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buttrinthum2024-03-01 01:00 am
TDM #8
Whether it be sleep or death, you feel your eyes close, and as your body begins to let go, you see a barn owl that is flying through the darkness, soon sweeping you across the clouded sky. You feel yourself mouth the words, “I wish, I wish..” and utter your deepest and darkest desire.
When you regain consciousness, you’ll find you are in an unfamiliar place with no recognition of how you arrived here. You have the clothes on your back, but nothing else. No weapons and if you had a particular superpower, you’ll notice it is missing. All you have is a satchel with a piece of bread, a vial of water, and a potion. The potion could be red, blue or golden. There are no instructions about these potions other than two words: Drink Me.
Will you drink it or not?
There is a parchment, handwritten, and it simply gives you a welcoming:
“Welcome to my Labyrinth. Per our agreement, you have consented to live your life here for an undetermined amount of time. In exchange, I will grant you the wish that you desire the most.”
You’re in a garden, surrounded by flowers and plants– most of which you cannot identify. However, there are a few that you can make out: purple carnations and generous fields of shamrocks. You’ll soon find out that being around the purple carnations can cause someone to act impulsively, following every whim of their heart to the point of almost being erratic. It might almost feel as though they’re having a hard time keeping track of which way is up and which way is down the way their whims change on a dime. This can cause quite a confusing first interaction, but the fields of shamrocks are no less confusing considering laying about in or spending time walking through these fields will cause the dreamer to feel lighter than air. Literally. Be careful! It’s almost like interacting with the world as though you’re lacking gravity. Jumps are higher, staying on the ground seems a little difficult, (but don't worry you won't float away), and generally being easy to push around are all something you should keep an eye on. Luckily, 30 minutes away from the shamrocks will make the effect go away.
Though it’s not exactly celebrated every year, and sometimes it’s done more subtly depending on the whims of the land, the locals (Gelfling and Goblin alike) always prepare for the spring. This year the locals can pull out all the stops for the changing of the seasons thanks to a genial past few months (give or, uh, take haha) . As the cold weather starts to warm and the snow drifts thaw and melt away, new life is already growing. It’s the signal that the locals need to prepare for the planting season of their gardens and crops as well as prepare for the magical cleansing meant to bring in good luck and positive magical energies.
Planting gardens and planning for vegetables and herbs of all kinds has a special twist to it, or this wouldn’t be Somnius. It’s a group effort, and not a soul will be allowed to skip participation. So long as the grumpiest plant at least one seed, their participation counts. But it all must be done with flower crowns made by locals and dreamers alike. The locals are happy to teach Dreamers how to weave the crowns together and dust in little bits of magic to make them glow pleasantly once perched atop someone’s head.
Just… one little thing? These flower crowns will enhance emotions, or feelings just a little or a lot. It all depends upon the flower the crown is made of.
Flower Choices
- Amaryllis: The wearer becomes extremely boastful and confident, even when (or perhaps, especially when) they have nothing to show for it.
- Bittersweet: Good luck lying until the crown is removed! The dreamer will feel compelled not only to speak, but to speak only the brutal and honest truth.
- Columbine: The world just became 500% funnier. That random Gelfling sneeze? Adorable and hilarious. The way that Goblin’s hair looks? Absolutely hysterical. The dreamer will be unable to stop giggling until the effects wear off.
- Fennel: It’s time to show your appreciation for everyone. The dreamer wearing this will feel extremely complimentary, and will not hesitate to tell anybody the things they like about them.
- Rose: Love is in the air, but… have you… always felt this way about your friend, or is something strange happening? The dreamer who wears this crown will find themselves absolutely enamored with the next person they meet.
- Tansy: Everything just seems to be striking a nerve with you today. The dreamer will find themselves gripped with an intense bout of anger, and they won’t hesitate to show it. Better tell that Gelfling that just bumped into you who you really are.
Only after you have a flower crown can you then participate in the real labor of spring: planting. Hoeing, watering, fertilizing, it’s all hard work but it’ll be worth it by the time everything starts to grow. Food tastes better when you grow it yourself. Try not to play around too much, but a little horsing around never hurt anyone.
It’s not only the fields and flower gardens that need tending to with the turn of the seasons, and the locals are making a party of it. The morning hours are reserved for changing out of “seasonal” decorations and other tidying, while the afternoon and evening hours are reserved for celebration and commerce.
Holly and pine wreaths and garlands are taken down, animals are finally let out from their cozy barns to graze on the new shoots of grass peeking from the chilled soil, homes are being aired out and well traveled roads need to be reblessed. Everyone seems to be doing their part in some way, but it’s still a lot of work to be done by the time things are in full swing for spring! Those dreamers who live to clean will really be living this month. Just make sure to sweep OUT the bad energy. Never in.
The locals encourage (and some even insist) that the ones they share space with pick up a broom, shovel or just get their hands dirty and start working. Animals need feeding and tending to and barn hands are in high demand! Whether it be chickens, ducks, cows, or sheep, the animals need their feed and also need their spaces to be cleaned, too. No one said this was glamorous work, but hey! Maybe you’ll manage to come away with some animal products from a particularly grateful farmer.
Salting the roads not only helps keep still receding ice from being as slick but it also brings in good luck and good energies. Be careful to spread the salt given out through the streets, but don’t spill any in the dirt or where things grow. Salted earth or plants will doom Dreamers with bad luck if they make this grave mistake! The effect will last for a week or so, so it’s best avoided.
When the warmest part of the day hits, that’s when the working gloves come off. The centermost part of town has been turned into a festival area complete with a may pole, potluck pot the size of a small boulder the size of a large boulder, tables of roasted food, and a variety of drinks. There are also a few games, including cheese rolling in which dreamers can either roll cheese or be turned into cheese to be rolled (maybe that’s just a joke? Hmm). Lively music played by one of the least terrible most popular goblin bands fills the air.
Contributing to the potluck pot will give participants a little joyful boost, there’s a little more pep in their step, a little less fatigue from working all day, and some may find that their dirtied clothes are woven into clean, springy attire for the celebration that lasts well into the night to wear at the Night Bazaar.
cw: spiders
Coming along with the other festivities is a convention of sorts, for all things magical! Witches and all kinds of magical practitioners are here to show off their skills and sell their wares to anyone interested - locals and Dreamers alike. Take a look around, there might be something that catches your eye that a hag or so will be willing to part with…for a decent price.. Be warned though, not every witch and warlock at this bazaar are totally honest. Phonies will try to peddle basic goods and magical objects for far more than they’re worth. Keep your wits about you, Dreamers, otherwise not only will you lose your shards and come away with nothing but junk, but you may find some items that are more trouble than they’re worth.
Just a FEW of the Booths...
Fortune Telling: A hag that is DEFINITELY not three kobolds in a trenchcoat is offering fortune telling services (tarot, palm reading, crystal ball, etc. Go nuts). Dreamers get their fortunes told! Can be about love, luck, other stuff.
Brooms: Want to take a ride on a broomstick? Well, look no further! A dandy young witch is offering (insert pun about brooms/horse here) rides for anyone looking for a fun time soaring through the moonlight! Pay a fee and get a ride for you and maybe another person, if they’re bold enough to hang on tight… The moon is looking lovely tonight, so why not take a spin over the treetops? Just don’t try and go too far - these cleaning utensils are magicked to fly back to their “pens” after a certain amount of time. Also if you crash it, you cash it. So don’t.
Brews and Tonics: That shifty-looking wizard there is offering up “brews” for an outrageous price, so clearly they must be potent, right? He seems very eager for people to try and even offers up a couple of sample sippers. Looking for teeth whitening? He’s got that. A growth potion for you shortstacks? Obviously, it’s right here. Can’t get senpai to notice you? Well, he’s got a brew that’ll make them never take their eyes off you! And with a smile as wide and toothy as his, surely nothing will go wrong, right? [[Note: They will ALL go wrong. How, is up to the player!]]
Familiar Petting Zoo: Careful, some of them do bite, but that’s only the more exotic ones. Black cats of all shapes and sizes, corvids that will tell you to shove it if you ask them about Lenore, and toads that may or may not have hypnotic powers if you stare into their unblinking eyes a little too long - all manner of fun and interesting creatures are here to pet and play with for a small fee. Just do try not to poke and prod at them too much, will you? They only have a meager amount of fortitude and tend to, ahem…combust if under enough pressure. But not into flames! Goodness, what do you take us for?! No, Dreamers will find that once a familiar combusts, their hands and clothes will be stained with a glow-in-the-dark “secretion” that might cause them to sparkle under the moonlight. ....It also attracts spiders. En masse.
Welcome to the labyrinthum TDM! Characters will arrive depowered and with only their clothing, and will be given a satchel with a crystal pendant, a communication device, some water and bread and a magic potion. If they drink the potion, they will manifest an elemental, healing or animal transformation ability.
With the exception of Castle Vaeros, characters are free to go as they please, so feel free to place them in any of the locations available on the map. Yes, this includes the Labyrinth - though characters will not be able to clear the maze.
You can find more information about the game here. Any questions regarding the TDM can go under the comment below.
In the Fairground
"Tall, loud and red-headed? I'm afraid I haven't," the youngster says, in a soft, slightly husky voice, a hint of genuine sympathy in his intense, strikingly blue eyes. With a soft, disarming cough of a laugh in his throat, he adds, "She sounds like the sort who'd stand out in a crowd and make an impression at first glance."
Re: In the Fairground
Then a side comment to himself sounding cross, "I told her to stay in the Tardis..."
Re: In the Fairground
Re: In the Fairground
Then on a softer note as he remanences because he remembers Rose and regrets still the choice he made even if she is happy with his MetaCrisis self.
"That was a long time ago." The Doctor remarks softly and thoughtful and makes him wonder why this face is back again, as he slowly pulls on cheeks with his hands.
"Why?"
Re: In the Fairground
"It wasn't the best of memories, I take it? I apologize for that: I meant no harm." Well, it wouldn't be the first time he gave someone a chaotic first impression: he once phased through a floor into a locked broom closet and a startled janitor had to rescue him.
Re: In the Fairground
The Doctor returns the offered hand shake, "The Doctor." And still has those dark shadows and pain in those eyes.
"When you live as long as I do. Stuff adds up."
Re: In the Fairground
Another raised eyebrow and a puzzled look ticks through James's eyes. "I'm sorry... the Doctor? The Doctor of what?"
He nods, understanding. "I imagine a lifetime would, indeed, accrue a lot of sorrows - and a lot of joys and discoveries." He's only just starting to accrue his own lifetime of all of the above - and more than most people have, at the same age.
Re: In the Fairground
"Just The Doctor." There's an undertone of 'blimey whats so hard about that'?
"Can't say I've seen fae in my universe. That's not how things are."
Slipping his hand away, seems to emotionally distance himself. Because there have been joys and sorrows, he's learned that those go hand-in-hand and acknowledging that at all have made it difficult for someone to trust, to have a companion around. Those are the dark moments for The Doctor, in many faces.
"Well - yeah, lots of discoveries starting to get a point where finding something new is rare. Not my first pocket universe for starters." The Doctor doing what he does best- denying.
"Where are you from?"
Re: In the Fairground
"They appear to be in my world... of origin, I suppose I should be calling it. Rest assured, they aren't little pixies sitting on toadstools and wearing bluebells on their heads. It appears they are...beings of great power, perhaps older than mankind, capable of manipulating the world around them and using that by turns, to hide from men and to manipulate those who infringe on their domains. Though considering the discoveries mankind has made, they might have caught up with their primordial neighbors." The Gelfling fortuneteller whose tend they stand before may be peering out at them, blinking at this strange chatter but not interloping just yet.
"Not your first pocket universe? You should know better than to drop a breadcrumb of information like that in front of a hungry mind, Doctor," he muses, grinning, a hint of "do tell?" in his odd blue eyes.
"Do you mean my location from when I was...summoned to this place, or where I lived? I'm originally from Manuxet, Massachusetts, though I was studying physics at Harvard University, on the eve of transferring across the country to Berkley. Or I was till someone or something plucked me from a tight situation."
Re: In the Fairground
The Doctor is silent and carefully remarks, "You saw something - possibly fae in your universe, didnt you? Not sure how much I believe in fae, me. My universe they'd be some sort of alien. But you're from another realm and rule of probability - well, let's say the math allows for what you told me."
"No, I'm well traveled. My ship happened into one when traveling. It was basically a pocket universe that was like a fairy tale. And another one where one might say Hell is like. And Land of Fiction. Blimey that was one was a trip. A pocket universe is usually sealed up and only a whole lot of energy can tranmat anyone in or out. Rare cases thar's a hole where a ship could pop into. But its usually some sort of transmat beam that runs on the energy logic of that pocket universe."
"Yeah, I don't go to America often."
Re: In the Fairground
"I've... stumbled into something that's often referred to as a faery fort. I've seen some of their denizens, though they seemed ambivalent about my presence. You wouldn't be wrong in classing them as alien: if I didn't suspect they're creatures of earth, I would think they came from another planet entirely." If the Doctor can look closely enough, he might notice something not-quite human about this youngster.
"It doesn't surprise me: if you can travel into pocket universes, why would you waste time on America?" James rummages through his pockets, finally finding a small notebook and a stubby but well-sharpened pencil, licking the tip and quickly taking notes, his nimble fingers working fast.
Re: In the Fairground
The Doctor gives a head nod, "A lot of stuff isn't of Earth." Is the casual remark he can buy fae being aliens somewhere a lot more than purely magic.
"Been to America. Just not often and I'm sorry? Why do you assume I can just travel to pocket universes?"