reddosmod: (Default)
Deer Country Mod ([personal profile] reddosmod) wrote in [community profile] deercountry2021-12-08 02:19 am

I'd go back in time and change it, but I can't

DECEMBER 2021 EVENT
Hello! We are trying a new style of event this December with archival-like entries that characters can ICly find in the Archives. This should allow characters to be able to plan against certain events that occur in-game and do research ahead of time, during the event, or after the fact.

The idea is that these prompts will provide you with all the possibilities characters could theoretically face from the prompt. We hope this leaves more open-ended opportunities for people to engage with. Anything mentioned in the excerpts could be an experience characters encounter. You can always ask for clarification on any prompt on the plotting page.

This is a way to keep all event prompts relevant since new characters would be able to "read up" on these events/excerpts by visiting the Archives or other such resources for information about past events and what they can anticipate from the setting.

We hope this new style makes sense and is fun for players to work with! They will rely on players creating more of the atmosphere than the prompts, but we think that the prompts will provide the perfect guidance as to what the atmosphere should feel like. Enjoy!

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE

Prompt One
[Image One: Holiday themed antler decoration.]
[Image Two: White stag with perfect, circular antlers with bits of ice attached.]

Prompt Two
[Image One: Sculpture of white rabbit with neck caught in a snare. Non-graphic.]
[Image Two: Person in red cloak and wolf mask turning around.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: Puppet making bloody snow angel in snow.]
[Image Two: Bloodied hands wrapped in bandages clenching.]

WINTER MOURNING
WHEN: Begins in December and can last until the end of Feb.
WHERE: Everywhere
CONTENT WARNINGS: Spoilers for various canons, survival situations, forced memory share


[A passage from Rituals of Trench: Remembering Our Pasts reads the following:]

"A long-standing tradition to celebrate Bone Season is for Deerians to collect antlers and bones salvaged from natural resources and create decorative home accents. These antler-bone decors are known formally as Winter Mournings and can be found in almost every residential home throughout Deer Country. Winter Mournings can be made to look like wreaths, candle holders, or simply an antler with a bow hung up on a wall.

Winter Mournings is seen as a way to honor one's past tribulations and how one has managed to survive and overcome hardships during their life. Winter Mournings serves as a testament to survival and a willingness to keep surviving even when things look bleak and dismal.

Creating Winter Mournings is considered a blessing to the Pthumerians Dorothea, Remina, and Argonaut. You will know if the blessing was accepted once your Winter Mourning begins to glow like the moon. Touch your Winter Mourning and you will be pulled back in time to a memory of a specific time when you or someone else had to survive something physically or mentally challenging. For some, it is merely a memory that cannot hurt, but for others, you may want to proceed with caution as it has been known to pull people physically back to times of war.

One cannot choose which memory they wind up in if it is their own, a friend's, or a complete stranger's. Winter Mournings was designed to create a sense of union and empathy among residents and is meant to open your mind and heart to those who have suffered around you. It is time you explore your past, or someone else's past, with an open mind and see how the other side has lived through hard times. These memories are known to be from adolescence, adulthood, or sometimes even futures that have not yet happened or timelines you have never known. After all, Remina sees all past and all history. That means they see all of your past and history too.

No memory lasts forever though. Once the memory has been concluded, you shall be brought back to the present by the Winter Mourning Stag: a great white beast with a circle of frozen antlers. It will come to you when the time is ready, and you will return to the present like waking from a dazzling dream.

Experiencing Winter Mournings can stabilize one's mood and provide restful sleep after, even if the memories may be difficult to swallow. It truly is a tribute to honor past horrors and traumas. Some memories are painful to remember, but forgetting them will never do anyone any good either. So hang your Winter Mournings and remember what matters.

Survive another day. You are worth it."

FAQ

1. Winter Mournings can produce new memories every time you touch them or the same memory.

2. Characters cannot choose what the memory is.

3. Characters can arrive in each other's memories regardless of if they already know each other. Multiple people can experience the same memory.

4. You can either experience the memory as a memory you can't touch or experience - or you can physically be in the memory and have to survive the situation as well. If you die in memory, your body will die wherever you had been touching the Winter Mourning.

5. Palebloods are capable of altering memories or how they or others experience memories.

6. Characters can be pulled into memories at random - as long as one of the characters in the memory share is touching a Winter Mourning at first.
RUN, RABBIT, RUN
WHEN: Month of December
WHERE: Everywhere/the woods
CONTENT WARNINGS: Themes of hunting, ghosts, curses, attempts at animal violence, hunting people based on blood types.


[An excerpt from Legends of Trench: Curses and Causations reads the following:]

"One of the most notorious legends of Trench is without a doubt the tale of The Huntress and the Hare. Most Trenchies have been told this tale since they were children, but for those unfamiliar, settle in.

This story begins with a mischievous god and an ambitious huntress. The Pthumerian Dorothea loved to play tricks on hunters trying to survive the Bone Season, setting animals free from traps and remaking the traps to catch the hunters instead. One day, a darkblood Huntress was fed up with Dorothea preventing her from catching food for her family and decided to settle the score. The Huntress began to hunt for Dorothea specifically, but it is no small feat hunting the god of trickery and survival.

The Huntress started to rely on her darkblood powers to alter reality to make the perfect traps. Innocuous trees turned into glue traps that anyone would stick to until they were freed by a darkblood or death took their pain from them. Walking through bushes would snag legs and necks, effectively trapping whatever creatures were unfortunate enough to wander for food. Magical snares and beartraps lock around victims with unrelenting force, leaving people and animals to try for help until they cry no more. While this took many innocent lives in the woods, animals, and people alike, it never seemed to work on Dorothea.

Dorothea continued to outwit the Huntress until she eventually drove the Huntress insane. The Huntress died without ever catching Dorothea, but they say her vengeful spirit awakens in winter and begins to set her traps yet again. The Huntress sends her traps and her dead animals after vilebloods and warmbloods to spite Dorothea and hope to maybe catch the god's attention. But Dorothea is no passive god. Dorothea spurs vilebloods and warmbloods to defend themselves against darkbloods and coldbloods.

Infamously, this has created enormous tension between the blood types during December some years, and it is said that the blood lust has caused the types to begin hunting one another regardless of old friendships and alliances. Beware the Huntress's curse. Some believe darkbloods and coldbloods can still hear her haunting commands and cries from the Trenchwood.

They say there is no ease for the tension between the bloodtypes until December has passed, but some believe palebloods may provide relief if they are willing."

FAQ

1. Characters will increasingly feel the urge to actively hunt one another using traps/etc.

2. The Huntress's curse includes undead animals/beasts chasing after warmbloods and vilebloods and magical traps. Players can invent unique traps for their characters.

3. There will be an innate urge to chase/hide from one another.

4. The curse can be broken by paleblood intervention, character death, or a gradual wearing off by the end of the month.
LOCKJOINT
WHEN: All of Bone Season
WHERE: On Sleeper bodies
CONTENT WARNINGS: Mild body horror, blood magic curses, physical curses, cures through blood ministration/blood letting, possible skin removal, injuries, possible death via starvation/exposure.


[An passage from The Sleeper Condition; Chapter 13: Bodily Aches and More. Found exclusively at the Lumenarium:]

"Generally speaking, Sleeper blood allows Sleepers to navigate this world without the fear of illness and disease. However, no organic body is perfect, and Sleeper blood has its own set of ailments to fret over. Blood Ministers have studied the phenomena of Lockjoint for years now and believe that it is linked to the crystalization found in Sleeper death, though the exact connection remains unknown.

Lockjoint tends to begin and last throughout Bone Season. Some Sleepers may never experience it, but for many, it becomes a reoccurring issue to dread each season. This condition forces blood magic to gather at the joints and effectively lock up. Sleepers find it difficult to move their bodies at the bends, fingers, knees, shoulders, etc without some form of discomfort. Minimal lockjoint can be painful and annoyance, but critical lockjoint can be fatal.

The most severe cases of lockjoint documented have shown Sleepers to have crystalization form over their joints, rendering parts of their bodies completely immobile. Some Sleepers have been found dead in this condition, all their joints crystallized, and it is believed most died from natural causes thereafter.

One can determine they are experiencing lockjoint when the coloration around the joints begins to darken in color, typically looking like a bruise. Calcification may occur rapidly the more magic a Sleeper uses or the more they expose themselves to outside elements. It is imperative that Sleepers remain properly clothed during Bone Season, even if they are coldbloods, and to invest in enchanted clothes that can lock in heat.

A known cure for lockjoint is the art of bloodletting. Puncturing the joints with small incisions seems to allow a release of the built-up magic and can provide immediate relief to the Sleeper. Catching lockjoint early is imperative. Alternative methods are soaking in hot springs and salted water.

Those who are in a more severe state will have to carefully have the crystals removed. This will likely remove the skin as well. Local anesthesia is highly recommended for the procedure. This process is known to leave scarring. The crystals can be saved and used as bloodstones from whoever they were harvested from. If you find a Sleeper dead from lockjoint, make sure to harvest the crystals as they are incredibly valuable.

This curse is believed to stem from Sleeper blood magic congealing within the body in contrast with the atmospheric magic of Bone Season. There is no known prevention for lockjoint. Lockjoint can impact all Sleepers regardless of bloodtype or the material their bodies are made from."

FAQ

1. This impacts characters regardless of blood type or their body - meaning it can impact characters with metal/plastic/plant/wood/etc bodies.

2. Players can choose how rapid or severe this gets and how quickly they can be healed.
CODING
arclightning: (exasperated | WHY)

b, listen, i know, i KNOW,,, but i need it

[personal profile] arclightning 2021-12-08 11:00 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Mako would absolutely have caught him and changed this memory if he'd been any closer, but as it is, when he touches the little antler decoration, he's whisked into the memory just about as Wu's limp body disappears through the door. It takes him a second to even place what's happening, and then— ]

This? Again? Come on—

[ Sorry Wu Mako's just yanking your arm to pull you along after this guy. He is not letting Wu get kidnapped again on his watch. Maybe this time he can do something. ]
royalfling: (huh | look | confused | concerned)

mako needs to relive this very bad day!!!

[personal profile] royalfling 2021-12-08 11:48 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Wu has only just processed what's happening when Mako grabs him. They head out into the hallway, the attendant dragging Wu's limp body down the hallway, away from the restaurant where memory-Mako sits at a table with Korra and Asami ]

Mako!

[ It's definitely his Mako. He's a little older, his hair is longer, and he's wearing the clothes that Wu bought for him to fit in a bit more with the aesthetic of the Raccoon Room ]

What, do you think we can, can stop it from happening?

[ Because memory-Wu is sure being stuffed into a laundry cart right about now ]
arclightning: (awkward | oh no | why this)

[personal profile] arclightning 2021-12-11 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
I'm not letting you get kidnapped again!

[ So, yes, they are absolutely chasing this attendant through the halls because Mako has pride to redeem, alright? Even if he turns out to be some memory-ghost who can't do anything, he at least has to try. Currently trying involves shoving current-Wu behind him and immediately spinning into a kick, sending fire at the attendant just as the sheets drop over the sides of the laundry cart, hiding memory-Wu from view.

Apparently, his bending at least counts here, because the guy goes down with a yelp, and then Mako does something new: with a circular motion learned almost directly from Korra, he shoves his arms down and creates a smooth river of ice underneath the cart. The kidnapper slams into it, sending it careening along the now-slick floor toward Wu and Mako.
]

Wu! Catch it!
royalfling: (huh | scared | sweat)

[personal profile] royalfling 2021-12-12 01:07 am (UTC)(link)
[ Wu really wasn't expecting, well, any of this. For Mako to shoot fire at the attendant, for him to bend ice like that, for him to be able to change things at all. Isn't this Wu's memory? He's pretty sure this never happened, but, well, he was unconscious and in laundry for this part.

He lets out a yelp and skids forward, nearly slipping on the ice so he can grab onto the cart. It almost pulls him over, but he manages to right it at the last second, panting heavily. The memory Wu pokes his head up, hazy eyed
]

Who're you?

[ Wu stares at him for a long moment, not at all sure what to do here. ]

I'm... you?

[ Memory Wu gasps loudly and flops back into the cart of laundry ]

You're me?! Hey there, handsome.
arclightning: (theories | makes no sense)

[personal profile] arclightning 2021-12-14 01:24 am (UTC)(link)
[ The almost-kidnapper is trying to scramble to his feet to escape, but Wu has a hold of... Wu, and Mako has an old grudge to settle. It's still harder to control ice, but he manages to at least push a bunch up from the floor in a sharp motion, freezing the man's feet in place so he tumbles right back over with a yelp and a thud, his head smacking into the wall. Mako waits a second to make sure he isn't going anywhere and only then turns around to hurry back to... both versions of Wu. ] ​

C'mon. We gotta get—


Mako blinks, glancing at the cart, and then at Wu, and then back to the cart ]

Him. Uh, you. Both of you. Out of here.
royalfling: (huh | sus | what | eyebrows)

[personal profile] royalfling 2021-12-14 01:29 am (UTC)(link)
[ Wu glances at Mako, then down at himself. He sure was out of it, wasn't he? It's so strange to be shown all these memories that he doesn't actually remember. First Guan, now this. ]

Up you get, buddy!

[ He reaches down to try and heft himself out of the cart, but he isn't very strong, even if he also isn't very heavy. He lets out a grunt, trying to maneuver himself under... himself. ]

Buddy, buddy, Wu? Me? Use your legs!

Legs! I have legs. Mako has nice legs.

[ Memory Wu lolls in the cart, not helping at all, and Wu feels himself flushing even though Mako knows exactly how nice he thinks Mako's legs are. But he doesn't need to know that he thought that then, too!

He manages to get memory Wu's arm around his shoulders and pulls him up, but as he tries to get him out of the cart, it falls over, and nearly takes them with it.
]

What's your plan here, big guy?
arclightning: (wu | catch | wu down)

[personal profile] arclightning 2021-12-15 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
[ Mako's kind of winging this one, which is... unlike him, but listen, he wasn't expecting a chance to redo one of the things he actually regrets today and things are moving very quickly.

He shoots Wu a look at his younger self's words, biting down on a smile that turns into a startled sound as the cart goes down, Wus and laundry and all. He has to fish them both out of a pile of sheets, which is... really something. Memory-Wu gets tangled in a sheet and Mako has to kind of pull it off him, and ends up with him sort of draped against Mako like he's laundry. He tries a step, and Wu doesn't move with him, and so Mako sighs and sweeps an arm under his knees.
]

The plan is to get him—you—both of you, out of here before more of Kuvira's goons show up. Did we ever find out what her plan was? C'mon.

[ Does Mako know where he's going? No. Is he walking anyway? Absolutely. ]
royalfling: (look | tease | huh | neutral)

[personal profile] royalfling 2021-12-17 12:59 am (UTC)(link)
[ That is weird. Really weird. Seeing himself draped against Mako, the other Wu's head lolling against Mako, and he's humming softly like this is just a great time for him. Honestly, aside from the kidnapping? It sort of is ]

You smell nice.

[ Wu would be mortified but, well, he stands by it. Mako does smell nice, and he's always thought that. But he decides not to comment on his other self flirting with his present-or-future boyfriend ]

No, I don't think so. Chief Beifong was looking into it, but it must have gotten lost in the shuffle of everything?

[ Which, now? Seems bad in retrospect. What was Kuvira going to do with him? ]
arclightning: (grinning | found myself)

[personal profile] arclightning 2021-12-19 12:37 am (UTC)(link)
[ Mako shoots his Wu an amused look, barely biting down on a smile as he hefts the other Wu against himself and starts heading down the other hallway. Wu must've been pretty badly drugged to have been asleep for so long. Mako still remembers his terrified face in the train, the fear in his voice even when Mako yanked him out of that trunk. He'd been pretty scared, too, and of more than just failing at his one job. Kuvira had already proven herself to be ruthless, and Wu knew how to defend himself even less back then. ]

I do, huh? I should've had her follow up. I should've... done a lot of things today that I didn't do.
royalfling: (soft | annoyed | look)

[personal profile] royalfling 2021-12-21 11:46 pm (UTC)(link)
Hey, you found me! I don't want to know what would have happened if you hadn't.

[ Wu follows after him, scurrying to keep up. The memory Wu lolls against him, his face pressing closer to Mako's throat. Wu is a little embarrassed by himself, but he's drugged! He can't help it! Can he? ]

Hey, watch it!

[ Okay, maybe he's a little possessive of Mako, even against his own self. Memory Wu smile hazily and looks up at Wu and lets out a loud gasp ]

You, you look just like me!

I am you!

[ Wu snaps back with a pout ]
arclightning: (Default)

[personal profile] arclightning 2021-12-23 11:34 pm (UTC)(link)
Wu.

[ Another amused look, kind of soft and fond as they reach a door just past the kitchen. Light filters through a tiny window, and Mako shoves the door open with his elbow, letting them out into a cramped alley. He hefts the half-awake Wu up a little higher—spirits, he's so light—and glances around for an exit. Boxes, a dumpster, with the smell of rotten food and damp in the air. Homey. Something Mako's smelled a hundred times. He should've done this the first time. ]

You jealous of yourself?
royalfling: (annoyed | talk | pout)

[personal profile] royalfling 2021-12-24 06:13 pm (UTC)(link)
No.

[ He is. But the smell of the alley distracts him and the grimaces, pressing closer to Mako and the other him ]

What's the plan here, big guy? Are you kidnapping me now?