buttrinthum | TDM #9

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TDM #9

Arrival / Enchanted Garden

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 in scrawling, jagged lettering that seems a bit... ominous:

“Welcome to my LABYRINTH where your wish, you wish you wish youwishyouwish– Your CONTRACT is SEALED.”

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: Larkspur and Anemone You’ll soon find out that being around the Larkspur makes you almost overwhelmingly tired, to the point you might even feel sluggish and in desperate need of a comfy place to rest. Why not lie down right in the garden? Or better yet, find someone to snuggle up with and sleep your worries away. The only truly strange part? You don’t seem to dream. At all. Straying too close to the Anemones, meanwhile, grants an entirely different effect. One second you’ll be walking through the garden and then suddenly you’re twenty feet away and facing the wrong direction. Even worse, whatever those flowers have done to you will sometimes make it so you “glitch” through solid objects – your leg might suddenly be lodged in the ground despite it being perfectly solid a moment before, or your arm could be shoved halfway into a wall that… actually, was that wall even there before? Nevermind that. The effects only last for a few minutes at worst, so at least you’re not stuck there forever, right?

Liminal Spaces and Worn Out Faces

Thanks to the combined efforts of dreamers and dragons, Vaeros is asleep. No one knows for how long. The locals aren’t particularly pleased with this turn of events and the village is a mess, but at least the moon is high in the sky again and everything is back to normal… relatively speaking. Things start to change... morph into something more dreamy, more surreal. It's subtle at first but after a few days…

The aftermath of the overgrowth, animal attacks, and the overall chaos of Vaeros' tantrum has left the village a little worse for wear. While most of the damages are cosmetic and could be fixed by the local's efforts alone, maybe a little help would be appreciated? If nothing else, it might help alleviate a little bit of the tension still lingering in the air after the events at the castle.

That, and the locals seem to be acting kind of strange. Leaving them to their own devices might not be the best idea. The Gelfling you are aiding in repairing a half-broken wall has been hammering for what seems like hours and when you look to see what they're doing, they haven't actually made any progress - they're just hitting the same spot over and over again, potentially making the hole even bigger. Did the goblin you just passed have a completely blank face for a moment? Others might walk into things, off of things (Starlight Cliff might be a hazard zone), or suddenly and inexplicably become aggressive toward dreamers, grabbing anything they can get their hands on (kitchenware, vegetables, a goose??) to use as a weapon. It's a very bizarre scene and the villagers don't seem to notice there is anything wrong with the people around them.

It’s not just the locals either. The animals have been acting equally strange. There's a wolf inside the clothing shop trying on suits, a goat standing (or trying to stand) on its hind legs, bleating out random words like a town crier while jingling a bell around its neck to get everyone's attention. Where you should find the local baker, suddenly they're replaced with a deer holding a paddle in its mouth to stir up a batch of brownies.

To top it all off, there's an eerie sense of deja vu no matter where you go or what you do. Didn't you just help that goblin with the wheelbarrow an hour ago? So why is it halfway across town again? You could have sworn you had to go and grab groceries, but your pantry is full like someone already had.

Up is Down, In is Out

Days pass and the oddities continue to make themselves more and more apparent. The sidewalks seem uneven and wobbly at times, threatening to toss people walking across them to the ground or even fling them into the air with a sudden violent ripple. Walking through the forest sees the leaves of the trees melting into green goo that sticks to your clothes, your hair, and your skin - potentially staining them green and leaving you in dire need of a bath. You can always wash off in the lake, of course, but even that is not free of the strangeness occurring in Visium. The water of Lake Omen has turned to lava, at least in color; although there is no heat radiating from it when one approaches. That, and the locals are still fishing in it without issue, save the fact that they keep pulling up fish with tophats on.

Speaking of fish - they're raining from the sky now (tophats or not) in all sorts of different colors, shapes, and sizes. Good news! They're still edible. Bad news, they're probably trying to sell you something.

If you do decide to try the fish or any other meal in town, especially those served by the locals, you'll find that it doesn't taste like much of anything and most certainly doesn't fill you up, at least not at first. Everything is bland and unappealing until left in the presence of dreamers - and the more you share the meal with, the faster the taste returns.

Dream Within a Dream Within a Dream Within a Dream Within

Even with Vaeros asleep, only a small portion of the labyrinth is still accessible. Those that attempt to explore will find sections made up of pillows and cushions, and no matter what time of day it is elsewhere, this portion of the labyrinth seems to be stuck in perpetual twilight. Explorers will also immediately feel drowsy, then lulled to sleep by the quiet singing whispered through the air like a lullaby. Anyone brave enough to try and rescue those poor souls from their impromptu naps would be wise to plug their noses and cover their ears with earmuffs to block out the sound.

At night, dreamers dream. They will be visited by the same melody heard in the labyrinth, though it is distant. They will also hear a woman telling them to spend more time together, to bond and create things together in order to soothe the effects of Vaeros' magic growing wild in his dreams. Dreamers will also have the ability to visit other's dreams, meeting in a dreamy light liminal space that will not feel so real when they awaken.

OOC

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Exactly, and who has time for that? Things are constantly shifting and changing in Somnius, I can't make the time for cleaning cobblestone or whatever!"

Besides, castles made her think of Belos, and she wasn't eager to visit that kind of dwelling anytime soon.

"Yeah. I do miss it, but making tea sweet will at least be enough. It'll have to do."

She is happy to have Eilonwy's company more than anything anyway.

"So. What's new?"

Eilonwy laughed. "It does take a lot of time, and really you can leave it alone for at least a few days."

She added some honey to her own tea once Luz was done and stirred it in as she spoke.

"I've been thinking about getting back into walking the forest more often. Not right this moment because things are.." Eilonwy trailed off and had a sip of her tea. "Well, with fish raining from the sky and trees looking like they're melting, I'm sure I can wait. But in the meantime it'd be nice to try more cooking, I think. What about yourself?"

Luz nodded, shaking her head. "Cottages are definitely better. I would have opted for a tree house, but having that would limit the room we have now, so that would be no good."

Luz took a sip of her tea, savoring it's relaxing taste before turning her attention back to Eilonwy.

"Yup, totally hear you. I wouldn't want to be walking around the forest right now myself. Cooking sounds nice enough though."

She smiled. "Ok, last month was a little crazy, but I've been dealing pretty well. I have this new friend Aubrey who's reserved but also pretty cool and strong as heck. Oh, and my girlfriend Amity's arrived!"

"They do seem more suited for one or two people. Maybe three at the most."

Eilonwy had some of the fruit as she listened and chased it with another drink of tea. "I don't recognize the name of your new friend, but a lot of reserved people can be very strong, I've found."

Her eyes lit up when Amity was mentioned specifically. "Has she? How nice for you both!"

"Exactly, and now there's four, which isn't even counting all of our Palisman! Well, three of them."

Amity still had to wait for Ghost.

Luz nodded. "She keeps to herself, I think. She's still getting the hang of this place. I'm trying to help where I can, but she is slowly getting popular."

Now Luz was beaming. "It is! I was lucky enough to have Willow and Hunter here, but with my girlfriend, I'm over the moon! Now I can show her all the awesome people I've met here, you included!"

"It sounds crowded, but in a good way."

Eilonwy had some more food and tea and smiled as Luz lit up. "You really do light up when you talk about her. But I'm not so awesome. It's good you all have each other- Wait, one of them is missing? Was it lost during everything that's been going on?"

"It is! We were all together on Earth before, this will only be a little different!"

Other than Hunter having a spotted memory and not even remembering what happened to his Palisman was a shock, but Luz at least preferred having Flapjack here and not gone.

"I disagree, but have it your way. Oh, um. Wait. Me, Hunter and Willow, with Stringbean, Flapjack and Clover, that's six, and my sweet potato makes seven! There should be an eighth, but Amity doesn't have Ghost back yet."

Eilonwy finished her bread and cheese, and had some more tea.

"I will, yes." Eilonwy answered with a giggle. "It's good you're all so used to it! Will you need to have more rooms added eventually? Or do you share rooms?"

Luz was still on hers, but she'd be done likely in the next few minutes.

"Oh, I made sure the rooms were added when Amity arrived. I had the crystals for it. We all have our own room, though I guess you could say that we share them with our Palismen?"

"Oh, that's good. I haven't used a lot of mine, come to think on it. I haven't been able to think of a lot of things I'd like. Do palismen need to sleep?" Eilonwy pictured Stringbean with a small blanket and pillow and smiled at the idea.

"That makes sense: if you live alone, it wouldn't really make much sense, would it?"

Luz giggled. "Honestly, not really, but she likes to imitate things I do, so when I go to sleep, she curls up near my head. I'm thinking of making a little spot for her to sleep though!"

"That's true."

Eilonwy nodded. "They both sound cute! I can see the appeal of having her sleep near your head, but a dedicated area could also be nice. Animals in Prydain like to sleep near humans, depending on the circumstances."

"I guess if we get one more person, we'd probably have to opt for a castle then."

It would be too weird though. She didn't need to be reminded of the last time things went down in a castle.

Granted, she didn't have a problem at the sleepover, but she wasn't living there.

"I don't mind her doing that at all! The pen would have to be pretty big though. Just so she doesn't feel fenced in. I learned that's one of the worst things an owner cam do to a fish when they take them as pets: they need a whole aquarium to be happy! So I don't want to make that mistake with Stringbean, even if she can just turn immobile when she wants to."

"Perhaps!"

Eilonwy grew up in a castle but she could have an idea of how different it could be.

She had some fruit and nodded. "Fish aren't usually kept as pets in Prydain that I know of, but I can't imagine keeping anything in something very small would be good for it." Because she couldn't help but wonder, Eilonwy asked-- "Does she ever alert you when she's ready to go to bed?"

"You tell me! I've only been in a castle a few dozen times, where you probably lived in one all your life!"

She assumed, anyway.

"It happens in my world all the time. Actually, fish are one of those pets that you can easily get at a pet store, depending on the size. As for Stringbean...actually, she tends to either turn into a staff when she wants to sleep, but other times she just curls up with me when I go to bed. Maybe she's trying to match me?"

"They're not all the same size, but yes there's a higher chance of more space than a cottage."

Luz wasn't wrong with that assumption.

"That would make sense- Gurgi isn't a pet or a palisman but he walks on his hind legs more than he walks on all fours. They both seem like they're just trying to match whatever fits the situation best. It's actually very cute, I think!"

"I don't think any of us can afford our own butlers, so we'd have to do all that cleaning. It would be a bit of a pain."

Luz would think about it though. Castles could hold a LOT of paintings.

"They are! Heck, Stringbean can literally shapeshift into whatever fits the situation best! That's partly how I got so good at turning into animals: I watched her do it!"

"Hours of work, yes."

And that was on a good day- sometimes it could take days to clean properly.

"I know I learn some things easier if I've seen them done first, she sounds like a good teacher!" It also just had to be fun to watch in general. "Speaking of, have you tried turning into anything new lately?"

Luz trembled with revulsion. The idea of cleaning for that long just sounded unpleasant. All of that missed leisurely time, just gone. No way that Luz could do something like that.

"It helps that you can hear your Palisman even when it sounds like they're just making animal sounds! I can actually understand Stringbean's hissing!"

She made a face. "Honestly, no. I've been mostly trying to concentrate on my other things. I haven't transformed in a few weeks."

It was hard, yes. There were days Eilonwy didn't enjoy it but she'd adapted for the most part. She had some more tea and listened.

"Oh, that makes it much easier! Do you ever just talk to each other? Gurgi likes to talk about almost anything."

She nodded. "I haven't studied topography in about the same amount of time. But my diary isn't going to go anywhere, so I suppose there's no rush." A few weeks of missed data wouldn't hurt anything, surely.

Luz was going to have to continue being happy with her non-castle cleaning existence. Sacrifices had to be made.

"It is! I had my doubts I'd even be able to do it, but Stringbean was talking to me as soon as she had a form! It was pretty great!"

It was also how she'd learned her precious Palisman was a snakeshifter!

"Exactly. I can't try to do too much. Otherwise, none of the things I'm trying to do is going to get any better!"

"How lovely!"

Gurgi had done pretty much the same from their first meeting, even if he wasn't a shapeshifter.

"That's a smart way of looking at it. It does feel like I don't make a lot of progress when I overwork myself."

Even if Eilonwy was used to overworking!

"Right?! I hadn't thought it would happen, since I wasn't born on the Boiling Isles like everyone else, but I guess the Palisman knows on their own who their partner is, and with their magic they make they bond pretty quickly!"

She nuzzled her snake pal, echoing Luz's sentiments with a happy hiss.

"Trust me, I had to be told that a few times myself, even here! But you'll see it work out for you, trust me."

Luz could have echoed that sentiment, but would likely have a few friends jump down her throat if she suggested Eilonwy should work through her stresses. She knew by now that was a bad idea.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

TDM #9

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I wish I had a pic with Luz's pajama pants, they are adorable

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(Wrap with next comment?)

Sure can! Thanks for the thread!

bet, always fun for these 2 to hang out!