methuselah (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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singillppl2023-08-10 12:13 am
singmod) wrote in singillppl2023-08-10 12:13 am
Entry tags:
August 2023 Test Drive Meme
AUGUST 2023 TDM
PROMPT ONE — ARRIVAL: METHUSELAH'S FEAST: A group of newcomers find themselves lost in the frozen wilds and vulnerable to the dangers of nature. With luck, they make it to the town of Milton, and to a friendly face offering food, warmth and shelter.
PROMPT TWO — HOPE NOBODY NEEDS THIS ANYMORE: Once recovered from their journey, newcomers are free to explore the town of Milton for supplies and find any signs of the townsfolk.
PROMPT THREE — THE SIREN OF MILTON BASIN: A mysterious woman haunts the frozen lake of the Milton Basin, trying to lure newcomers to their deaths.
ARRIVAL: METHUSELAH'S FEAST
WHEN: Day One.
WHERE: Milton, Milton Outskirts.
CONTENT WARNINGS: potential animal attacks, potential injuries, potential cold injuries/hyperthermia risk.
’You are the Interloper. You are not part of nature’s design.’
It’s the last thing you hear. A dark, deep voice. Impossibly ancient. You feel afraid. Maybe you’re dreaming, maybe you’re wide awake. You saw the lights, and then your world went dark. But you hear it in the blackness, you won’t forget those words.
You awaken. You are not where you were before. It’s different for everyone, there doesn’t seem to be much of a pattern in where you find yourself. You may open your eyes to find yourself in a cold, dim and dank cabin. The air is stale, dust hangs in the rays of weak sunlight that shine through the tiny windows. Someone lived here once, but they aren’t to be found. You look around, it seems like no one has been here in several days, maybe longer. The fire is cold, the dishes in the sink are a little mouldy. It is quiet. The wood creaks around you. Or perhaps you may awaken to find yourself shivering in the yawning maw of a cave, the freezing stone below you. Or maybe you’re unfortunate enough to sit up to find yourself lying in the snow, in the middle of the wilderness. Snow lies thick around you. It’s freezing out. You haven’t felt a cold like this before in your entire life. Cruel and biting. You have no idea where you are, and what’s worse — you are completely alone.
You may feel different, too. Any powers or magics you may have feel... absent. Disconnected. Things that may not have affected you previously now do. Something in you has changed.
You know you can’t stay where you are. You’ll need to move, try to work out where you are and how you came to be here. So you walk, head out into the unknown, in hope of finding a trail or a road. You’ll find one soon enough. It’s here you may find someone else in the same boat as yourself, equally freezing and confused. You’ll both need to keep going. It won’t be easy. You hear howls of wolves around you, and the terrain is difficult: slips and falls are likely. You’re completely vulnerable out here in the open.
But it won’t be long until you see it: the lazy trail of smoke rising in the air. Fire.
Follow it, and soon enough the way you’ve taken will certainly become a path or road. Unfolding before you in the mountainous forests, you’ll see the most welcome of sights: a small mining town tucked up in the valley. Battered, rusted road signs will direct to “MILTON, POP. 947”. You’re almost there, you keep going, and it looks like other people have had the same idea as you. As you head into the outskirts and further into town, you’ll find it’s a little easier to walk but the cold has gripped you hard. You’ll find the buildings, both shops and homes, are dark and lifeless, some of them are boarded up. Other than those heading in the same direction, towards the smoke, you won’t find any townsfolk coming to greet you, or even looking at you from behind curtains. … Where is everyone?
Towards the center of town, you’ll find the building from which the smoke rises: a school-house of sorts, or some kind of community hall. Perhaps both. You’ll find more and more people all drawn to this place, each and every one of them in the same position as yourself (and your companion, if you’ve found one). Some are in worse states than others: some are bloodied, nursing bite wounds or cuts; others might have some other kind of injury sustained in the journey here from falls. Others may look as if they could faint from the cold at any second.
The door opens, and you’re greeted by the gnarled, wizened face of an elderly man, dressed in thick furs. He has a kind face. He smiles warmly, and with pity, ushering you in with haste.
“It seems like a great deal of you have come.” he muses finally. “I am Methuselah. I welcome you Newcomer, although I’m sorry for how you’ve come to find yourself here. Please, warm yourselves. Eat. Get your bearings. Mother Nature has not been kind to you.”
The room is dim, lit mostly by the weak natural daylight through the windows. A roaring fire sits at one end of the huge hall. It crackles, bright and cheerful…. and warm. Even as big as this place is, the room is pleasantly warm. You’ll also find basic cots set up down one side of the hall, places to rest for a moment and get your bearings, or just trying to recover from the cold or any injuries. Down the other side are tables and chairs, and long, foldable tables laden with food, drinks and bottled water similar to one might find at a soup kitchen.
There are canisters with hot herbal teas and coffee, along with soup and stew and trays of charred moose, deer and rabbit meats, instant mashed potatoes, and tinned vegetables. It’s very basic, but it’s hot and filling. A feast. The old man has been busy. And Methuselah will continue to busy himself, still; there is plenty to do. He will fetch blankets, tend to wounds, serve food and drinks. He does not have much time to talk. More and more people seem to be coming in from the cold. He will not stop to sit and rest until everyone is seen to, taking up a place by the fire to gaze silently into its flames. He is troubled, thoughtful.
If you ask him where you are, he will simply respond: “This is Milton, of the Northern Territories.”
If you ask how you came to be here, he will shake his head: “Something has changed. The sky, it was… full of light. The Flare. I felt you coming, a great arrival. But I cannot say for certain how, or why you are here.”
He is regretful, genuinely so. He wishes he had more answers for you, but he does not. Instead he will simply insist you rest, get warm and eat. There is plenty to go around. Eventually, when you feel well enough, Methuselah will gesture to the door: “When you are ready and able, explore the town. Many left, others could not make it out. I have found no one but the dead. They will have no use of the place now, perhaps you might in the meantime.”
HOPE NOBODY NEEDS THIS ANYMORE
WHEN: First couple of weeks since arrival.
WHERE: Milton.
CONTENT WARNINGS: frozen dead bodies, unexplained deaths, suicide, murder.
Other than Methuselah in the Hall, the town of Milton is void of life. While not a particularly large town, there’s a few stores and even a gas station. Life here is rustic. Function over form. Homes are simple but sturdy and warm, it’s a rugged place and one can easily deduce that the folk living here led simple, self-sufficient lives.
Commercial buildings and stores of note include a bank and post office, a hunting/fishing supply store, a grocery store, and a clothing store. There is even a church just on the outskirts of town. The buildings are ripe for picking, with most of them still with the doors unlocked, including the residential buildings. Others are locked, but can be broken into easily enough. A few are even trickier, with some of them boarded up or with entrances blocked. In terms of contents, a third of the residential buildings seem to be almost empty, as if the owners moved out long ago. There might still be things left behind of use: old, warm clothes good for the wintery weather, tools and cooking utensils — but little in terms of food. Even if the former residents move some time ago, they didn’t completely empty their homes.
Most of the homes in Milton seem to be left as if the owner stepped out only a short while ago, and with very little disturbance. Some houses, however, seem to be abandoned in a hurry, with a mess of items strewn about in some last-minute dash to grab essentials: keys, identification, treasured personal items, supplies for a quick exit. Cupboards are typically filled with an abundance of canned goods, and some chilled goods might have survived in the cold weather within the fridge-freezers, but it might be a gamble if one wants to try and eat them. Any and all electronics within homes: televisions, computers, mobile-phones — although dated, will all appear cracked and damaged, and will not function or turn out at all. The same will go for any vehicles around the town: there is no hope of starting any of them.
Diaries and journals kept by the former residents may remark on a change in the weather, with the cold and harsh climate becoming more hostile as of late. Others remark strange lights in the skies, dating several weeks or so ago, strange noises in the air, issues with power and electrical items. Some make mentions of changes to the wildlife, with wolves coming close to the town even when they had never done so before. One or two mention problems on the Mainland, with increasing difficulty of reaching out to loved ones who don’t live in the Northern Territories, or deliveries being unable to arrive. The growing trend is that something odd and terrible has been happening, although no one can truly explain what, and the problems have been growing increasingly worse and worse up to the final entries. You might note that the actual years and dates might not line up with your own: the current year given in these entries is 2014.
The newcomers are free to take over these homes, if they wish. No one appears to be stopping them, and even Methuselah seems to shrug about moving in. And as he’d mentioned, he has found no one but the dead: and plenty of them can be found.
Bodies of the town’s former residence can be found scattered over the town. In homes, in stores, out in the snow. They appear still relatively fresh, although it may be hard to tell if it’s from the cold or if it’s from very little time passing. Most appear to have died from cold exposure, some appear to have simply dropped dead on the spot. Others may be found with a gun in hand. Some, worryingly, appear to have perished by another’s hand. You won’t find the entirety of the town’s population, but there’ll be at least several dozen. Men, women, children.
Methuselah seems to have begun laying the dead to rest, but there’s too many for one man to do. Maybe you can work out what to do with them, try to bury them in their backyards, or try to take them to the churchyard.
THE SIREN OF MILTON BASIN
WHEN: Until the next Aurora.
WHERE: Milton Basin.
CONTENT WARNINGS: mental manipulation, malevolent mythical creatures, falling through ice, attempted drowning/possible successful drowning, potential character death.
Those who venture further south of the town will find themselves traversing the steep, winding paths down towards the Milton Basin. The way down is treacherous, but if enough care is taken you should be able to make it down in one piece. The water is just about completely frozen over down here, thick and sturdy enough to walk over for the most part. Within the Basin there’s more wildlife to be found: deer and rabbit are plenty. And there’s even plenty of foragables, too.
Out on the water are two small ice-fishing cabins, enough to fit one or two people inside comfortably, which hold a few forgotten supplies to try out some ice-fishing if you want to see if anything bites. Both even hold little log burners to keep warm. An old hunter’s shack can be found along the water’s edge, for those not quite brave enough to travel out onto the ice, to take shelter in for when the weather gets a little too difficult, with an old log burner still working within it.
But it’s calm down here, for the most part. Peaceful even. It’s an excellent place for fishing and hunting, and a little more sheltered from the freezing winds.
Until you hear the voice. Something soft and feminine, echoing across the ice. The Basin helps to amplify the sound, and for a long time you can’t quite be sure of where exactly it’s coming from. It’s singing, she is singing. Something old, in a language you can’t quite understand. Maybe it’s not even a language at all, but simply melodic vocalizations. It’s... beautiful, you’ve never heard anything like it before in your life.
And then you see her: a woman standing upon the frozen waters of the Basin. You realise she’s probably the most beautiful woman you’ve ever seen in your life, even if you can’t quite even begin to describe her. She appears different to everyone who beholds her, some one might see her hair is long and dark, others might see her with neat red curls. Some swear her skin is dark and rich, that looks almost plum when the light hits it just so, others claim it to be cool-toned that glistens like sunlight on snow. Whatever someone might find aesthetically pleasing is how she’ll appear, and even then to describe her to others will bring you at a loss for words. And she’s singing… to you, for you.
You’re compelled to go to her, although you can’t explain why. You’re drawn to approach her, to hear her better, see her better. Your feet carry you onto the ice, out into the midst of the Basin. You ignore the calls of everyone and anyone around you, fixated on the woman before you. She smiles when you’re close enough, beckons you a little closer.
… Then everything changes. Without warning, the woman leaps for you, her face contorting into something hideous, mouth opening to scream to reveal rows upon rows of tiny, needle-like teeth. She collides with you, and the force (paired with the slippery ice below you) is enough to send you off your feet. As you fall back, the ice cracks beneath you with an almighty sound, plunging you into the frigid depths below.
The woman fights to put you beneath the water’s surface, those needle-like teeth bared like some ferocious beast. She can be fought off easily enough, but she might just drown you before you’re able to. If you’re lucky, someone might be able to help pull you out. Tools or weapons made of iron or silver are especially harmful to her.
Once you’re pulled from the water, getting somewhere warm will be the utmost priority — otherwise the cold will kill you quicker than the woman would. The woman, you’ll find, will have vanished, and the ice where you’d fallen will have restored itself, as if it had never been broken at all.
FAQs
1. Items characters have brought from home can be found either strewn around them when they awaken, or in the community hall — as if someone left them out for them to collect. Methuselah will not know how they got there, and will be quite bemused by the happenings.
2. Reminder that all characters are now depowered upon arrival. They can choose not to notice it at first, or can immediately sense something is different about them.
3. If asked any personal questions, Methuselah will smile and say "Oh, you don't want to know about an old man like me. But I have lived all over in these parts for all my life." He will be more concerned with trying to help Newcomers, and is genuinely concerned for them and their well-being.
4. If asked how he knew that the Newcomers were arriving, he concedes that although it is a strange thing to know, it is much like how one knows a storm is coming.
1. Characters are welcome to take up residency in any of the homes of Milton. Methuselah will strongly advise characters to leave a huge, dilapidated house — known as Milton House — well alone, due to extensive fire damage.
2. More information about Milton can be found here.
1. Characters with hearing impairments will not be susceptible to the Siren's song, or may only be somewhat susceptible depending, but may be entranced to a degree by looking at the Siren. However, this will be far easier to snap out of.
2. The Siren cannot be killed, only fought off. She will disappear for a length of time to recover before she attempts to lure her next victim.
no subject
But he raises his hands in surrender, to show that he means no harm, and tugs his makeshift hood back as well so Little can see him better. He shivers again, as the chill bites at his face.]
I was born in Swansea and I made a home in London. [His voice is dry but his wit is still quick and friendly. He doesn’t want a fight, not right now, when he’s wearing little more than a blanket and Little has a coat that Kenway sorely needs.] I reckon that’s not what you were asking, though, so—I woke up in a cabin, not far from here. All I found was this blanket.
[He lets his hands drop, looks Little over. A man of the Navy, Kenway thinks—one of some significant rank, although he can’t quite be sure what. Wherever he was, though, it was already bloody cold, since he’s brought a coat along with him.]
I mean you no harm, mate. [His teeth chatter from the cold, and he quickly flips his hood back up, mostly just to protect his face from the chill wind.] I don’t even have anything I can do harm with.
no subject
Little hesitates, giving the man his focus as he listens with sincerity to his words. To wake in this landscape with nothing but a tattered blanket.... his body aches at the mere thought, and he thinks of all the men who have had to have parts cut off from them as their bodies froze and rotted away. (Not him. He has lost no fingers or toes, he has been kept warm longer than most others, as first lieutenant. Neither have his teeth loosed and fell from his skull, for he's known about the tainted food longer than the other men, been avoiding eating the worst of it. He has not begun to degenerate the way they have. The guilt stays in him like a living beast, scraping its claws against the lining of his belly.)
Edward stares, uneasy in the face of this man pleading for— for warmth. That's all he asks for, isn't it? But Little's nature remains suspicious; this could be a trick, somehow this man may have.... joined up with Hickey and his men, may mean to rob him of his warm clothes the second he lets his guard down.
(What else can he do? Walk away from him? Leave him to meet a gruesome fate, one way or another? He won't survive long like that, with his core largely exposed; he needs padding.)
Little's head turns slowly to one side and then the other, searching the white abyss for any signs of an ambush. But there's nothing, not unless Hickey's men are hiding beneath the snow itself. Perhaps it's foolish. Perhaps he will be killed for this. (Perhaps it's what he deserves.) The lieutenant begins to peel his coat from his body. Though parting with extra warmth brings him no joy, his clothing beneath is still quite warm, doubles of layers, England's finest. This is the only way both of them have a chance at surviving this place.
Little hesitates a moment longer before he nods his head slightly and reaches to hold the coat out to the man. Even with the coat, he'll likely be cold, with those pants and shoes, but... but it might still save his life. ]
Here. Button it up quick, so your core can get warmed.
no subject
It’s an odd thing, to hope he seems so pitiful that someone gives in to his request. Usually he relies on intimidation, something he learned from Blackbeard in the bad old days. Years ago, now. He wonders at how it feels like a lifetime ago, like the man who'd known Blackbeard is a different one from who he is now. Then Little starts to peel his coat off, and Kenway breathes out a relieved sigh.
He takes the coat with no small amount of gratitude, and buttons it up as quick as he can, with his fingers trembling from the cold. It helps, much better than the blanket ever did, and between this warm coat and the tattered blanket he looks vaguely more like a rugged survivor now than the shirtless madman from five minutes ago.]
Thank you. [It’s sincere, and relieved. Kenway truly was not looking forward to having to trudge through the snow with only a blanket for warmth. He’s still not looking forward to it, since he’s only wearing house shoes, but he’s not about to ask Little for his boots as well.
He’ll just have to make do with what he does have, and hey, in the long run, house shoes are better protection than nothing at all. He fiddles with the sleeves, looks at Little with a slight, tired smile.] My name’s Edward. Might I know my savior’s name?
no subject
It doesn't make up for what horrors he's committed, what shames he carries with him now, he knows that, but it reaches through and touches something within the lieutenant. (Perhaps he's truly this weak-willed, so vulnerable to the concept, so easy to manipulate. This man could still knock him over the head suddenly, steal the rest of his clothes; Little may have just set himself up to be taken advantage of.)
....And yet no part of him regrets letting this shuddering man borrow his coat.
He tips his head forward in a slight nod, awkward around people the way he always has been, and awkward in himself, in the mixture of happiness and ache he feels. But he actually (almost) smiles at that, the slightest tug of mouth and glint of eye. ]
It seems we will share more than simply clothing. I am also Edward— Edward Little. [ Saviour. It isn't a term he deserves, but his heart glows quietly all the same. He pauses, before offering a hand to shake — a more formal greeting. As he does, he looks down to the other's cold hands, and then draws in a soft hiss of breath as he'll begin to peel off his gloves, as well. ]
You might also take these, for some time. Restore some warmth to your extremities.
no subject
A flush of embarrassment creeps up Kenway’s spine. He owes the man his life for this, but he has little to give but a tattered blanket. He can’t even offer up a favor, lacking any weapon or useful tool. It pricks at his pride something fierce, but he swallows it down, as much of it as he can stand. They both need to survive this first and get to the nearest sign of civilization. After they’ve done that and he’s found nicer clothes, he’ll see about replacing the coat he borrowed.
And the gloves, too, because as Kenway sticks out his hand, Little hisses and starts to peel his gloves off.]
Call me Kenway, then. [Softer:] You’re certain? I’m happy to take the gloves, but I’ve nothing to give in return.
[A beat. Lighter, to put Little at ease:] Unless you want the blanket. If you do, I won’t blame you, it does look rather fetching from a distance, flapping in the breeze. [Up close, it is very clearly on its last legs as a blanket, bedraggled and tattered.]
no subject
(A man who could die without his interference, he won't forget that fact, stomach remaining a tight knot of unpleasant ache and guilt.) ]
Please, nothing in return is needed.
[ Without his greatcoat, he's still in considerably warmer clothing than his poor companion. A thick jumper, a tight waistcoat on top of that, keeping his core warmed. But his brows are lifting slightly at that next part, clearly meant as a light-hearted, almost playful remark. Little is.... severe by default (uptight, some may say) and socially awkward at the best of times; it takes him a moment to respond, an odd pause, looking mildly taken aback. (Sorry Kenway, he's so much fun at parties...) ]
No, please, you keep that too, Mr. Kenway. I dare say you could use all the warmth you can get.
It is also wise to keep moving. Keep the blood flowing. Let us go, together.