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rhodos_meme2022-08-10 10:12 am
rhodosmods) wrote in rhodos_meme2022-08-10 10:12 am
Entry tags:
TDM #1
TDM #1: AUGUST
Jump to: Arrival · Sound and Light · Into the Fog · Waking Up to a Nightmare · The Bonfire
Summary · Questions
Summary · Questions
The buildings of the plaza are all medieval stone construction, but they all have modern awnings and glass fronts. Tables out front display tourist wares: little plastic statuettes, postcards, t-shirts. Among these, it's easy to identify Greek lettering, Greek gods, photos of Athens and Crete. Predominant among the souvenirs are items marked with the name Rhodos.
But there are no vendors selling their wares. Even if characters wander into the shops, they are all empty as if their owners just stepped away for a moment. Lights are on, and some of the larger and nicer shops even have the whirr of air conditioning. Food stands waft the aroma of freshly grilled kebabs, and a gelato cart is cold to the touch and the ice cream inside is frosty and delicious.
The plaza where you arrive is set on a slope, and the direction of the sea breeze and the faint sound of waves against a shore indicates pretty strongly that down-slope is the direction of the sea. But looking down the slope from the main plaza, you can see an open archway in a tall stone wall, and beyond it is nothing but mist. Despite the clear sunny day in the plaza, the mist is a dense fog with barely three feet of visibility. If you enter it, you can see your own arms in front of you, but nothing beyond that. The breeze has gone still and the waves no longer sound so much like waves--the sound is warped through the mist so that it almost sounds like sobbing. After about five minutes of determined walking across what feels like flat ground with no other landmarks, you find yourself back at the archway.
Housing can easily be scavenged. Doors are unlocked and the interiors are clean and welcoming, beds freshly made, as if it is a hotel that's been prepared for you rather than anyone's personal residence. And yet, once you've settled upon a place to live, you start to find little signs that you have lived here all along. The photographs on the wall (which weren't there when you first arrived) depict you and your family and friends, even if you came from a world without photography. Upon arrival, you have only the clothing you are wearing, but within a day the closet begins to fill with familiar outfits from home, and within the first week you may find up to five of your own possessions around your new residence.
Note: Wardrobe is limited to what you can reasonably fit inside a non-walk-in apartment closet, what your character would reasonably wear and possess in canon, or what can be scavenged around town. There are two very small clothing boutiques where you can find most basics and a few cute outfits. For starting possessions two may be weapons or magical items, but you may have an additional three mundane items. All other personal items can only be obtained through regains or events.
The first few days in your new home are relatively uneventful. The days are hot and sunny and the nights are warm beneath a dazzling starry sky.
After not quite a week, the noises of a spectacle will lead characters to a small gate in one of the outer walls with steps leading down into the outer moat. The fog surrounding the city walls has drawn back for just this one little area, revealing an open air theater butting up against the castle wall. A path leads away from the theater on either side, but if you walk into the mist on either side you will promptly find yourself walking out of the mist on the opposite side, as if you'd circumnavigated the entire moat in just a few steps. Behind the theater is another high stone wall. Centuries of weathering has added rough footholds and handholds, but it would be a dangerous climb without equipment. Trees grow from the top of the wall, sticking limbs out of the wall of mist and clawing roots into the stones at the top, loosening them so that they're ready to slip at a touch.
The play that is projected onto the wall features shadow puppets, colored lights, and canned soundtrack special effects like the clop of horses hooves or the burst of trumpets. There is no dialogue or narration, so the story can only be roughly pieced together: there is a king and a queen, then a betrayal that leads to the king's murder. Later, the king and the queen appear again, participating in a ritual which seems to involve human sacrifice, a war and a triumphal procession, and then another betrayal and the king is murdered again.
The story repeats three times every night before shutting itself off. The first performance starts at twilight, and each repetition lasts about twenty minutes. Characters who watch it repeatedly will get the sense that it's slightly different each time, but the whole thing is complicated and confusing without any narration or dialogue to provide context, so characters will struggle to pin down how it's different. A slide projector is set up at the top of the amphitheater, with a pair of old speakers on either side of it. If slides are removed from the projector, they show only blank, uncolored plastic. If something is placed in front of the projector light, the scene is projected onto that object. The projector can be turned off, unplugged, or smashed. No matter what is done to it, as soon as no one is actively watching it, it is restored to an undamaged status and resumes playing.
After watching an entire repetition of the performance, some characters may be overcome by a fit of weeping. Tears roll down your cheeks and you can't seem to catch your breath. Despair clutches at your heart, colored by your own personal sorrows, and the weeping can only be stopped by receiving an embrace.
Others may find that the performance inspires them to reminisce. No matter how secretive you might normally be, you find yourself turning to whoever is sitting near you and telling them a story from your past, something that makes you nostalgic or regretful.
After not quite a week, the noises of a spectacle will lead characters to a small gate in one of the outer walls with steps leading down into the outer moat. The fog surrounding the city walls has drawn back for just this one little area, revealing an open air theater butting up against the castle wall. A path leads away from the theater on either side, but if you walk into the mist on either side you will promptly find yourself walking out of the mist on the opposite side, as if you'd circumnavigated the entire moat in just a few steps. Behind the theater is another high stone wall. Centuries of weathering has added rough footholds and handholds, but it would be a dangerous climb without equipment. Trees grow from the top of the wall, sticking limbs out of the wall of mist and clawing roots into the stones at the top, loosening them so that they're ready to slip at a touch.
The story repeats three times every night before shutting itself off. The first performance starts at twilight, and each repetition lasts about twenty minutes. Characters who watch it repeatedly will get the sense that it's slightly different each time, but the whole thing is complicated and confusing without any narration or dialogue to provide context, so characters will struggle to pin down how it's different. A slide projector is set up at the top of the amphitheater, with a pair of old speakers on either side of it. If slides are removed from the projector, they show only blank, uncolored plastic. If something is placed in front of the projector light, the scene is projected onto that object. The projector can be turned off, unplugged, or smashed. No matter what is done to it, as soon as no one is actively watching it, it is restored to an undamaged status and resumes playing.
After watching an entire repetition of the performance, some characters may be overcome by a fit of weeping. Tears roll down your cheeks and you can't seem to catch your breath. Despair clutches at your heart, colored by your own personal sorrows, and the weeping can only be stopped by receiving an embrace.
Others may find that the performance inspires them to reminisce. No matter how secretive you might normally be, you find yourself turning to whoever is sitting near you and telling them a story from your past, something that makes you nostalgic or regretful.
CONTENT WARNING: Cruelty and violence against (monster) dogs
After the characters have been in Rhodos for about three weeks, a heavy fog rolls into town. Unlike the mist that surrounds the city, the fog smells of smoke. Visibility is reduced to a mere ten or fifteen feet.
The electricity goes out, and shops are no longer replenished. Food may still be scavenged, but the food in shops and restaurants will slowly rot and may run out. Battery operated items will continue to work as long as the batteries still have a charge. Running water inside the houses continues to work, but it is sluggish and smells stale, leaving an unpleasant film on the skin.
While out on the streets of the town, characters will begin to encounter the monster dogs of Rhodos. The sound of a dragging chain precedes them, and then the hazy outline of a dog comes into view. It's walking oddly, however, with a sort of staggering limp, and the sound of the chain is underlaid by a low, feral growl. Furless gray skin peels away in patches to reveal bloody muscle. The heavy iron collar around the neck is studded with long black screws, the ends of which pierce the skin of the neck. Hazy eyes are clouded with decomposition, and yet that doesn't seem to prevent the dog from making its way straight toward you.
The dogs are not very fast, nor very smart. They can be outpaced at a brisk walk, and they will lose track of any character who gets more than twenty feet away or behind a closed door. But they are vicious. If you get within a few feet, they will lunge at you and attempt to bite. If two or three of them manage to corner you in a blind alley, you could be in real trouble.
In addition to the dogs, characters will begin to catch glimpses of Manifestations, both their own or those of others. At first you might just catch a glimpse of them through a break in the fog, but after a day or two they can be spotted standing outside of apartment windows and staring in. In either case, they will not approach or attack characters unless you're foolish enough to get within six feet of them. Then, they will attack, and they will pursue at a fast walk until they lose track of you in the fog.
After the characters have been in Rhodos for about three weeks, a heavy fog rolls into town. Unlike the mist that surrounds the city, the fog smells of smoke. Visibility is reduced to a mere ten or fifteen feet.
The electricity goes out, and shops are no longer replenished. Food may still be scavenged, but the food in shops and restaurants will slowly rot and may run out. Battery operated items will continue to work as long as the batteries still have a charge. Running water inside the houses continues to work, but it is sluggish and smells stale, leaving an unpleasant film on the skin.
The dogs are not very fast, nor very smart. They can be outpaced at a brisk walk, and they will lose track of any character who gets more than twenty feet away or behind a closed door. But they are vicious. If you get within a few feet, they will lunge at you and attempt to bite. If two or three of them manage to corner you in a blind alley, you could be in real trouble.
In addition to the dogs, characters will begin to catch glimpses of Manifestations, both their own or those of others. At first you might just catch a glimpse of them through a break in the fog, but after a day or two they can be spotted standing outside of apartment windows and staring in. In either case, they will not approach or attack characters unless you're foolish enough to get within six feet of them. Then, they will attack, and they will pursue at a fast walk until they lose track of you in the fog.
CONTENT WARNING: Blood imagery
On the 28th, characters are awakened by the sound of their front doors being smashed in. It's your own smashing door that awakens you, but you can hear more distant sounds of destruction from the other apartments nearby.
As you scramble out of your bed, you find that the homey, quilted bedding has been soaked through with blood, and it's sagging in the middle with the outline of a human body. But before you have a chance to properly react to that horror, your Manifestation is coming through your bedroom door — more than one of them, if you were sharing that bed with anyone.
You will have to fight or dodge in order to get out of the room. Your Manifestation is out for your blood. You can do damage to it, creating deep wounds and heavy bruises, causing it to stagger and slow for a moment, but no matter how much damage you do it keeps coming for you. Sooner or later, you will need to run.
When you make it out into the streets, you'll find that the entire world has changed. Heavy darkness fills the city, and no stars are visible in the sky. A few lights glow despite the lack of electricity, but they only provide a sickly, red-tinted light. Streets are slick with something that looks like blood, and the stone walls in many places have been transformed into metal or grate. Through the grate, you can catch glimpses of black metal hooks and gory, dripping meat that looks human in origin.
There is no palatable food or water. Anything you have saved has rotted or changed unnaturally into what looks like rotting flesh or lumps of bile. Liquid has turned into blood or black water. The only mercy is that symptoms of hunger, thirst and fatigue stabilize after 24 hours and don't get any worse. Don't worry, it won't be the dehydration that kills you here.
Your Manifestation pursues you tirelessly, and the monster dogs are faster, smarter, and moving in packs. Your home is no longer safe, and staying on the streets is deadly.
On the 28th, characters are awakened by the sound of their front doors being smashed in. It's your own smashing door that awakens you, but you can hear more distant sounds of destruction from the other apartments nearby.
As you scramble out of your bed, you find that the homey, quilted bedding has been soaked through with blood, and it's sagging in the middle with the outline of a human body. But before you have a chance to properly react to that horror, your Manifestation is coming through your bedroom door — more than one of them, if you were sharing that bed with anyone.
You will have to fight or dodge in order to get out of the room. Your Manifestation is out for your blood. You can do damage to it, creating deep wounds and heavy bruises, causing it to stagger and slow for a moment, but no matter how much damage you do it keeps coming for you. Sooner or later, you will need to run.
There is no palatable food or water. Anything you have saved has rotted or changed unnaturally into what looks like rotting flesh or lumps of bile. Liquid has turned into blood or black water. The only mercy is that symptoms of hunger, thirst and fatigue stabilize after 24 hours and don't get any worse. Don't worry, it won't be the dehydration that kills you here.
Your Manifestation pursues you tirelessly, and the monster dogs are faster, smarter, and moving in packs. Your home is no longer safe, and staying on the streets is deadly.
CONTENT WARNING: Body horror, immolation
Sooner or later, you find your way to the bonfire in the middle of the fountain square. There is no longer water in the fountain. Instead, the whole thing towers with flame, fueled by a viscous black substance in the basin.
A tall man stands by the fountain, gazing into the flames as if he is supervising. His suit is true black, fathomless black, while his skin is a dark red-black like the newly formed crust upon a lava flow. His eyes are black pools reflecting the flames. He takes no interest in any approaching characters, and will not respond to any questions. The only thing that will draw his attention to you is an attempted attack. If you try it, your blow lands, but he doesn't seem to take any damage. His head turns toward you and he considers you for a moment, as if he finds it intriguing that you would attempt such a thing. Then he returns his attention to the fire.
The dogs and the Manifestations will not pursue you into the circle of light cast by the bonfire. You can find a sort of respite here.
Time passes. It feels like days, though there is no way to mark the passage of time. The Dark Figure continues to supervise the bonfire.
At last, your attention is drawn to a sort of commotion approaching down one of the main streets that feeds into the plaza. You hear a rattling of metal, and a sort of gibbering moan. The bonfire illuminates first upon a pale, faceless figure which seems to writhe as it approaches, hovering above the paving stones. As it grows closer, you see that the figure is lashed to a square metal frame and bound with strips of barbed wire. Veiled figures on either side bear it forward, and the Dark Figure turns to watch it approach.
The figure upon the frame has no face and no mouth with which to make its agonized moans, but it continues nonetheless. It has limbs but no hands or feet, each limb ending in smooth stumps.
If no one interferes, the Handmaidens carry the frame forward and place it upon the fire.
The Handmaidens can be attacked, and hurt. They cry out indignantly at any attack, and recoil. They will not fight back, but they also will not be discouraged from their task by anything less than persistent violence.
If the pale figure on the frame is rescued by the player characters, it flails and gibbers helplessly, continuing to moan. If the pale figure is consigned to the flames, it begins to scream, and continues screaming for several minutes until the flame finally overcomes it.
In either situation, you begin to cough. Blood spills from your mouth, dribbling down your chin and spattering upon your clothing. But then the droplets begin to slither into letters, forming words that spell out your deepest guilt, in the words you yourself would use to describe it. No attempt to wipe the words away or cover them will prevent their legibility. The blood shines through whatever covers it, catching the firelight so that those around you can clearly read the words.
The Dark Figure and his Handmaidens made their exit while you were coughing. You are left alone with the other Tourists around you, your guilt, and whatever remains of the pale figure upon the frame.
Sooner or later, you find your way to the bonfire in the middle of the fountain square. There is no longer water in the fountain. Instead, the whole thing towers with flame, fueled by a viscous black substance in the basin.
A tall man stands by the fountain, gazing into the flames as if he is supervising. His suit is true black, fathomless black, while his skin is a dark red-black like the newly formed crust upon a lava flow. His eyes are black pools reflecting the flames. He takes no interest in any approaching characters, and will not respond to any questions. The only thing that will draw his attention to you is an attempted attack. If you try it, your blow lands, but he doesn't seem to take any damage. His head turns toward you and he considers you for a moment, as if he finds it intriguing that you would attempt such a thing. Then he returns his attention to the fire.
The dogs and the Manifestations will not pursue you into the circle of light cast by the bonfire. You can find a sort of respite here.
At last, your attention is drawn to a sort of commotion approaching down one of the main streets that feeds into the plaza. You hear a rattling of metal, and a sort of gibbering moan. The bonfire illuminates first upon a pale, faceless figure which seems to writhe as it approaches, hovering above the paving stones. As it grows closer, you see that the figure is lashed to a square metal frame and bound with strips of barbed wire. Veiled figures on either side bear it forward, and the Dark Figure turns to watch it approach.
The figure upon the frame has no face and no mouth with which to make its agonized moans, but it continues nonetheless. It has limbs but no hands or feet, each limb ending in smooth stumps.
If no one interferes, the Handmaidens carry the frame forward and place it upon the fire.
The Handmaidens can be attacked, and hurt. They cry out indignantly at any attack, and recoil. They will not fight back, but they also will not be discouraged from their task by anything less than persistent violence.
If the pale figure on the frame is rescued by the player characters, it flails and gibbers helplessly, continuing to moan. If the pale figure is consigned to the flames, it begins to scream, and continues screaming for several minutes until the flame finally overcomes it.
In either situation, you begin to cough. Blood spills from your mouth, dribbling down your chin and spattering upon your clothing. But then the droplets begin to slither into letters, forming words that spell out your deepest guilt, in the words you yourself would use to describe it. No attempt to wipe the words away or cover them will prevent their legibility. The blood shines through whatever covers it, catching the firelight so that those around you can clearly read the words.
The Dark Figure and his Handmaidens made their exit while you were coughing. You are left alone with the other Tourists around you, your guilt, and whatever remains of the pale figure upon the frame.
Arrival: August 1
Sound and Light: August 5-20
Into the Fog: August 21-27
Waking Up to a Nightmare: August 28-30
The Bonfire: August 31
Welcome to Rhodos! Going forward, events will take place in two parts. The Normal World part of the event posted on the 5th of each month, and it will be a lighter event both in terms of length and thematic content. TDMs will be bi-monthly and will feature an event element or elements for the Normal World which in-game characters may also play with on their own log posts. The sections on Fog and Nightmare worlds for the TDM will generally be the same every month, allowing players to test drive those elements if they'd like, but not including spoilers for the second part of that month's event. The second part of the event will be posted on the 20th of each month, covering events occurring through both the Fog and Nightmare cycles.
Test drive memes are considered game canon.
This won't always be the case, but for the nerds among you who are enjoying this sometimes-accurate tour of Rhodes, all location images in this TDM and housing are accurate to Rhodes.
Lastly, we are in need of mods! We're most in need of help for processing apps and activity. If we aren't able to get some additional mods, we will have to place a cap on applications, and we're hoping we won't have to do that. If you're interested, please send us a message over on the mod contact page. We've gotten the mod volunteers we needed so we should be all clear to proceed without an applications cap. Thank you to everyone who showed interest!
Sound and Light: August 5-20
Into the Fog: August 21-27
Waking Up to a Nightmare: August 28-30
The Bonfire: August 31
Welcome to Rhodos! Going forward, events will take place in two parts. The Normal World part of the event posted on the 5th of each month, and it will be a lighter event both in terms of length and thematic content. TDMs will be bi-monthly and will feature an event element or elements for the Normal World which in-game characters may also play with on their own log posts. The sections on Fog and Nightmare worlds for the TDM will generally be the same every month, allowing players to test drive those elements if they'd like, but not including spoilers for the second part of that month's event. The second part of the event will be posted on the 20th of each month, covering events occurring through both the Fog and Nightmare cycles.
Test drive memes are considered game canon.
This won't always be the case, but for the nerds among you who are enjoying this sometimes-accurate tour of Rhodes, all location images in this TDM and housing are accurate to Rhodes.
chrissy cunningham | stranger things
[If trying to make her way through the fog to get past that archway and toward the ocean she can smell and hear wasn't unnerving, finding a place to stay and seeing family pictures on the wall definitely are. She's not 100% convinced this isn't some kind of weird afterlife situation, and the fact she sees the exaggerated and fake smiles of her parents alongside herself and her little brother put her on edge.
None of this should be possible. And yet, her she is. Her hands tuck up into the sleeves of her sweater, right as the sound of the front door opening alerts her that she's not alone.]
I'm sorry! [She turns to face them, offering an apologetic smile.] But I think this one belongs to me. [A helpless gesture toward the pictures hanging on the wall feels like explanation enough, and she laughs awkwardly because wow this is really something else.]
Sound and Light
[This is the third night that Chrissy's made her way to the outdoor amphitheater to watch the shadow play unfold, and it's the third night in a row that she's been moved to tears by what she's seen. It's not like she enjoys coming here to cry, but she's hoping to catch onto something here that helps give everyone clues about their situation.
The problem is that no matter how many times she watches and observes, she can't pinpoint anything particularly useful. Oh, she picks up that something's different. That there's an edge of caution that should be taken trying to use what they're being shown as information. But with no reason given as to why the shadow play is being shown at all, Chrissy finds herself more confused about the situation than anything.
Tears streaming down her face as her arms wrap around herself are just an unfortunate side effect of sticking around until the end. She's sitting down on one of the front row benches, center in the row. There's others that have gathered here along with her, and she turns to look at whoever is closest to her.]
Is this your first time seeing this?
Into the Fog
We need to get out of here. It's not safe.
[She seems determined by that as she bumps into someone else out in the thick fog. The smell of smoke is heavy, filling her nostrils and making her a little sick to her stomach. Though that could also be from hunger, food a little harder to come by these days. She's used to going hungry, but the way this particular bout of hunger settles into her bones makes her feel lightheaded and like she may dissolve right into the fog and never be seen again.
That doesn't seem like that bad of an idea when she first spots the dark manifestation of something that reminds her a little too much of her mother. Chrissy takes off at a run to avoid what she hopes is a hallucination, and manages to bump into someone in the process. Typically she'd laugh it off and apologize, but the sound of chains dragging on the ground and low growls catch her attention.
They're not alone. Her heart races as terror takes over, and she reaches over to grab at the arm of the person she's just bumped into. The fog is thick, too heavy to see far ahead. But she knows that they need to run. She hadn't been able to run before. Fear had overcome her, and she had just stood there and cried. That mistake won't be repeated again.]
Waking Up to a Nightmare
[It's hard to tell which is worse. The place she remembers dying before, or what's happening here. She's covered in blood that soaked through her bed, and she had to fight for her life before putting her cheerleading skills to good use to jump and roll the hell out of her house. She's disoriented and her terror level is at an all time high as she bursts outside into the darkness. There's no light anywhere, apart from an eerie red glow. It's unnerving, enough so that she has no idea how to escape the aggressive shadow of her mother that seems to want nothing but to relentlessly chase her here.
Chrissy runs until she's exhausted, and then pushes herself to run some more. It's then that she trips and runs into what she knew used to be a stone wall. Only now, with her face pressed right into it, she realizes it's metal grating. And right in her face are bloody hooks, with something strongly resembling bloody flesh hanging off of them.
She lets out a scream of pure terror, tears beginning to stream down her face. This is all too much like the last few moments she can remember in the upside down, and she's starting to fear that the form of her mother may shift at any second and turn into the monster that was the last thing she saw back in Hawkins. The feeling of someone grabbing her registers at nothing but fear, and she flails and struggles against them.]
Go away! Leave me alone!
The Bonfire
[The metallic tang of blood fills her senses as she begins to cough, dark red sputtering out of her. It trails down her chin and onto her clothes, and there's an effort at first to cover her mouth and keep it in. But her hand is soon covered, and it's useless to wipe away. Blood and filth are something she's used to in this place by now, but she had been hoping that staying in the fire's glow would keep her safe from anything else happening.
It seems that hope was pretty pointless. Nothing here has been easy, and Chrissy's faced with a different kind of horror when she realizes that the blood on the others here with her have all formed words. She spares a glance at a few others, and turns her eyes away. These details are too personal. Too sensitive for her to be reading.
She lowers her gaze to her chest, where the blood has gathered to read:
Refuses to save herself.
She tries smearing it away, but it remains in place. Her hands try covering it instead, but she gives up when the words feel like they're burning through her. Standing there with her head bowed, she tries to make herself invisible instead. Those four words hold so much power over her. She grew up refusing to stand up to her mother and save herself from being forced to feel she had to be perfect. She refused to save her own life in the end, instead choosing to try and drown out what was happening to her with drugs. It hadn't worked. She had just let it happen. There was no fight at all.
Now she's here, and she thinks maybe this is her punishment. Acceptance mixed with shame are both easily readable as she tries to avoid eye contact.]
Don't bother trying to wipe it away. [She says to no one in particular. The sound of coughing is all around her. there's plenty of blood spilling right now, secrets waiting to be forced into the open. Maybe it's a reminder to herself, though. She keeps trying to absently wipe away what she's been marked as. A weak coward.]
It won't work.
Wildcard
[If you'd rather focus on more of the survival elements, we can do something related to scavenging food and supplies once the fog rolls in. Also open to some chill chatting during the arrival phase of things. I'm able to vibe with anything, honestly.]
sound and light
He snaps it shut when he hears someone approach and address him. He slowly, carefully looks up at them, smiles, and then looks back at the show.]
In general? Yes. Here? No. Third time.
[For all of his reading and general knowledge, V just can't seem to find anything to pinpoint which play it is. It's so similar to so many stories, but also nothing like them. A story, a play he's never heard of before or seen? To him it sounds a bit... impossible.]
Please, have a seat, [he gestures at the empty seat to his left.]
no subject
[She questions him with sincere surprise in her voice as she moves to sit beside him. It's funny to her that he's been here three times too, and her nose wrinkles up as she laughs at herself and how ridiculous she sounds being surprised by someone else showing up here three times.]
It's my third time too. [There's a pause, as she regards where the shadow play is projected.]
I've been trying to figure out if I know the story. I thought maybe someone was trying to send us a message.
no subject
There is always a message, [V crosses his legs.] Sometimes it is an obvious one, sometimes unintentional, and sometimes you have to read between the lines.
That said, I cannot recall that I've seen anything like this before. [At first he thought it was a weird rendition of 'Hamlet' but the more it went on, the less it looked like it.] So I cannot discern fully what is the true meaning behind it.
no subject
It almost seems like Hamlet, don't you think?
[She read it last year in English, the story is still pretty fresh in her mind. But this part doesn't feel much like Hamlet, not when the King comes back and is murdered again. But the whole making them watch a play about murder feels pretty weird to her. Shifting uncomfortably, her attention turns to scan around the others that have gathered here.]
Do you think the message is about someone else that's here with us? Like a warning, to let us know that someone is dangerous.
into the fog | cw: starvation/disordered eating
jackie's more recent memories involve being stuck in the woods and trying to scavenge with the rest of the group, boiling water from the lake over a dwindling campfire, never feeling totally clean and her stomach gnawing on itself with hunger until the thought of trying to fill it makes her feel ill. the woods had never gotten this foggy except when it was the earliest hours of the morning, and even then you were generally still able to see a few feet in front of you. as it is, jackie's not even aware that someone's beside her until she hears chrissy's voice and nearly bumps into her. a breath is pulled in with a shocked gasp and her body seizes with fear, until she realizes the source. ]
Jesus -
[ but there's not really time to lay into who's just scared her. not when there's someone in the distance, a figure that's tall and gaunt standing beside a smaller figure, a tall, bobbed blonde in a cardigan set, holding a teddy bear by its arm -
the girl standing beside her grabs at her arm, and maybe tells her they have to run again.
she doesn't need to be told twice. she grabs the hand of the girl and takes off, clutching it as tight as she can as she moves. ]
no subject
Do you have any idea what's going on?
[Because she really doesn't. And this all is a lot to deal with. So much that she really isn't processing any of it. She just knows to run and keep moving.]
Because we can't run forever. I'm already getting tired.
no subject
[ she pauses a second, because she's tired, too, and before too long she hears the drag of metal against concrete. it's slow but deliberate, she can hear it edging closer but still can't see anything. she can barely see the girl whose hand she's still gripping tightly, tighter still as she starts to hear a low growl. ]
We - we've gotta get inside. [ maybe whatever's out here with them won't follow them there. ] Do you think we can find our way back to the town?
[ it's been less than hospitable lately, food quickly going rotten in the fridge and the water leaving her skin feeling grimy, but it's better than nothing. especially if there's something after them. ]
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Do we?
[No, of course they don't. Their choice is to stay here and probably die, or to run and make it back someplace safe. The fog makes navigating nearly impossible, but Chrissy decides to just take a chance. She quietly begins to hurry off toward the right, pulling Jackie along with her.]
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[ so back to somewhere inside it is. jackie holds tighter to chrissy's hand as she leads them to the right, hopefully somewhere closer to the center of town. she doesn't even care if it's one of their places or an abandoned store or a completely empty room, so long as it's inside and it means the thing that's chasing them can't reach them.
it feels like a miracle when they see a shape in the distance, through the thick fog. she can't tell what it is, but it's something. ]
There! Right ahead of us, let's go -
[ she hears a growl and it sounds like it's right beside her ear. jackie swallows and pumps her legs harder, moving ahead of chrissy, still clutching her hand. ]
arrival
Oh! Hey! Sorry!
[ With an apologetic smile on her face she takes a step back before her gaze follows the strange woman's gesture and her focus is pulled towards the pictures, diverting her from her polite, hasty retreat. ]
Those were there when you got here?
[ Mystified enough to linger, Aerith stays where she is, eyes narrowing as she leans forward, studying the pictures, suddenly curious about what she'll find when she finds the right room.
Once she realizes how intently she's been staring, still awkwardly standing, blocking the doorway of a stranger's room she looks back to the other woman and gives her an apologetic smile. ]
Sorry, I don't mean to stare, I'm sure it's really nice to have your family waiting for you, it's just - this place. [ She lifts a shoulder in a shrug. ]
It's kind of, off, you know?
[ The way this place seems freshly abandoned, and how they all just arrived here so unexpectedly, however sunny it is outside, it's still weird. ]
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Oh, it's really creepy to have them waiting here for me.
[So kind of off is a good description. Kind of really off, actually. It puts Chrissy on edge, because how can any of this be possible? How is it real?]
Whatever this place is, I think that picture is a sign we can't trust it.
[Which is probably stating the obvious here. But she feels like it needs to be said. She's not a paranoid person in general, or at least she tries not to be. The hairs on the back of her neck are still standing up though. A hand presses back against them to try and get them to stop tingling and making her feel on edge.]
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I can't blame you for feeling that way, it's weird to think about how anyone would know to put those here for you, or anything for any of us.
[ Who's doing this? What else do they know? She's not a stranger to being under surveillance, and while she loathed it at home, here it's different - whatever is watching remains unseen and unidentified, and that makes it so much worse.
Aerith looks over at the pictures once more before returning her gaze to the other girl, trying not to look too hopeful when she speaks. ]
So, um - I don't suppose you'd want to come with me while I look for my room too? Unless you want to rest of course! I'm Aerith, by the way.
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Because something is powerful enough to pull them all in. Someone is definitely watching. Someone knows that this exact family picture is enough to unsettle her. And because of that, she's almost eager to get away.]
I'm Chrissy. [She introduces herself, smiling a little more warmly. It feels strange to smile given the circumstances, but moping around isn't going to help anything ether.]
And yeah, I'll go with you. I think with how weird everything has been so far, it's better that we stick together.
[So she links her arm through Aerith's, and lets her lead the way.]
Have you been inside any of the stores yet?
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Thank you so much.
[ Smiling gratefully she starts back into the hallway, nodding at Chrissy's question while she looks at the doors lining the corridor, trying not to let the thought of what was waiting for her unnerve her too much. Maybe pictures would be nice?
Though, based on the look on Chrissy's face when she walked into the room, maybe not. ]
I looked in one that had magnets and keychains, and stuff like that. Have you looked around a lot yet? I'll walk around with you if you want, since, I doubt my room's going to be any cozier.
[ Aerith leads the way past a few doors as she talks, not sure if she's stalling or not. At last, one door a few yards down from where Chrissy's is, makes her stop in her tracks, leaving her to size it up, her hand resting on the handle. ]
Yeah, a walk sounds great right now.
[ She gives a mirthless laugh and steps into the room where pots and vases of various flowers await her. It's a sight that would delight her back home, but here the flowers just don't - feel the same. Their faces are beautiful but empty, missing the presence of the Lifestream. ]
Even the flowers are weird here.
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sound and light
he should really stop watching the damn thing, because every time it ends Steve just feels... weird. after. the first time he'd cried non-stop until some stranger was forced to hug him, it was so horrifically embarrassing. this time around he's not teary, though feeling homesick isn't a big improvement. it's not the most helpful to be dwelling on home and Hawkins when he's stuck in a place that isn't there, and yet his thoughts seem stuck there, anyway.
doesn't help when he turns and sees no other than Chrissy Cunningham, familiar strawberry blonde ponytail and all. he's never seen her cry, and it's miserable. the moment doesn't feel real. it isn't the first moment in Rhodos that doesn't feel like it could be real, to be fair. ) Chrissy? ( Steve asks, and his voice is a mix of panic and guilt, which won't make any goddamn sense to Chrissy. makes perfect sense to Steve, even though realistically he didn't know anything until it was too late, and she was already gone. )
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Steve Harrington?
[Blinking, she's bewildered by the fact that he's here too. Of course, her current wide eyed state probably has more to do with the shadow puppet play she's just watched than seeing him. There's something about it that makes her want to stay and watch more, to try and figure out what it is and the message it's meant to be sending them.
Of course, she can hear the panic and edge of something close to guilt in his voice. And that's enough to snap her attention fully onto him. Her ponytail sways when she does, and for a moment it might seem like they're back at one of the parties they used to attend. Because she offers him a smile, and even with as tired as it is, it's still bright enough to show that she's happy to see him.]
Oh my god. Steve!
[Of course, she's moving forward to briefly hug him. Because it's a big deal to find someone from home in a place like this.]
If we've both seen this more than once, how have we not run into each other before now?
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he feels a little numb, as she pushes in to hug him. Steve hugs back, though, of course he does. it feels uncanny, like this might be some strange trick, or a bizarre daydream. Vecna playing with his head, because, that seemed to be his MO, even if giving Steve guilty daydreams of cheerleaders does feel a bit off his usual bit. yet Chrissy feels solid and real, when he wraps his arms around her. the embrace is brief and somehow still quite reassuring, all at once. Steve wishes it is longer than it is. though, Chrissy releasing him is probably for the best. he's a little sore, still — the wounds at his side bandaged but the ones on his back a little more awkward, hugs overall are just more painful than they should be.
it's fine though. he would 100% hug Chrissy again. worth a slight tinge of pain. he's shaking off a slight grimace from the movement as she makes a pretty good point )
I, uh... I get too into it, I guess. It's so confusing, right? Why can't they have a voice over or something? Or cut out all the weird stuff and make it funny, it'd be a way better show. Hands down. ( Steve isn't quite sure what to do with his hands, so he crosses his arms. there's no place to do anything with them that way, problem solved. ) How long... how long have you been here? ( what's the last thing you remember from home, he wants to ask, and is simultaneously unsure that he should. )
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But she guesses the environment here will do that to anyone.
Her attention shifts back to the shadow play, and she motions for him to follow as she heads down the steps of the outdoor theater to get to the front row. She sits in the center, attention almost raptly focused on the performance.]
I've been here as long as Eddie has.
[It's a way of killing two birds with one stone, she figures. Let Steve know that she knows Eddie, and give him a reference of time that she's been here. She knows that Eddie's friends with him, and figures they've seen each other a few times now.
She glances at Steve out of the corner of her eye, smiling slightly. A part is coming up in the shadow play that has her reaching out to touch at his arm.]
This part right here. The king dies again after being brought back. It feels like it was different the last time I watched.
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Steve does follow after Chrissy, creaks down to the viewing benches next to her. he can't help a nervous jostle to his thigh, close to her leg. )
Oh. Sure. Okay. Me, uh... me too. That long. I mean. ( Steve does know that Eddie knows Chrissy, since she, you know. died horribly. in his trailer. also, WHAT THE FUCK, EDDIE, AND YOU DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE STRAWBERRY BLONDE UNDEAD CHEERLEADER WALKIN' AROUND TOWN??? friendship ENDED with Eddie Munson, because this is messed up!!!!! Steve is still arguing with himself about what to say next, when Chrissy reorients attention to the show. his eyes wander that way, too, and he frowns. ) Yeah. Yeah. Is it a different guy? Or a different crown? Or... or something?
waking up to a nightmare (ish?)
finding chrissy cunningham here, of all people, had been a test of eddie's mental strength. he'd watched her die, had run. he always runs. and now she's here in this fucked up hell with him but at least it's not the upside down, he thinks. except, except it kind of is worse. eddie's asleep when he hears chrissy scream, bolt out of bed. he hears what sounds like a woman's voice and then the shrill cry of demo-bats not long after. which, okay, not good. not good at all. that has eddie bolting up too. ]
Chrissy! Wait up!! [ i don't like this..
but she's gone and eddie almost doesn't have time to grab the spear he keeps next to the bed before running after her, jumping out the window. jesus h. christ.
chrissy's fast though. she's an athlete and eddie's a stoner, a smoker, and not in the best of shape so he lags behind, calling her name. she doesn't stop until she runs into something and eddie's almost grateful for it, though the voices and screaming are closing in on them too. he hears her scream, is so glad she can scream this time as much as it hurts to hear it, and then reaches for her shoulder. which is the wrong move. chrissy claims, eddie falls back on his ass. ] Chrissy! Chrissy, it's me. It's Eddie. [ he pushes himself up, tentatively reaches out again. ] Chrissy, we can't stay here.
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The series of events that transpire after she takes off at a run aren't really anyone's fault. But by the time he catches up to her, she's so caught up in a panic that she can't really tell it's him. All she feels is terror, and it isn't until she hears him saying his name that she's able to snap out of it enough that she blinks over at him.]
Eddie?
[It feels no different than the day in the woods he had scared her in the middle of her seeing something. And the fact that she's still in the exact same place mentally doesn't feel great. In fact, it feels like she's a liability to him. That doesn't stop her from stepping forward to briefly hug him though. It's a sign that she's alright. Or as alright as she's ever going to be.]
Where are we supposed to go?
[Is there anywhere that's safe here? She's doubting that. But her hand still finds his, and she takes off in a hurry. They've got to find somewhere to lay low.]
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eddie's never really felt more relief than when he hears his name fall from chrissy's lips. a part of him is always afraid that this is part of vecna's curse, that he'll watch her float up with eyes rolled back and hear that deep, taunting voice both nancy and max mentioned.
which is so fucking selfish of him, he knows, because chrissy actually went through that shit.
he shakes that off though, wraps his arms around her in a hug as best he can with a spear in the way. the touch is welcome because they're both tactile people, two kids from hawkins trying to survive. maybe in a better or worse off place, he's not sure. hawkins for him was pretty awful but chrissy doesn't deserve this. ] We just have to hide. [ and eddie's good at that, at finding the places where no one will look. he grasps her hand, takes hold and they take off. there's a row of abandoned buildings up ahead, stores abandoned in the night. eddie hears the bats screeching behind them and suddenly pulls chrissy into one of the abandoned convenience stores. the door's transparent so anyone can see inside and -- fuck -- eddie sees a shelf right next to it, rushes to the other side to push it to block the door and manages that. ] Okay. Okay. Okay. Jesus Christ. Um.
[ he looks around. ] Maybe there's a back room. We can find that, hide out. [ did he just fuck them over? but maybe there's a back way out. fuckfuckfuck. ]
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Which makes grabbing hold of Eddie's hand bittersweet. She's grateful to have a friend here, especially one that's able to put her at ease the way he does. But she also doesn't want to drag him into any more of her messes. And this whole place?
It's a huge mess.
Her heart is pounding, and she has to press a hand over her mouth to muffle the sound of her panting as she tries to catch her breath. But she's quick to help him shove the shelf, and the second he suggests the back room she's nodding and hurrying through the store.]
We need a minute to catch our breath. We can't —
[Ah, but then she spots it. A door to the back. She darts back over to Eddie and grabs his hand, tugging him behind her as she makes a beeline for that back room.
They could be sitting ducks here. But she goes inside and immediately begins to start shoving the wall shelf up against the door. She'd rather be trapped in here with no way in or out than leave the door unblocked.]
Maybe that will keep them away for a while.
[It's said as she slides down the wall to sit on the floor. She's exhausted.]
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eddie helps push that shelf over. he's not strong, no steve harrington, but he's got upper body strength and adrenaline going for him. plus, he's got more muscle on him than chrissy so he's doing the majority of the pushing. not that he minds. eddie keeps moving after that, if only because otherwise he's sure he'll have another panic attack. it's been nearly a month and it doesn't get easier. how the fuck did the kids do it?
the backroom's poorly lit and after they move the shelf, eddie scrambles around to see if he can find anything like a flashlight in the small desk or in any of the shelves that line the walls. eventually he has to give up, sits down along the wall beside chrissy and pulls his lighter out of his pocket to light it. so they have the flame between them until their eyes adjust. ] Fuck.
I think-- I think it's okay for now. [ maybe if he says it with a bit of bravado, channeling someone other than himself, he'll believe it. he lets out a breath, reaches to wrap an arm around chrissy because there's safety in that. ]
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