WEEK 4

[strangerpeople]

WEEK 4

[After the meeting, Lilac gives everyone a small vial of something red. Those who left the meeting receive it from the rats on the crew. She gives instructions as to how to take it. Take in a drink, preferably tea. Drink it slowly. Make sure you can get to your bed once you finish. The headache will come quickly.

Nevertheless, even as everyone slips into sleep, they are visited once more by the Conductor in what must have been a dream. Or was it? It's not clear.

She is quiet as she speaks, looking out the windows, even though the view is obscured by the glass.

"I know you think me as a monster. Maybe I am after all these years. I have no illusions. But I cannot regret the things I've done.

"Nor can I regret the Bazaar...it was so wonderful. It opened my eyes to the truth of things and opened doors I never could have seen on my own. It was the first time I felt true love for another. I wasn't the only one-my daughter, too, passed through the Wicket. Saw the sea more sunless within the Bazaar's body. Learned as I learned. She sought to rival me in symbols, in marking skin."

She closes her eyes.

"She is dead now, of course. Everyone I knew in the Neath-on our Earth-is. Well. Almost everyone. London endures, naturally. But the Echo Bazaar...it's beautiful promise...it's gone. The Seventh City will never fall, and it's Message will forever remain undelivered. Of all the creatures in the universe who might remember it, I am alone in honoring it.

"Perhaps it's noble. Perhaps it's foolish. In any case, maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe it's the thought that's important. As long as I am here, there is yet a possibility that the deed may be finished, somehow.

"Still, I wonder. Maybe you have the answer.

What happens to a Message, when neither the sender and receiver exist anymore?"




As the day dawns, everyone wakes up to the sound of howling winds and darkness. Their head hurts, but they do have a new memory to accompany the ache. They are also at a new port. It is a dark place, teetering on the edge of safe space and the unknown in between void, where those who enter rarely return. Or, so you have to assume, right? Either way, that blackness on the deep horizon doesn't look particularly fun to try to drive through.

There is a legitimate fear in Lilac's expression that betrays her for the first time, as she lets everyone disembark, including the unicorn and the young man, who quickly jump onto another train to get away from this place. She also refuses to leave the train. She does leave you with a fair warning.

The Synod of Carcels is dangerous, in its own way, and everyone can feel it. Everyone can feel something hanging in the air. It's not natural. It's bending reality. It's also not something that started with you or your arrival. Yet it threatens to become that way, to become part of you. You can feel the temptation gnaw at you. You can hear the winds whisper of it. There is a hunger here-and knowledge as well.

The question, of course, is whether the price to uncover those things is worth it-and what will be found here with the price that is paid. But as the Conductor said-a reckoning cannot be postponed. Not forever.


There are eleven strangers left in this place.]

((IMPORTANT OOC NOTE: This week and it's investigations involve major Fallen London spoilers, in particular spoilers regarding Seeking Mr. Eaten's Name and one of it's endings. If you, as a player here, are playing Fallen London and do not wish to be spoiled, let us know, and we will make sure you are not given any ending spoilers to the best of our ability. We will also be marking spoiler-filled comments with tags, and we request that our players do likewise, in consideration for those who might look through this post in the future.

With that said, have fun, and remember-all shall be well.))

Comments

should I just start putting CNTUAW, SHE DONE WENT FULL DRACULA, Y'ALL above these

[charmingheroine]

[She doesn't seek. But she does want to learn.

Charlotte wants to learn how to make eternal life a punishment. She wants the Conductor to witness the death of what's left of her world, and remain in the ruin, alone. Forever, without the gift of oblivion. She wants her gaoler to suffer exactly as she is now convinced will be her own fate, and she wants to know how it can be by her hand, though she doesn't know where to begin to look for instructions.

That isn't a safe yearning to have in this particular corner of hell, is it?]

[icanhearscreams]

[There's a brief flash of yellowish light, like a floating orb, before a voice calls out.]

- someone there?

[charmingheroine]

I am, who are you?!

[Great. Voices in the dark. Like being at an unfamiliar place during a blackout. This is fine. She's fine.

(She's not.)]

[icanhearscreams]

[The image of a young boy fades in, wearing a jacket. It's hard to see since he's slightly translucent, but it seems to be stained with dirt and something else.]

Is this the train group? Or am I totally off?

[charmingheroine]

We're a train group, if you mean "a bunch of people ripped out of their own worlds and put on one". There was another one, some of us were in that, but... who are you and how do you know about us?!

[She's letting herself hope this is a way out. This is not going to end well.]

[icanhearscreams]

The one with the murders? Okay. Your dead people ended up with us. We were in a mansion with murders. I figured this was different than the last time we were summoned. What's going on over there?

[charmingheroine]

So you're a ghost? Funny, the last one I met was blue... anyway, the short version? This world is full of monsters. I want to kill them all, and their sun, and leave their empress and our jailer in the dark together.

[She is very matter of fact about this.]

They could have stopped it, there were enough, but instead they all just let themselves be dragged along....

[icanhearscreams]

... You sound like someone I knew. You and Eric would get along...

Anyway, you're going to have to slow down - I only know a little bit about what's going on over there. How many of you are left? Is there anyone particularly dangerous who's trying to kill people without a motive?

[charmingheroine]

There are eleven. I don't think any of us are far gone enough to kill for no reason, and the thing that's jerking our chains is too powerful to take down with what we've been left with. Can you help us!?

[icanhearscreams]

I got attacked by one of our own within a week, so who knows. I'm not sure what I can do to help, but I can pass on messages to people on this side if you want.

If you're moving around, it's possible you're out on another island, but it's impossible to tell which way to go... is there any sort of distinguishing feature where you are that someone might see from far away?

[charmingheroine]

It's just dark here. There are candles... a lot of wind blowing through... I'm sorry, it's the least distinctive place we've been so far.

[She looks conflicted, thinking about messages. She starts to say something and then stops, three times, and then - ]

Tell Beatrice Dracula was a warm-up, and I'm going to make the bitch watch her precious Sun flicker out. She'll know what I mean. Everyone else... tell them we're trying to keep Minato here but he doesn't make it easy.

[Her smile is sad, but not brittle or forced.]

[icanhearscreams]

It’s not like you steered the train, I guess.

... Why are you trying to kill the Sun? That’s dumb.

[charmingheroine]

It's not an actual star, it's something - it's green, for one, and its focused light drives people insane before turning them into glass or crystal. I haven't touched any of the pieces left, so... I'm not sure which. Again, she will know what I mean, if she's there with you.

[7_0_7]

dududu... dududu....

[another little attention-grabbing noise comes to Charlotte's ear, although this time nothing is before her eyes. Seems like this one's trying to pretend to be a ringing telephone, actually.

It totally just sounds like a guy, though.]

[charmingheroine]

[She stares off into the "ringing" void, and then sighs heavily.]

Yes, hello?

[7_0_7]

[A clearly fake robotic voice.]

Greetings! You have reached the 707 multiversal hotline! If trapped in a death game, please say... one! To report information on disappearing worlds, please say... two! To speak to an angelic representative, stay on the line...

[charmingheroine]

[Very flatly, as she's not familiar with the format but knows she's the butt of a joke -]

One.

[7_0_7]

[It's more like he's telling the joke to himself regardless of whoever is responding. And apparently, now that he knows who is answering, he's willing to drop it.]

- Ah, that explains why the frequencies lined up. Well, sorry! I'll still take this chance to see outside the dark matter. In exchange, I can let you know if your dead have shown up here... See, it's starting to seem like - like there are way more of these games than we have in our pocket, so I can't be sure.

[charmingheroine]

"Dark matter?"

[Sorry, she's thinking alchemy, not physics. Couple of decades too early for the latter to have put forth that theory.]

I'm - if you're another ghost, I spoke to someone else who said they were with him. But if you mean my dead specifically... they were prisoners. I really don't think they'd be willing to keep people who wouldn't ever stop fighting alive.

[7_0_7]

Depends on what they really want... No one here was in prison! But maybe they just didn't get pulled into the dark matter- right! The dark matter! That's my nickname for the thing surrounding us. I arrived here in weird circumstances. I'm not a ghost - I'm a special agent. The boss lady and I infiltrated a patch of darkness in the space between worlds looking for a lost version of earth and here we are... gah... It's like a roach motel in here! For Souls! All frequencies locked down!

[charmingheroine]

I hate admitting this, but I only understood about half of that. If you're looking for a missing Earth you might be in the right place, though. Our captor let slip that this world is ripping other ones apart and pulling in some pieces.

[Could this be a cruel prank by a local? Maybe. Likely. But if it isn't - she has to treat it like it could be a way out. She can't not.]

[7_0_7]

Just pieces? That sounds like a different problem.... but good to know...

[Unfortunately he's not proving himself real yet. The voice trails off as he thinks about this, until suddenly he gasps.]

... Wait, wait wait. That sounds remarkably familiar!

[charmingheroine]

Familiar how? Please, I don't - this place doesn't make any kind of sense, if you've heard of this or read of this happening before please tell me!

[She is way more frantic than the icon conveys, but it's as close as canon art ever got.]

[7_0_7]

It's something we've seen happening in the place we're in now - if it's just pieces, then...

[He clears his throat, because this is a lot.]

Any time someone from the train has come here, a new island crops up amid the darkness, they're places that are familiar with the people here. I just escorted Beatrice to her "Rokkenjima" the other day.

[charmingheroine]

Oh God.

[She actually does fall down, then, her knees giving out at the thought. Islands, like the other ghost had said... sure, if this is radio anyone could be listening, but that kind of coordination between pranksters... it wouldn't make sense to use that detail.]

I... God, if it's someplace the one who died has clear memories of, then... I have to stay alive no matter what, you'll all be in danger there if I don't. But if he's dead then you will be anyway, I'm - oh God, tell me there isn't some chunk of Austin Texas floating out wherever you're broadcasting from! Please! Or... or if there is it's not Hyde Park, right? The hospital and the country club and a big yellow house right between them, it isn't that! It isn't, it can't be that! And it can't be the Castle, either, it - if it is you have to stay clear of there, please!

[But the answer will have to be "no, it's there" either way, because he has to be dead. Nothing makes sense otherwise. EIther he's dead and this isn't real or this is real and he isn't dead and she honestly isn't sure what's worse, and she's furious either way because her damned eyes are betraying her again, and her voice too....]