume I knew the problem. I felt something unusual, things have been strange lately. But if something is wrong with time, there are ways to confirm what and how. I hoped you’d know more, really.”

“We’ll excuse me, sorry I am not out there with scientific instruments measuring the subtle changes in everything, and what not,” Gideon paused as he pointed at Varnan as electricity danced across his hands, “and it ain’t like we can do any interrogation on these things. This is the third one killed down here, and believe me they all like to die before you get that chance.”

”Of course they do. Did-“ Varnan cut himself off and glanced at the thing on the table. ”What magics were used to kill this one?”

Gideon raised an eyebrow and looked to the corpse. “From what we’ve been able to gather this one was different. Fire and acid worked well to wound it but witness say this one,” Gideon paused as he pointed to the corpse, “had some fucking core like a golem from some shitty cartoon. Some broad stabbed it and once it exploded it was dead,” Gideon paused as he rubbed his temper, “wish it stuck around. Turned to dust within seconds. The first one Vin ripped and tore through then faster than it could heal and the second one,” Gideon paused as he formed a fist, causing electricity to dance across it, “ran into me.”

“What about the one you killed?”

”Chronomancy. And time is apparently wrong, somehow. The one I killed was also using Bill’s magic, who it replaced. And his magic was lightning. Which happens to relate to weather…” He trailed off. It was his only guess, but he wondered if it was possible.

”They can copy magic, it wouldn’t be out of the question.”

“You think they’re controlling the weather,” he paused as he looked outside. Marco was very confused this morning about the snow, this much Gideon knew. What if there was some merit to that suggestion. “The ones we’ve faced couldn’t do that. Unless we killed them too fast to show off their stolen magic. But,” Gideon paused as he looked back, “each one was unique. What if they’re like us? Each one has different abilities.”

”They could be. I didn’t recognize the one I fought until it gave up the act. It was using lightning just like the man he was impersonating.” The idea didn’t bode well. How could they tell someone apart if magic didn’t guarantee an individual was who they said they were?

”One thing that I suspect they can’t mimic, though, is memory.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Gideon paused as he walked next to Varnan, turned around and grabbed him around the shoulder like a friend would. “Picture this. I was out two nights ago, cleaning my head with a walk. You know how that is, Yeah? Anyway I was on this walk, and I happen across this young woman named Tina. See, I knew Tina from a young age so I’ve seen her walk, talk, smile, and know things about her. She’s been down here her whole life so she knows things about me. When I see her, I notice that her smile is all wrong. Crossing from ear to ear in a way a mouth ain’t supposed to stretch. Yet, she looked at me with that smile and started up with the same conversation we left off on like a day hadn’t passed.”. Gideon looked at Varnan, his eyes suddenly glowing a vibrant yellow. In the blink of an eye, his free arm was fully extended with a fist sticking out. Air would blast through the office sending loose dust and paints alike footin flying into the air. The cackle and crack of electricity filled the air in an instant. The punch was far too fast to track with the eye, and the electric energy pushed off the hand and into the nearby air.

“I hit her without a second thought. My electricity fried something in her and she started transforming all over the place. Skin ripped, sending these long thin appendages shooting out from her body like she was done kind of spider,” he paused as his eyes color grew in intensity again, “It died soon after, but not before she told me she’d be seeing me soon.”. Gideon was not one to show off his power but he had a theory of his own he wanted to check off. “Did yours taunt you, and do you think I could’ve killed the one you fought with a single punch? Cause I know I couldn’t kill that one over there in a single punch.”

Varnan was weirdly unflappable in the face of something so fast. He slowly looked down at the fist, then looked around at the clamour it kicked up. He didn’t even move. He didn’t look happy, either.

”I would certainly like to say that a singular, potent attack would subvert their adaptive tricks. But…” Varnan crossed his arms. ”The others who fought it with me, one conjured a longbow, and the other, burning ash. Someone eventually joined us with an actual firearm. It was still a chore.”

Gideon's eyes narrowed at the reaction Varnan displayed. Normally when someone was in the lions den, they would be on edge by nature. When the lion roared, they’d get scared. Not this man. Gideon liked that. A sly grin crossed his face as he removed his hand from Varnans shoulders and walked forward. A mental note was made to figure out exactly who this time wizard was. “So you met Brynn and Elara again. How are the good mountain folk doing these days? If the three of you struggled I know I would have at least broke a sweat.”

”They were territorial, untrusting and vindictive in dealing with the imposter. That was my first meeting with the Keepers outside the Cataclysm, so I assume that means they were doing well. No one was hurt, at least.”

Gideon knew that he would need to go visit them before long. While he did not have a close relationship, they were a major part of why the city is still standing. He didn’t know what this new threat was but he wasn’t going to sit around and wait for death and destruction to waltz into his city again. And he knew he had a free ticket to whatever event that they had going on tonight sitting down stairs grabbing some food. “I am going to get everyone together, if you participated in the defense of the city during the Cata I will get them to the table.”. Gideon paused as he motioned towards the door. “Got a keeper downstairs, that is my ticket through the door of whatever event they’ll have at their little church. We leave in an hour,” Gideon paused as he walked towards the door, turning back towards Varnan, “You should come with.”

It would be clear that Gideon was not offering, but commanding. He did not want to mince words when the city was in danger.

”I won’t waste that opportunity.” Varnan liked keeping to himself for a lot of reasons. But he had to admit that he hadn’t been quite so capable doing so as when he worked in squads and teams of Adepts. This would be a good way to figure some things out.

He followed Gideon out.

Recollections: Primal Sinister (SoL, urban horror)

Good. You deserved it ;)