mehanizovati: (27)
Viktor ([personal profile] mehanizovati) wrote in [community profile] deercountry2022-03-31 12:24 pm

april catch - all

Who: viktor and others, open to all with some closed prompts
What: some late march/early april logs, including some tdm stuff. i'm happy to attach something else on if anyone's interest in doing something specific
When: late march through april
Where: various

content warning; terminal illness, arcane season 1 spoilers, likely game typical beast gore/body horror, potentially ableism mentioned, claustrophobic imagery



open prompts.

fishers of dreams - the lighthouse, early april (tdm)

a. while awake


[if you've been roped into this lighthouse business too you may enter to find a man already there. he seems vaguely disgruntled by the business, offers vague greetings but otherwise sticks to scribbling in his notebook. it looks like schematics and formulae, but anyone with an eye for either might notice they tend to trail off and start in odd bursts.

viktor will offer to cook when evening falls (or whatever seems to be the right mealtime in this place) so maybe that is a better time to strike up conversation. the smell coming from the kitchen is heavy on whatever spices the place stocks, promising pain to anyone who doesn't have the stomach for that sort of thing. worse if he finds the rotgut liquor tucked away, which he will pull out and offer despite smelling more like turpentine than anything edible.

these tricks of the eye though, flashes of people vaguely recognizable, he chalks it up more hallucinations. last month was mushrooms, so this? irritating, far more distracting, but it followed the pattern.

it isn't until later in all this he'll track whoever is with him down.]
Did you see someone else come through? There, just up the stairs.



b. nightmare

[trying to reach the odd lighthouses is fruitless, the shadows converge and when the dark clears the area seems more closed in than before. it shouldn't be, he was just outside on the shore, yet now the dark sky seems to hang too low, lower still, suffocating.]

What now? This is another illusion of sorts, is it not? One this place is so fond of. [viktor sounds more irritated than anything, maybe defensive since the grip his has on his crutch is white-knuckle tight. in the distance seems to be a lighthouse, though the light is far and the area is so stifling, promising a tunnel that will close and snuff out the light entirely.

it's ridiculous of course, the walls are not that close, certainly not enough for this suffocating grip on the lungs and throat. there's no real explanation, less so when a few steps forward and the ground begins to dot with great metal cables, the distinct, sickly sweet smell of chemicals in the air. there are pools between them where the ocean should have been, this time shallow spills of what could be gasoline or something similar, slick rainbow puddles, oily and difficult to walk through without slipping or sinking.]

(ooc; for this one please, feel free to add your own character's nightmare in any flavor at any point!)



odds and ends - willful machine, early april

[viktor can be found around the vendors often enough, especially those specializing in scrap metal, tools or small machinery. for the most part he doesn't stick out, except for the fact often his massive omen often accompanies him, some sort of huge pink salamander/axolotl that he'll lean against or ask rather politely to help carry larger purchases.

he doesn't seem to notice or care about any attention, though the creature will blink curiously around. feel free to approach or find him haggling rather intently for such a stick of a man, accent thickening when it gets heated enough. maybe you want the same scrap? or are looking for something and he's standing nearby enough to notice a lost look and offers assistance?]



[one might also find him about by the sound of a nasty coughing fit. he stands with his back curled, a rag to his mouth as a makeshift handkerchief. it's a wet cough that shakes his entire frame, and when it's over his sniffs and clears his throat, straightening.

the cloth is stained in a pale color that catches the perpetual moonlight of april. paleblood, that he regards for a moment before folding the cloth in on itself with a small frown.]





closed prompts.


jinx - willful machine, late march

[viktor doesn't stay by the lamp exactly. he would usually but he hardly sees the point when this person he's meeting knows him by sight as far as he can tell. it leaves him feeling comfortable to wander within eyeshot mostly of the lantern, strolling down the canal docks to find a place to stand and watch the boats cut slowly through the water.

he likes it here, he thinks, in this district. the noise and foot traffic, the winding canals and dirty water, the boats bobbing to and fro - it wouldn't be a bad place to set up. a lab that will double as his home because he doesn't see the point in separating the two any longer, even if he can practically hear heimendinger's tutting about his work-life balance in his ear. it will be closer to the vendors, less of a hike to acquire what he'll need to start fresh. first a new brace for his leg and back, then some basic experiments into lunar energy to get a feel for it.

his lungs flare and burn, minor enough he manages to swallow it down without reaching for the rag in his pocket. he makes a note of the severity and timing, adds it to his growing mental list that seems to indicate his illness does indeed remain but is diminished. promising, if he's being optimistic, but at the moment he feels only a sense of irritation that now he doesn't know the timeline of his own life. one he might be shortening drastically with this ridiculous stunt.

a sigh and viktor goes back to watching the boats, trying to clear his head. he considers trying to message vi and ask her opinion of this but... no, he doubts he'll get anything. he's not sure if he disgusts her as a class traitor or amuses her in truth. better to just see for himself what he's gotten himself into like a fool.]




allen - willful machine, early april

[the 'grand tour' doesn't amount to much yet, the lab area just a large, empty space dotted with a few tables and a couple of desks, not even a chalkboard he's been keeping an eye out for or something that could do the same. one of the desks at least is littered with junk, at the moment tools and the starts of a knee brace, a table nearby with all the scrap he's managed to grab that could be useful in the future. one corner has a cot, maybe he'll clear out whatever other small rooms the place has later for a bedroom proper. maybe not.

viktor seems satisfied with it as he gestures around, and rio has commandeered one of the tables for her own to lie across.]
A solid start, I think. I like this area, this eh... Willful Machine, that is.

[he'll never admit part of it is the boats. everyone's allowed a sort of childish interest, right? they're soothing, even if they lack the motors that fascinated him.] Have a seat, if you'd like. How have you been since the tombs?



wildcard.

[as i said, feel free to ask for anything else, including other tdm prompts, i am more interested in seeing the worlds built by others for the archway prompts so i didn't include any here. my plurk is [plurk.com profile] dichotomy or you can dm me here!]
megatheorem: (246)

[personal profile] megatheorem 2022-04-11 07:22 pm (UTC)(link)
[Oh boy, they sure are back on this again. Palamedes hums, amused; see, this is why they had to make it an evening, he hasn't even bothered to do anything with darkblood magic yet and the snacks are already running out. It's fine, though — it's good, and while explaining how the Nine Houses work politically may not provide much in the way of accomplishing any ends here in Trench, he's curious about Viktor's insights.

But first he scoops up Viktor's abandoned bowl and stands to set it on the tiny countertop that serves as most of the kitchen in here. He's a creature of endless little movements, and so he talks as he gets up:]


We have one sun and nine planets — eight Houses proper, the First is the Emperor's domain and I'm told he spends most of his time on a spooky spaceship.

[Or did, before making tea a few blocks away in Gaze for months on end, but he'll get there. He holds up one finger for that and now another, as this is now a numbered list.]

The House is the entire thing — like I said, some of them are bigger than others. The Seventh numbers a couple million, I don't recall the most recent census — but it's all one Seventh House, and so on for the rest. The Sixth is smaller, and we have a persistently worsening consanguinity problem — Camilla is actually my second cousin, one of many, though I don't know the rest well at all — still: the title of "House" signifies the whole, and "heir" to the legacy, not a single bloodline.

[Cool stuff. He's filled the snack bowls with water, to... soak? God, but if he never has to do dishes again, it will be too soon. That seems fine for now, and he returns to the table with the rest of the pomegranate that didn't make it into the snack.

Item three, with another finger held up:]
We're ten thousand years deep into the post-Resurrection era, which means exactly what it sounds like. By my understanding, the founders of the other eight houses left the First and it just... decayed.

[Good riddance, though. He offers the rest of the fruit, and item number four:]

Do you want this? Two of the Ninth are here— no, three, but I've yet to meet the other one— they're friends of mine. They're... unique. One of the Emperor's Saints is here, we've met, and- [he shuts his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose for this one, pushing his glasses up and askew, but Good God--] -the Emperor. Himself.

[Actually God, For Real!!! It's yet to stop feeling surreal. Palamedes hasn't clocked yet another non-friend from home kicking around, but sooner or later...]

As far as I'm aware, they all live together here in Gaze. [And Palamedes Lives Here, which can stand on its own. He fixes his glasses, ahem.] You can ask more questions, but d'you want me to do some magic in the interim?
hearuthinking: (Grr)

[personal profile] hearuthinking 2022-04-11 07:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Yep; Freud's rollin' in his grave, but fuck him. [He gives a humorless smile] That pretty much sums Trench up in a nutshell.

[He never really thought of himself as claustrophobic, but it's getting really enclosed here. Too similar to the catacombs last month where sometimes he had to crawl through bones. Jason shudders and feels something grab him, something strong that's going to drag him away. Instinctively he pushes Viktor back so he doesn't get grabbed by the creature, too]

[As the way nightmares go, it's kind of a weird mix of a skeleton and the well monster he fought when he first arrived. Jason gropes around until he finds his knife and starts stabbing wildly. He fought off a vampire; he's not going to let this nightmare take him out]
megatheorem: (027)

[personal profile] megatheorem 2022-04-11 08:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[Ah, double endearing tidbits, the yearning for spaceships and snack surprise. Palamedes has just sat down again but he half-stands, reaching across the little table to pinch at Viktor's sleeve and tug, so that he might wordlessly deposit the rest of the fruit straight into his hand. Yes, take this fruit, Palamedes won't even appreciate it despite the not-insignificant sliver he had to chip off one of his limited-quantity bloodstones to get all these rare foods.

He's not going to mention that part because he already gave his "do not pay me" friendship speech, QED.]


I want you to have it. Enjoy it. [It's a Gesture, accept it.] The Sixth has consanguinity tables, to keep track. Broadly, necromancers aren't allowed to marry inter-House — Imperial law.

[Uh huh. Magic time, though, and he stands straight to roll up his sleeves and step into the middle of the room, which isn't terribly far from the table, anyway. To the issue of the Emperor he says,]

That's right, [which is the truth, and,] I've decided to be neutral about that.

[Which is Nine Houses Drama.]

Now, for telekinesis, I've been working under the theory of two larger types that can be molded to suit specific needs, et cetera: with and without bloodshed. Here—

[He squints and crooks a finger, and with a little pop! a pomegranate seed comes loose from the rest of the fruit and wobbles in the air. Tada.]
hearuthinking: (Panic)

[personal profile] hearuthinking 2022-04-11 08:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah, yeah, get it in the fuckin' eyes!

[He remembers Esfir doing that to the actual well monster. And when Viktor lands a blow, the creature shrieks and releases Jason's grip. He quickly gets out of reach, shaking a little from the adrenaline and fear]

Thanks.

[He's still shaking a little. Once was enough with that thing]
tealeafs: (Default)

[personal profile] tealeafs 2022-04-11 09:08 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Chizuru nods at the first question he asks her, and then does briefly cast a glance over her shoulder. The sparrow doesn't seem visible anywhere near them right now, but maybe it's keeping an eye from the sky nearby..

Which is why she turns back to Viktor instead. ]


It was part of a job.

[ She speaks easily. Partially since Chizuru is just an honest girl, but also because she's more than willing to fill up the air with talking, since she can only imagine it's much easier for her to do so than for him right now. At least he'll have something to listen to, rather than sit there awkwardly coughing in silence. ]

You see, back home.. I was part of this group called the Shinsengumi. They were tasked by the shogun.. ah, um, that is.. basically a local leader of sorts. But they were tasked by him to protect the capital of our country. I'm actually not from that city, but when I travelled there one day, I got all tangled up in the Shinsengumi's business through.. um, a series of events. So they took me in as the page of the vice-commander. It's not really an important rank within the group, but.. I was just happy to be there and to be able to help out where I could, you know..?

[ Maybe it's a little more information than she usually would have given, since she kind of feels like she's rambling.. but on the other hand, Chizuru is definitely sure that the more she talks and fills up the empty air here, the better. So it doesn't matter if she says a little bit more than she usually might have in this situation. ]
megatheorem: (018)

[personal profile] megatheorem 2022-04-11 09:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[Ah, Cam could provide him with an itemized list, sorted top down through preference and her own personal judgment of being worth the effort to get, and so on. Alas. One day.

Palamedes does not wink again - almost, now that he's in the zone to show off magic it nearly happens - just smiling right back and then dropping into a shrug. That the inter-House marriage laws exist is something he's either never thought about or ignored completely when someone else was thinking about them, so — who knows.]


You'd have to — hello, Rio — you'd have to ask someone else about the laws. [A beat.] It could be arbitrary. Necro-cav marriages are kind of a no-no, too, but it still happens.

[So: random, maybe. Somebody's outdated nonsense ideas. Who knows if it was even the Emperor who came up with that one, perhaps one of the Saints was having a rough go of it and tired of their colleagues on a really extreme, "don't talk to me or my House ever again" level. Enough information about Way Back When is still gone forever...

Nevertheless, Palamedes flicks his finger and makes the seed spin faster, bouncing a little when Viktor brushes against it.]


I'm a quick study, to be fair. [yeah mhm yep this is the showing off portion, for sure] Blood quantity is proportional to the level of power, I think all evidence points to that thus far. Application is the inverse, which should vary by individual. Levels can be supplemented, where necessary — precision can be learned.

[Precision like zipping a pomegranate seed around in a tight circle above the table, before he lets it drop back down. Tada.... 2!!!]
hearuthinking: (Listen)

[personal profile] hearuthinking 2022-04-11 10:38 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm good, Vik. I'm good. [Shit, Nick was right: he really does repeat himself when he lies. Thankfully Viktor doesn't know him well enough to catch onto that yet]

Then we'd better keep goin'. [He shakes off the rest of the attack's aftermath so they can keep pressing forward. But after a few more paces he's starting to notice the weird noises, too]

You hear that? The fuck is that noise?
megatheorem: (054)

[personal profile] megatheorem 2022-04-11 10:46 pm (UTC)(link)
[Rio!! God! Give Palamedes half an hour to show off magic, then he will at last just ask if he can pat her on her big squishy head. Truly a wonder.]

Cam? We've known each other our whole lives. Some Houses have a stick up their collective ass about professionalism in the necromancer-cavalier partnership, [he says it like he's heard this quoted at him and rolled his eyes then just the same as he does now,] I think it's reductive to think of it like that. Cold, too.

[Then again, that line of thinking opens up the can of worms that is how some of the other Houses treat their cavaliers, but mm, not tonight; they've been through enough heavy subjects in the past half hour alone without getting into, say, the abject horrors of soul siphoning.

It would really kill the buzz of telekinetic parlor tricks, all told. He blinks, focusing again on the magic.]


I've been thinking about that, too. [He's not all wrapped up in his cloak today, being at home, but he's always wearing at least one robe-ish overpiece with many inside pockets, which he now reaches into for - a scalpel.] Oh — did you bring a match?

[For the incense, before he starts nicking his fingertips open for Blood Time.]

Step one, of course, is to take the internal power source and spill it out. I can do remote necromancy, so surely... [He waves a hand, like. Surely. Surely also this.]
megatheorem: (307)

[personal profile] megatheorem 2022-04-11 11:27 pm (UTC)(link)
[Sooner or later Palamedes will have to entertain his own omen, which may be a challenge, considering she is a very large bird that only loves him? He'll work it out in a way such that she would not maim any guests.]

You'd think, but here we are. Well — here I am. [A beat. Hey.] Now you've got me talking about her.

[Very clever, sir. It's a sort of melancholy smile he offers for this, since, well - he promised to talk about these things, Cam included, much as not having her around does feel sharply like he's missing a limb when he thinks about it actively.

That and he rather doesn't know where to start, which might be obvious from the "our whole lives" part; talking about missing Camilla is like talking about why he breathes air? She's not here; he misses her. How does he articulate the rest...

Luckily he has something else to do, that is, pricking his fingertip and willing just enough magic into the blood that beads so that it doesn't glitter away.]


That's the idea. Necromantic blood wards are easy enough to draw - could someone draw a darkblood ward, that creates, I don't know, an area of effect that can levitate an object? If I do this- [Smear. Blood on something, which he decides will be a mug he swipes off the counter and runs his finger around the bottom of.] -I can let it float without having to concentrate.

[Which it does, when he lets go, behold!! It's ready to drift over to Viktor, get ready.]
hearuthinking: (Default)

[personal profile] hearuthinking 2022-04-11 11:43 pm (UTC)(link)
That one's all you. I don't think I've set foot in a factory in my fuckin' life.

[Though what he knows about them tells him there should be more open space than he's feeling. So it's pulling out fears and combining them? Like how it pulled out the well monster and mashed it with skeletons from the catacombs]
hearuthinking: (Default)

[personal profile] hearuthinking 2022-04-12 12:21 am (UTC)(link)
[He raises an eyebrow, though his lip twitches a bit. So apparently Viktor is a bit wordy]

Yep. I told you about that well monster that attacked me when I first got here. It tried to grab me like that and drown me.
megatheorem: (211)

[personal profile] megatheorem 2022-04-12 12:33 am (UTC)(link)
[Ah, and complimenting her — that gets him, he can practically see the imaginary hook reeling him in, but maybe it's time. He'd been manic in the days immediately after her departure, and not in the mood a week or so ago, sitting on The Emperor's Own Sofa being asked the same sort of gentle nudging questions — those were not good times. Now, though, in his own home-away-from-home, and with the looming spectre of corruption always there...]

Ask me after this. [Before he can convince himself that he can put off the Cam conversation for another week. Ahem.] I'll — think of something.

[Until then: mugs! He lets it drift, pinching his fingertip to ooze out some more blood, in preparation for the next thing he smears it on - whatever that may be. He hasn't picked yet.]

I might be able to — if I had to guess, I would expect it to take more effort to manipulate, say, paleblood- [do not bleed into a cup for him, not that anybody is suggesting that, but do not] -due to the cross-type...

But once a ward is down, it should work independently — it's the making that takes the most effort.

[He comes over to the table, pleased - he's sooo good at magic - and tickled by how delighted Viktor is by something like this. He leans his non-bleeding hand on the back of Viktor's chair, watches him play with the mug. It will still float, although he's not entirely sure how long that one blood ring will last, so be careful with that...]

Coldblood — that one adds an elemental touch, I've seen it. What would we do with paleblood wards, do you think? You mentioned a shared paleblood experience, but it didn't sound... great. No offense.
hearuthinking: (Concern)

[personal profile] hearuthinking 2022-04-12 12:34 am (UTC)(link)
[The healthiest. Jason buries things down so deep he had to fall into a temple to open up to anyone. And he learned absolutely nothing from all the torture he went through in NOT sharing in February because he is still burying]

I'm tryin' not to think about it.

[Even without the vampires, there's the usual horrors of war that this place could use against them]

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