The Fall of Passholdt [Closed]

[ding_bots_are_done]

Who: Sam Ertswhile primordial , Sarah Snowdon dontrunawayfromliving  , M'gann M'orzz  hello_mgann , and Fumi Kanno terminally_clever 
What: The trapezohedron is acting up again, and four lucky winners get a free trip to see the final days of Passholdt. That is unless they do something about it.
Where: The town of Passholdt
Warnings: Monsters, mad science, possibly revenants. Also bracket spam because I'm lazy.

[Wherever you were, whatever you were doing, you felt a sudden and strange pull. The next thing you know, a flash of light washes across your vision. When it clears, you find yourself next to the gate of a large, walled town nestled in between several high mountains. Behind you is a canyon, with a single bridge reaching across and connecting the town to the road of the other side. Looking up, you can see a sign above the gate. Passholdt.

The town itself is bustling with activity, people buying, selling, working, cleaning.... All the things that make up a normal day. Careful observation will reveal that both the architecture and clothing are old fashioned. Anyone with enough familiarity with history might place them in the late nineteenth century.

What do you do?]


{{OOC: Basically just tag away. I'll be keeping tabs on it, and whenever you reach something that requires my input (Like talking to townsfolk, exploring various areas in detail, etc.) I'll chime in. For the purposes of general roleplaying, feel free to assume that the town has all of the things a normal European town from the 1890's would have. The local specialty is fried creme. If there's any questions, hit me up on plurk at flutterpony. The plot here has several possible endings, depending on your choices. Enjoy~ }}

Comments

[terminally_clever]

[Fumi nods at the others, and seems less than pleased with Sam's account of his own abilities.]

Stay toward the back, then.

[Not that she's going to go out of her way to protect anyone but herself. MERITORIOUS ENDING, BITCHES.]

[primordial]

Oh...okay.

[He looks at the ground as if in defeat. THANKS FOR MAKING HIM FEEL WORSE ABOUT THESE THINGS, GOSH.]

So, um, are we going to start fighting now, or gather some information first?

[terminally_clever]

I suspect one will lead to the other in due course, but information gathering is a good starting point. That said, the most efficient way to discover exactly what we're dealing with is probably to bait one of them out.

[hello_mgann]

Before we go outside, give me a minute.

[M'gann looks down at the table in concentration. She is sweeping the people in the room to see what exactly they fear.]

Mind Reading Results!

[ding_bots_are_done]

[The foremost worry in their minds tonight is about people disappearing without a trace. Some of them townies, a lot of them travelers.

No one really knows what happened, but there are as many theories as there are people thinking about it. Some believe the unfortunate are being devoured by monsters, some think they've been abducted for use in terrible experiments, still others suspect more mundane things like robbers or serial killers. A few of the more elderly patrons fear someone they think of only as 'The Other.'

Most of them seem to agree on one thing though, whatever is going on can probably be blamed on a spark. Not that they'd be crazy enough to accuse one.]

Re: Mind Reading Results!

[hello_mgann]

[M'gann looks up after a minute.]

Most people here seem to think that the cause of all of this is something called a spark.

[dontrunawayfromliving]

Sarah blinks.

"A...spark?"

[terminally_clever]

An individual possessing both advanced and intuitive understanding of the natural laws that govern reality, and the ability to apply them in innovative ways that flagrantly violate established scientific principles for no readily discernible reason.

In other words, it's a polite term employed in this world for what every other world would simply refer to as a 'mad scientist.'

[dontrunawayfromliving]

Sarah closes her eyes and lets out a little groan at this piece of information.

"Not again."

[primordial]

Oh, Agatha was a spark! I talked to her about it...I mean, she didn't seem like a mad scientist, she was kind of nice.

Maybe it's a spark gone bad...?

[And he turns to Sarah.] What do you mean, "not again"?

[dontrunawayfromliving]

"Long story."

A slight pause.

"Short version: last time I dealt with a mad scientist, he was trying to end the world."

[terminally_clever]

[Fumi frowns, folding her arms.]

That's rather shortsighted and counterproductive, unless the plan includes a way to replace the world with something else.

[dontrunawayfromliving]

A shrug.

"In the end it turned out to be an elaborate suicide plan, really."

[terminally_clever]

Then in that case it was unnecessarily complicated and overdramatic.

[dontrunawayfromliving]

"That pretty much defines most mad scientists, yeah."

[terminally_clever]

That aside, let's decide on our plan. I would like to propose we use Sam as bait to draw our enemy out.

[primordial]

[DON'T MIND HIM ALMOST CHOKING FROM THE SHOCK WOW YOU GUYS]

W-W-WHAT?! No! No, no, no, that's a horrible idea!! Are you mad?!?!

[dontrunawayfromliving]

Sarah frowns a little.

"Human bait almost never works, though. And even if it did, we could only use Sam once before it became obvious he was a trap."

[terminally_clever]

If either of you have a better idea of how to make use of his talents, I'm all ears.

[dontrunawayfromliving]

Sarah looks critically at Sam for a few seconds before reaching over and pushing his bangs out of his face.

"...I think I have an idea, actually. If whatever it is is nocturnal and nobody's seen it, it's probably picking off isolated targets...by this point, anyone that needs to be outside at night are probably traveling in groups."

A slight pause as she glances at Fumi and M'gann.

"We've got three attractive women here, and a guy that can pass for a reasonably cute girl. I'm pretty sure we could pull off disguising ourselves as a group of streetwalkers."

[primordial]

"Yeah, no, don't I get a say in this?! Hello?"

The sudden intrusion into his personal space makes him back up slightly and whimper - get a good look at those dark blue eyes, ladies, they'll be disappearing under that mop of hair once Sarah puts her hand down.

"You...you've got to be kidding." He glances at the rest of the group, looking like he's on the verge of nervous laughter. "You're not seriously suggesting that I...I dress like a girl. Right?"

[hello_mgann]

[M'gann looks reassuringly at Sam]

I'm sure you'll make a very pretty girl ... or a very unconvincing girl, I'm sorry I don't know which one is preferable.

Anyway, I like the disguise idea and I have a little trick that could help.

[M'gann closes her eyes. The next time she speaks to the group she is using her powers to speak into their minds.]

We could communicate like this. It's basically a mental walkie-talkie. You guys can talk to me and each other without making a sound. Oh, and don't worry about your secrets, I'm not reading your mind when I do this.

[terminally_clever]

[Fumi's eyebrow twitches three times. Once at Sarah's idea, once at Sam's refusal to cooperate with anything, and again at the sensation of someone talking directly into her mind. This is getting to be a little much.]

Is the ruse really necessary? It strikes me as nothing more than pointless pageantry.

[hello_mgann]

Now that you mention it, this plan does seem a bit overcomplicated. Really if anyone should be bait it should be me. I can shape shift and keep you guys informed of what's going on. I don't necessarily want to be bait for a mad scientist, but I'll do it for the good of the group.

[dontrunawayfromliving]

Sarah nods.

"If you're willing, then."