oh we never know where life will take us

[reddosmod]

FINAL EVENT

Due to the cyclical nature of Trench, prompts from the PREVIOUS JULY are available for use again. Please note when you are using this years prompts vs last years prompts when plotting or writing top-levels to avoid confusion.

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
Prompt One
[Image One: A sea split in two. ]
[Image Two: Two hands reaching for each other across a map. ]

Prompt Two
[Image One: A person standing on a foggy cliff. ]
[Image Two: A compass. ]

[NAVIGATION]

Prompt 1 • Prompt 2 • Plotting • Newsletter

[JUMP TO COMMENTS]

A TIME TO LEAVE

WHEN: GOING FORWARD
WHERE: ALL OF TRENCH; THE OCEAN
CONTENT WARNINGS: N/A

---

Without a magic tie stay to the city, the question that hangs in the air is... What keeps you here? It's a question that some might find easier to answer than others, and one that some might not have an answer to at all. Maybe the item you receievd from the Reckoning doesn't feel authentic in its promises. Perhaps people are still unsure that they can truly, safely leave. After all, the city and the magic that has influenced it over the years haven't exactly made themselves trustworthy.

But all things come to an end eventually, don't they? There's a peace that might come over some Sleepers when they realize that it's finally time to depart. An acceptance that everything will be okay. The people you love in Trench will always be there and now you hold in your posession something that can always bring you back to them. Something that will tie you to the life you've known here, the one you built month after month as you laughed, cried, suffered, and rejoiced with those around you. You will never have to truly let it all go.

At the beginning of her reigning month, the Reckoning can be seen down by the waters. She lifts her blade high, before swinging it down into ocean, just as she did before. The waters part, sending a clear path between them, allowing for a way to the gates between worlds for those who do not wish to make the journey in their squid forms. It is a long path, a steep hill that goes deep into the depths. But the water never seems as though it will come crashing in. The creatures that swim in the ocean seem to understand the need to turn around when they get to the wall. It makes for quite the view while you make your journey.

Friends can join you on your walk. At the end of the long path, there's an entrance to what looks like a cave. There's a warmth that comes from it, a familiarity, and you know this is the way home. Your companions can no longer be by your side after this, unless you are both from the same world and the same time. This is where you can say your truly final goodbyes. No matter how hard they may be, you know the time is right.

Safe travels, Sleeper. We hope to see you again soon.

[JUMP TO TOP] • [JUMP TO COMMENTS]

A REASON TO STAY

WHEN: GOING FORWARD
WHERE: ALL OF TRENCH AND BEYOND
CONTENT WARNINGS: N/A

---

For every person who could not answer their question on staying, there will be just as many who can likely think of a few reasons to stick around, even if only for a little longer. There is no compulsion to stick to any city, any safespot created by humans or Pthumerians. Same as for those who have chosen to leave for home, you who stay can now feel free to choose to leave for the open world. Perhaps you will choose one of the new settlements that have been offered to Sleepers through the Pthumerians. Or, perhaps, you will choose to reject the safety and venture out into the great unknown.

Those who choose to venture outside of Trench will find that the strange happenings, the "events" that have plagued Sleepers since their arrival, sometimes do breech the borders of the city. Not all, particularly not those tied to the Tower or cults within Trench, but some. It seems much of the horror this world has inflicted seems to come from the magic in its very soil rather than from the Pthumerians themselves. New horrors will await as well, ones you can only hope you are prepared to face in unknown surroundings. There's a reason it's always been best to travel this world in groups rather than trying to go at it all by yourself.

Leaving the barriers will no longer cause immediate corruption or beasthood, but levels will rise faster than when you are in an established city with multiple people around you. Be sure to use as much precaution and bring as many preventatives with you as possible. Gifts from Pthumerians, someone who is willing to provide physcial contact, or anything else you have discovered eases the mental anguish is invaluable now.

The world outside of Trench is mostly wild. Miles and miles of beaches, woods, and about 250 miles south of Trench, there's even a full desert. There are other signs of abandoned cities all around the country, broken down churches and temples, small villages that looked like they may have once belonged to various settlers. There are some towns that are still populated, though it seems that their number of citizens are far, far fewer than Trench, and they seem to have their own set of Pthumerians that protect them from the outside world. These towns are welcoming, though, even if the closest one to Trench is nearly two weeks of travel for the average adventurer. You can fly to these places if you have the ability to fly and you may use any sort of speed bursts you have to your advantage to cut the time. Lamps may also now be established anywhere in the world, making journeying outward that much more convenient for all who choose to stay.

Enjoy your adventures and happy exploring.

[JUMP TO TOP] • [JUMP TO COMMENTS]

CODING

Comments

Michael | OTA

[eudaimonikos]

[So, once again, it's the end of the line.

There's a little more for Michael to wrap up in Trench than there was in Deerington. By the end of the dream, there wasn't much left there at all. But it's still a little bittersweet. He doesn't have as many friends left here anymore, but that only makes the ones who do remain all the more valuable. At least this time he hasn't accidentally murdered any children? That's a plus?

In the city, The Garb Place is having a clearance sale. Everything's gotta go! Michael is taking advantage of the decent weather to roll racks of clothes, bolts of fabric, and display cases full of accessories into the street.]

Hey! You want something! You don't really need to pay me, I'm not going to be needed money much longer. Well, I guess I could give it away...

[Maybe he will be demanding payment actually!

Once the shop is dealt with, Michael locks the door to his house - Amara's house, even still - behind him and takes off. Eleanor Junior is at his side. Last time, he didn't bring her with, but that was when everything had seemed but a figment of a dream. Now, she's definitely real. He can't just abandon her. Going to the afterlife only means one thing, for a living being...but what else can he do?

He seems a little pensive as he walks along the beach towards the final path out. Transitions, goodbyes...always weird, for a being like him.]

The Garb Place

[threelayers]

[Look, Neo was a clothes horse. She loved a thousand different styles, as long as they were pink, brown and cream in varying degrees... and lime green. She had pricey tastes when it came to her clothing. So, when she heard there was a big sale? She made it a point to stop by.

A look around told her the kind of sale it was. It was a tiny bit sad. she did, after all, occasionally chat with Michael, but she wasn't judging or upset. She'd do fine. Stopping over and looking over some of the better pink scarfs, she glanced around for the proprietor and gave him a wave. Hey, she could absolutely patron his shop one last time before the end.]

[eudaimonikos]

Oh, hey!

[He weaves over to come chat!]

You gonna be sticking around here? Can't imagine anyone's buying new stuff to carry back home...

[threelayers]

[She waved at him and walked over before leaning against the counter to wink at him, setting her omni down and typing one handed as they chatted.]

I'm just the sort to spend their last smelt on a perfect outfit to leave in.
But you guessed right, and I'm planning to stick around for the duration.
"Other Me" has a good thing going, but I'm fine as is.

You heading back?

[eudaimonikos]

Yeah, I'm headed back. Got work to do, and I don't really trust some other self to handle it.

[He shrugs. If the other him is really a proper double, he'd agree. If not, all the more reason to head back.]

I'll probably still drop by sometimes, since we can go back and forth. But I'm not gonna be needing a store anymore. Guess I'll keep the house, though - I don't want some strangers just up and moving in.

[threelayers]

[She snickered silently and nodded. Oh, she definitely 'got that.' Of course, her other self was flatly starting all over again, so why not just let her live her life while Neo enjoyed this one? It was like she was being reborn after all.]

It's kind of a nice option, being able to visit.
And you should definitely keep some sort of house, since we still don't have hotels.
Hell, we haven't really worked out a real economy yet.

Kind of sucks for a crook like me, hah.

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael laughs.]

What, it's not just a passion?

[threelayers]

the best passions are a lifestyle.
Of course, I'm nothing if not adaptable in the end.
And I'm pretty good at fighting so...

[She grinned and twirled her umbrella afterwards. You know, if someone hadn't ever seen her fight with that thing, it was probably a bit of a disconnect. She was definitely the cutest little huntress wasn't she?]

[eudaimonikos]

[Michael returns the grin.]

Oh, yeah, you'll do just fine. Plenty of stuff to fight out there. Maybe you can found a new city or two!

The Beach

[onerthes]

(OOC: Nope, not apologizing. He gets em both!)

[Vira-Lorr was on the beach when he came by. She had a few people to wish well on the way to their homes, and this seemed, more than anything else, like the best place to do it unless they had specific places they wanted to meet. In Michael's case? She was glad to see him there.

Getting to her feet, she winked and put her hands behind her back.]

So, it's time to say goodbye for now, is it?

[eudaimonikos]

Yeah! Just for now, I guess - it's a little easier now that I know we can just come back whenever!

[He does seem a bit more upbeat than when they last discussed the matter, even if the fact that it's a goodbye at all is still painful.]

I've got stuff to do, but it's on immortal time. I can easily take days or weeks off for whatever. Maybe do a little paperwork here.

[onerthes]

You're not wrong about that. Why, with that sort of arrangement? We could treat this place as a lovely little blood-soaked vacation spot!

[She was chuckling a little bit as she said it. She didn't really want to say goodbye, but she also had enough time that she could appreciate his perspective and had ample time to see him again and again.]

There's always going to be space here for you, you know. I might not be staying by the beach as much these days, but you do promise to let me know whenever you come to visit, I should hope.

That way, this really is more ... see you later than a goodbye for good.

[eudaimonikos]

Ha!

[He lets out a bark of laughter. Yeah - talking about coming back has picked up his mood a bit. Michael's expression softens into a genuine smile.]

Thanks. I'll let you know, promise. Maybe it won't even be that long - there's no way those two timelines are synchronous. Even if they were, they aren't linked.

[onerthes]

Honestly, you're not wrong. The way that time works between these worlds, you might live a lifetime there and come back tomorrow. True, it could be the same way around for someone staying here. It's not something to worry too much about.

Besides, maybe I'll figure out how to travel in time with blood magic first. [She was clearly finding this all as amusing as possible. It helped her own coping.] We live such a strange existence in this world, do we not?

[eudaimonikos]

It is a bit, isn't it? But I guess it usually turns out decent at the end.

[onerthes]

Yes, I would definitely say that it turns out decently in the end. In some ways, that's the most shocking part of our lives in this world. In the end? It really does turn out good, which is hard to believe when you first arrive, isn't it?

[eudaimonikos]

It really is, isn't it?

[None of this had ever bothered Michael as much as most people - but he knows that's just because he's got the time to wait out basically anything.]

Well. Hopefully there's not going to be a Trench Three in another few centuries. Or at least hopefully it won't suck us all in there next week or something.

[imaglyphwitch]

"Michael!"

Luz is here on the beach. She can feel the shift of things in the air, and knows she has to prepare for some of her friends to make the decision to move on from here. That was sad, but to be expected. There was no telling what one person's plans were, and if she had learned anything from the Doctor, it was that time wasn't a fixed place.

It fluctuated, and sometimes? It brought people back to you. You just had to be ready to weather when they went their own way.

"Where are you off to?"

[eudaimonikos]

"Just back home. The Good Place."

He waves a hand dramatically, tone a little dry. He likes his home well enough; he's in a much better position now than he's ever been before! Still, the mystique of the Good Place has long since worn off. It's probably for the best. Putting things - places, people, systems - on pedestals is never a good thing.

"How about you?" he asks. He knows a fair amount of people are staying, so he isn't making too many assumptions about who's going where.

[imaglyphwitch]

"Ah."

Luz had picked up enough from her conversations with Michael about what he did back where he was from. It was proof enough that there was always something OUT there, whether G(g)od or a Titan or some entity struggling to keep things in check. It was one of the reasons that she preferred thinking in terms just helping people.

"I'm staying! Gonna probably go beyond here, though. There's a lot more to explore now, and I want to help establish some lamps where I can. Other places are probably going to need help, and I want to make sure we're there to lend a hand!"

It at least helped she had several ways to get to far away places, but it would be much easier with lamps set up.

[eudaimonikos]

Michael nods. "Makes sense. I always thought that needed to happen eventually. I'm a little jealous I can't do much of it." Exploration! Setting things aright in the afterlife is important work - vital even - but it's long since ceased to be exciting.

"Maybe I'll stop by and help out sometimes." It's something he was already thinking about, unrelated to the exploration! Lots of people to visit, after all. "The thing about working on an immortal timeline is that it's pretty easy to take a few months here or there."

[imaglyphwitch]

"I knew that something big was going to happen, I just didn't know what. I think, after this, I'll change that. Start reading more old texts instead of just the ones that are in my bookshop, you know? Maybe I'll even start to write some of my own!"

Luz smiled. "That would be great. So this isn't a permanent goodbye then, just a 'see you later.' I can deal with that. This place would be a lot less interesting without you in it."

[eudaimonikos]

Michael grins back. "That's sweet of you. Yeah, it's an interesting place. I...I think I sort of like just being a guy, here." Sure, he also enjoys being in charge, back in the Good Place! But he's started to notice that his rank can make it hard for him to really get to know new humans the way he got to know his friends. Too much mystique, or baggage, or something like that.

[imaglyphwitch]

"I think I get what you mean. Back home. I know there's something I have to do there, and I'm sure there's a version of me doing that. Here though, this is where I belong. I feel like I found myself in pieces of Deerington, and wound up here. So. This place is a kind of home for me too."

Whatever Luz might be, she knew she wanted that to be here. This place had its hold on her, and at least now she had a way to go beyond Trench to the other places and still come back.

"In that case, take care. I'll be happy to see you when you come back, and who knows> Maybe we'll have changed things for the better when you see us again!"

[eudaimonikos]

"It's not a high bar, you can do it." He doesn't mean to sound patronizing! Michael just comes off that way sometimes! "I'll look forward to seeing it, then."