reddosmod: (Default)
Deer Country Mod ([personal profile] reddosmod) wrote in [community profile] deercountry2021-09-08 06:20 pm
Entry tags:

All men must die, but first he must live.

SEPTEMBER 2021 EVENT
IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE

Prompt One
[Image One: Woman holding skull in bag. ]
[Image Two: Plants sprouting out of earth.]

Prompt Two
[Image One: Woman rocking back and forth in dark.]
[Image Two: Woman rowing down river with corpses on stakes on horizon.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: Beef cake man breaking arrows off of shield with a sword.]
[Image Two: Beefy man slamming axe into troll-like creature, spraying blood.]

GROWING PAINS
WHEN: September
WHERE: Everywhere
CONTENT WARNINGS: Minor blood ritual.


September, for many in Trench, is considered a month of personal sacrifice. It is the month of self-actualization and promise. To grow your future, you must first be willing to sacrifice your past. You cannot walk forwards while walking backward. All throughout Trench, natives can be seen in yards and on plots of land digging small holes and planting a variety of items. Some plant seeds, some drop in a ring, others bury small parts of a body. But the ritual is simple: bury something that represents your past and seal it with a promise for your future.

You can write yourself a note or cut off a lock of your own hair. The ways in which people do this are limitless since it's a largely personal experience. Find a small patch of soil and dig yourself a shallow hole. Bury the item inside, say goodbye to who you used to be, and cover the item up with dirt. Once you are done, you must shed at least one drop of blood onto the sacrifice. It must be your own blood willingly given. Once the blood hits the soil, a small flower will miraculously grow out of the earth within seconds.

A single, powerless flower, but this flower will be completely immortal. You can either keep it on the patch of land or dig it up and bring it home. The flower will be a representation of your progress in Trench: if its petals wilt, you are lingering too much in the past. If it is in full bloom and vibrant, you're on the right path to a better future. If the flower starts to rot, you're heading down a dangerous path.

The flower may not be able to sway you one way or another, but it may serve as a valuable reminder of the kind of life you wish to lead. Some people abandon the flowers entirely and never bother with them. After all, there are no real consequences if you let the flower rot. If a character is dropped, their flower will fleck away like dust. Many believe that the flowers are made of the same stuff omens are made of.

You can dig up other people's flowers and watch their progress (make sure to get player permission) instead. After all, not everyone will care enough about their own flowers to really observe them closely. The flowers can come in any species or size, even fictional flowers, but they will only be replicas. Meaning if your character's flower is typically used for healing, there will be no healing properties in this replica. The flowers cannot be destroyed.

Many natives in Trench will repeat this ritual a few times every couple of years since the ritual is for letting go of the past. After all, the promises you make to yourself now won't be the same promises you make to yourself ten years from now. People change and so too will their flowers. What the characters bury is largely open to interpretation.

RIVER OF REGRET
WHEN: September
WHERE: Some obscure location within Gaze
CONTENT WARNINGS: Mangled corpses of loved ones, birds eating corpses, themes of regret.


You will find raven feathers all over Trench. They may drift through the air, lightly touch you, or you might decide to pick one up. The moment you come into physical contact with a feather, a conspiracy of ravens tears through the air and scoops you up into a whirlwind of feathers and caws. It only lasts a few seconds before you're deposited into a canoe drifting along a still river. Another Sleeper is in the boat with you. You pass beneath massive stone walls carved into the likeness of Never Mind and his ravens.

The world is silent around you. There is no rain here. Instead, sunlight pours through breaks in the clouds. Sunlight dapples across the water and golden-red leaves of nearby trees. It's more serene than most places in Trench.

You turn a corner and smell it before you see it. The picturesque summer day is dampened by the stench of rot. Then you come upon them: corpses. Corpses tied up to posts with barbed wire, corpses put through spikes and suspended in the air. Ravens flutter to and fro, picking at strips of meat. It isn't until you're close enough that you realize you recognize the corpses.

They are the corpses of people you have hurt. And that doesn't just mean people you killed or physically harmed. These are the bodies of people you have deep regrets towards: a lover you wronged, a best friend you lied to, an enemy you wish you had forgiven. Not everything is as black and white as murder, after all, and this grisly graveyard of mangled bodies says as much. Sometimes our regrets haunt us like the dead, and it seems like yours have followed you to Trench. You might even see your own body up on a post or the body of your canoe companions.

You have one of two choices: ignore your regret or face it.

Choosing to ignore your regrets doesn't seem to have any ill consequences at first. You pass by the corpses and continue on your river voyage. But the water grows thicker, and you come across the same corpses only in a worse state. The situation gets progressively worse each time you ignore it, and the river gradually becomes a river of blood and gore. The stench becomes insufferable and you will become increasingly corrupt. Some may even turn into beasts right there on the river.

Facing your regrets means talking about them, even mildly, to your canoe companions. You simply need to acknowledge the corpses, acknowledge the slightest truth to your feelings towards those regrets. When everyone in your canoe has acknowledged their regrets, the ravens will come for you once more. You will be brought back to Trench and awaken in the School of Mutter. Those who faced their regrets will discover that they have been gifted a white gold compass. The compass's needle will always point in the direction of the nearest Lamp Friend no matter the chaos going on in the world. But the compass only works once you have calmed down and focused.

QUICK FACTS

1. Each boat can hold up to 4 people. There can be multiple canoes in the same area.

2. If you try to leave the boat, you will drown in the River of Regret.

3. This does not have to encompass every regret someone's had. It can only represent one or two things. The regret should have to do with another individual or one's self. Something like "I regret not going to college" wouldn't necessarily work within the parameters of the prompt.

4. The river can only be accessed by touching a fallen raven feather. Touching a raven feather attached to the bird or a quill does not count.

5. Characters can engage with this prompt as many times as they touch a raven feather.

6. Characters with no regrets will not see corpses, but they will still be able to interact with characters who do have regrets.
BLOODSPORT
WHEN: During the Blood Moon
WHERE: Everywhere but specifically, The Gate
CONTENT WARNINGS: Violence, fighting, forced aggression/violence, forced fighting.


The Blood Moon invokes religious reverence among Trenchies. September and October are the ultimate months of sacrifice to pay tribute to the gods and the blood that rules this world. An energy begins to swell among Trenchies and you keep hearing the same word whispered excitedly around the city: "Bloodsport."

As the Blood Moon floods the streets in red, you begin to feel antsy, like you don't know what to do with yourself. You're not necessarily angry, you just have an abundance of energy. You don't need to be told what it is: your blood is reacting to the moon. The Blood Moon enhances blood powers significantly and you're simply not used to that yet. You don't feel in control of your own power or maybe even your own mind. At least until you exert some power, some force. Slam a door shut or swing a sword, shoot some electricity or spit some poison and you'll feel at peace with yourself. That nervous energy will ease out.

Only to come back twice as strong. It starts to put you in a real fighting mood and you start to realize why the locals call this Bloodsport. Hunting down beasts and monsters might seem like the fun thing to do right now, but the real attraction for Bloodsport takes place at The Gate. You can hear the roaring crowd blocks away. Hundreds of Trenchies have settled in to watch Sleepers duke it out with each other or with locked-up monsters. Maybe join in the fight. At least you know the other Sleepers there want to be there...Right?

Unfortunately not. Those who resist Bloodsport will find themselves passing out more and more frequently. Eventually, they will be taken by Mysterious Forces to The Gate to be pitted against other Sleepers and monsters. Some Sleepers will be forced into a gladiator-style fight that they either must win or die trying. Most fights at the Gate do end in death, but there are some circumstances where someone surrenders. Of course, that never stops their opponent from killing them anyway...Hopefully, you're fighting someone who is still relatively reasonable. Both parties can be resistant to fighting, but they will feel obligated to fight each other. If they don't, monsters will be unleashed into the arena and your situation will get a whole lot worse.

Bloodsport can greatly enhance a Sleeper's ability and many believe it is a gift from the Pthumerian gods. It is generally considered an advantage to Sleepers during the Season of Blood to prepare them and train them to hone their skills for the Season of Bone. Many believe it is wisest to submit to Bloodsport and let yourself get used to the motions of violence in order to survive the remainder of the year.

QUICK FACTS

1. Casual physical training will alleviate Bloodsport feelings. You could get through the month just by jogging around a lot.

2. Characters forced to the Gate will not remember how or when they arrived - they will just wake up and be thrown into the Gate by some shadowy force.

3. Characters who willingly participate in violence/fighting will feel temporary relief from Bloodsport only for the feeling to increase.

4. Effects of Bloodsport last as long as the Blood Moon shines through September and October.

5. You can treat symptoms of Bloodsport with calming techniques such as aromatherapy, meditation, medications, etc. Can be based on what would ICly help calm your character but it should require a lot of it.

6. You can invent the monsters/beasts that are at the Gate. They should be killable creatures and easily captured for the purpose of the Gate.
CODING
jedies: (Beginners)

( river of regret )

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-11 09:05 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan takes this in stride, arms folded neatly, not a twitch of a muscle. he has, of course, encountered far worse. ]

I would hardly think so. This seems more a product of this place.
incandescentfaith: (Serious Thought)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-11 02:22 pm (UTC)(link)
[The knife doesn't make it into her hand before she releases the grip. It's an explanation that cuts through the cloud of her irritation, and she exhales slowly, some of the defensiveness ebbing away.]

...I'd hoped to be done with that nonsense after Deerington.

[Frustration, as ever, remains.]

Sorry. Force of habit, expecting something to try and eat my face and all.

Any idea where this place is?
jedies: (Ambush)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-12 01:23 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan nods, accepting this with ease. ]

I'm afraid not. I was carried away by some birds and now here I am.
incandescentfaith: <user name=cupcakegraphics> (A Glare)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-13 04:04 am (UTC)(link)
Same. How...bizarre.

[Rei slowly sinks down into the boat, settling herself.]

I had hoped that nonsense like this would be over when we left Deerington.
jedies: (Overlords)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-15 08:40 am (UTC)(link)
[ he sighs. ]

It does seem very dogged about following us.
incandescentfaith: (Leaning Forward)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-15 10:44 pm (UTC)(link)
Welcome to Trench, where nothing's changed except the fashion.

[There's a bitter edge to her voice, but her attention is ahead now, moving towards something looming out of the darkness.]

Do you smell that, sir?
jedies: (Angels and Demons)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-18 01:29 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan looks up, surveying the area. his brow furrows. ]

Yes. Something draws near. Flesh and . . . blood.
incandescentfaith: (Noticing)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-19 06:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Yes. I...feel it.

[Her eyes strain to see further, her second sight opening...but nothing appears immediately. Nothing save an island...an island filled with corpses.]

...it's bodies. Lots of them...
jedies: (Angels and Demons)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-20 09:16 am (UTC)(link)
[ his hand strays to his saber, clipped to his belt. ]

Be on your guard. I fear trickery is afoot here.
incandescentfaith: Icon by <user name=palpos> Colors by Naoko (U Wot?)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-21 03:53 am (UTC)(link)
Of course it is.

[Rei is no stranger to seeing corpses now, and the sight of someone strung up on a gibbet is not quite as shocking as it was. But it is there, a humanoid shape, twisting in the breeze.]
jedies: (Holocron Heist)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-21 09:01 am (UTC)(link)
[ hmm. ]

Do you recognize anyone?
incandescentfaith: <user name=cupcakegraphics> (Side-Eye)

do you want his regret or hers to go first?

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-21 09:28 pm (UTC)(link)
Not at this distance. If we get closer...

[Which they seem to be doing.]
jedies: (Voices)

you can go first!

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-22 12:41 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan scans the distance. ]

I have a bad feeling about this.
incandescentfaith: (Huffy)

CW for dead body, hanging, and burn scars

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-22 03:34 am (UTC)(link)
As do I, sir.

[Rei stops, eyes widening as they get closer. The corpse hanging there is, now that they've come within a closer proximity, one she does recognize. A man, pale, with a mop of blonde hair. The rope around his neck may have caused the death, but more likely the cause is the horrific mass of burned tissue all over anywhere exposed...]

...Oh. This is definitely this place doing something to us.
jedies: (The Disappeared)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-22 09:38 am (UTC)(link)
[ hmm. ]

I don't recognize that man.
incandescentfaith: <user name=cupcakegraphics> (♂ Bloodied)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-23 01:37 am (UTC)(link)
I do. He's been dead for ten years. Deerington liked to show me his face, when things were bad.

[Rei glowers up at Jadeite's corpse, clearly put off by this.]

I killed him. I don't know why his body is here this time.
jedies: (The Lost One)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-23 10:44 am (UTC)(link)
Perhaps it is rooted in the reason.

[ killing, after all, is not something to do lightly. obi-wan is sure there are a couple of choice corpses along the path for him as well. ]
incandescentfaith: <user name=cupcakegraphics> (Focused)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-24 04:45 am (UTC)(link)
Perhaps. I don't know why, though. I only did it to stop him from kidnapping and murdering children.

[Which, really, anyone good and decent would probably do.]

I...suppose maybe it's trying to tell me something, but what I can't fathom.
jedies: (Son of Dathomir)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-26 12:55 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan ponders this briefly. ]

Was he your first kill?
incandescentfaith: (Not Pleased)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-27 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
Yes. And the only sapient being I've ever killed outside of Deerington.

[Deerington, of course, is an exception.]

Everything else I've personally killed has been mindless, artificial life or spirits.
jedies: (The Lost One)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-29 02:32 am (UTC)(link)
Then perhaps that is why.

Taking a life . . . is a difficult thing, no matter how noble a cause. They are robbed of all potential futures and possibilities.
incandescentfaith: (Leaning Forward)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-29 05:28 am (UTC)(link)
You...speak as though from experience.

[It's gentle, but it is probing. She does not know this man, and opening up too much with strangers is not Rei's way.]
jedies: (Beauty and the Beast)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-29 07:47 am (UTC)(link)
[ obi-wan sighs. ]

I have killed before. Many times. It is not something I am proud of, even if necessity drove my blade.
incandescentfaith: <user name=cupcakegraphics> (Deeply Concerned)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2021-09-30 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
I'm sorry to hear that, sir. Are you some sort of soldier, then?
jedies: (The Lost One)

[personal profile] jedies 2021-09-30 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
[ he shakes his head. ]

A peace-keeper. Though, I've had to fill the role of a soldier lately.

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